HYDERABAD: It continues to do lot of kicking around, more off the field than on it. In a circular released to the departments and affiliated clubs, the Andhra Pradesh Football Association (APFA) termed the Chief Minister's Cup - a State-level sports festival featuring more than 15 disciplines, including soccer - as "illegal" and has even threatened it's affiliated clubs and teams and directed them not to take part in the event.

Considering that the State Government had earmarked about Rs.3 crores for the CM's Cup, the circular from the APFA clearly took the top brass of the Departments and the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh by complete surprise. The reaction was predictable.

`Soccer lovers baffled'

"It is very unfortunate that APFA has released such a circular when the State Government is making every effort to promote sports in a big way," says G. Kamala Vardhana Rao, SAAP VC & MD. "First, we will find out how genuine is this group in the APFA and what Constitutional authority it has to take such a decision in view of the two warring groups," he added.

What baffled the football lovers and the various district teams' officials is how can the APFA which does practically nothing to promote sport except engage itself in court cases, take this audacious step.

"This is not the way to promote sport," said a senior official of RR District Football Association.

Association divided

Significantly, SAAP may now be forced to have a re-look at the allotment of the office to APFA at the Lal Bahadur Stadium premises itself if this is the posture the warring groups in the APFA take against the Government.

This move can be judged amidst the backdrop of the recent dressing down that the so-called APFA officials got from Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, President of All India Football Federation, during a visit to Hyderabad in connection with the recent AICC plenary.

"You have converted the sport into a big joke. What is your effective contribution to it? Do you have any plans to make a sincere start to revive football at any level? Well, these were the posers which drew question-mark faces.

Demonstration sport

Meanwhile, there was some disappointment in the badminton circles too with the organisers deciding to delete badminton from the list of disciplines and replacing it with softball.

"Definitely, the younger lot from the districts were denied a chance to compete at the State-level and in the State capital," said an APBA official.

But, the organisers clarified that it was because the CM's Cup was primarily projected to be a show for mass-followed disciplines and also that badminton has enough events on it's calendar.

It was also informed that bodybuilding will be a demonstration sport to lure more youngsters into it.

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