Street football leagues help identify young talent

Galli cricket is passé; Chennai has a new sport to look out for. While the Indian Super League is making football get noticed, there is another version of the game that is keeping fans busy: street football. 

It’s a form in which four or seven players feature on a team. There are usually walls built around the playing space and there are no corner kicks or throw-ins. It is built to be used as a way to deflect the ball in tight situations to dribble past a defender or pass to a teammate,” explains Rohit Ravindran, a photographer who started Kick-off, a street football arena in ECR, in November 2014.

“I started this out of my love for football,” he says. “My friend, Prithvi Reddy, offered me space inside his ECR Speedway Go-Karting track, where I built the street football arena,” he adds.

Rohit also organises leagues that see good participation. Explaining the league format, he says, “All teams that register to play the Kick-Off Chennai League have to play all their opponents. The team that accumulates the most number of points wins Kick-Off Chennai League (KOCL).”

The league has also helped in identifying talent. “It is vital to nurture street football as it helps these skilful players sharpen their skills on a larger pitch. All the ‘one trick pony’ players are forced to develop more and better ways to play effectively. Defenders can also sharpen their tackling skills because the attack is going to be faster here,” says Rohit.

ISL’s effect on the game is all too visible, according to him: he has been getting enquiries about coaching for young children in football. “I’m happy to see people showing interest in football now. We have so many talented players here, and Kick-Off will work on bringing their skills to the fore.”