Ong Tshering to captain young Sikkim squad to Santosh Trophy zonal

GANGTOK, 12 Jan: A 20-member squad is all set to represent Sikkim in the zonal round of the Senior National Football Tournament for Santosh Trophy to be held at Jamshedpur in Jharkhand. This time, the state team is primarily featuring young footballers playing for the first time in this prestigious tournament. This young squad will be backed by few experienced footballers of the state. The team is being led by experienced mid-fielder, Ong Tshering Lepcha as captain.
The team members are:
Goalkeepers- Bimal Bagdas and Karma Tshering Lepcha
Stoppers- Nim Tshering Lepcha, Amit Darjee, Dawa Lepcha, Tempa Lhendup Bhutia, Wangchuk Bhutia and Bishal Chettri
Midfielders- Ong Tshering Lepcha, Bikash Gurung, Roshan Pradhan, Suk Raj Limboo, Chandra Tamang, Sanjay Chettri, Sahinsha Ansari, Novin Gurung and Pappu Chettri
Strikers- Sudesh Subba, Tshepel Bhutia and Sishil Karthak
The team is being accompanied by Pushpa Gurung as coach, Kamal Bagdas as manager and Rakesh Gurung as assistant manager and will be leaving on Tuesday [13 January] for the tournament. 
Coach Pushpa Gurung informs that the best players from different clubs of the state have been included in the state team. He adds that local footballers presently playing in different prestigious clubs of the country were also invited but were not able to come due to prior commitments with their respective clubs.
“We also want to give exposure to our young footballers in this prestigious tournament as this is the best platform for them to come into the notice of spotters of different clubs,” he adds.
The state-team members underwent a 15-day coaching camp held at Paljor Stadium. “All team members are in peak form and all set to given a tough fight to their opponents,” Mr Gurung said.
Sikkim has been placed along with Odisha, Railways and Chattisgarh in the zonal round. Sikkim is playing against Odisha on 16 January then against Railways on 18 January and with Chattisgarh on 20 January. Only the zonal topper will be advancing to the next round of the tournament.
[SAGAR CHHETRI]