U-17 women's championship to begin in Kalyani today

Kalyani (West Bengal): The Hero U-17 Women's Championship 2019, organised by Football Sports Development Limited and Reliance Foundation, will get underway here from Monday.

The tournament was announced earlier this year by FSDL chairperson Nita Ambani while addressing the Indian Super League (ISL) club owners' meet, which was also attended by All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel.

Aimed at helping India select its players for the 2020 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, to be held in the country, the seven-day tournament will have four teams competing against each other.

The four-teams – Panthers, Tigresses, Lionesses and Cheetahs -- will face each other once in a round robin format.

A total of 73 players will be pitted against each other as part of the four teams, with each team having a five-member support staff consisting of a head coach, assistant coach, goakeeper coach, physio and team manager.

Coached by India's national U-19 women's team coach, Alex Ambrose, the Lionesses will certainly pose a threat to the other teams along with a great learning experience.

Cheetahs are expected to be boosted by Indian football legend and Arjuna Awardee, Oinam Bembem Devi.

There will be no lack of experience and expertise as Tigresses and Panthers will be coached by former U-14 women's team coach Priya and former India national team member Subhash Chakraborty.

Organised under the aegis of the All India Football Federation, the tournament final will be played between the top two sides on Sunday, November 17.