George Telegraph
Full nameGeorge Telegraph Sports Club[1]
Nickname(s)Georgians
Founded1925 (1925)
StadiumRabindra Sarobar Stadium
Barasat Stadium
Head coachGoutam Ghosh
LeagueCalcutta Premier Division

George Telegraph Sports Club is an Indian football based in Kolkata,[2][3] West Bengal, that competes in the Calcutta Football League,[4][5] the top tier state football league in West Bengal.[6][7] The club plays all their home matches at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium. They have also competed in the I-League 2nd Division, the second tier of Indian football league system.[8][9]

Founded in 1925[10] and affiliated with the Indian Football Association (IFA),[11][12] the club is known by its nickname "Georgians".[13]

History

The club was founded by Haripada Dutta in 1925, and A. L. Corbett, principal of the George Telegraph Institute, became first chairman.[14] They started out on the 4th division of the Calcutta League and after 21 years they were finally promoted to the 1st division of Calcutta Football League beating Rajasthan Athletic Club 3–1. In the same year, they reached the final of the IFA Shield, but due to the anti-British riots the final couldn't be held. Instead of declaring them as joint winners with Mohun Bagan AC, the entire tournament was scrapped. Some of notable Indian footballers including Rajen Ghosh, Monimohan Ghosh,[15] Sheoo Mewalal,[16] Sushil Bhattacharya,[17] Runu Guha Thakurata, Monoranjan Bhattacharya, Satyajit Chatterjee, Aloke Mukherjee, Shasthi Duley, appeared with George Telegraph.[14] Noted Indian football manager Yan Law began his playing career at the club.[18]

They stayed at the top flight for 66 years[19] but in 2002 and 2003, they suffered back-to-back demotions. Then again they got promoted twice in two successive years and since then they have been staying in the top flight. In 2004, they emerged as the runners-up of the All Airlines Gold Cup. In the same year, they reached semi-finals of prestigious Trades Cup.[20] Their first participation in the I-League 2nd Division was in 2009, where they finished 4th, behind Oil India FC and were eliminated in the group stage.[21][22] Therefore, George Telegraph was unable to qualify for the I-League, then top tier of football in India. In 2013, they again got a chance to play in I-League 2nd Division, which became their second season.

In 2020, the George Telegraph emerged as the runners-up in the prestigious IFA Shield tournament,[23] the third oldest association football tournament in the world, losing to 2–1 to the I-League side Real Kashmir FC.[24][25][26] They reached the semi-finals of 2021–22 Calcutta Premier Division in November 2021, but their campaign ended with a 1–0 loss to Railway FC.

In June 2023, the Indian Football Association (IFA) announced the merger of both Premier Division A and B of the Calcutta Football League ahead of its 125th edition, in which George Telegraph was placed in Group II.[27][28][29]

Home stadium

George Telegraph plays their home matches of Calcutta Premier Division at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium, which has a capacity of nearly 20,000 spectators.[30]

White gate with stone pillars and a tree
Entrance of the Barasat Vidyasagar Krirangan.

They also use Barasat Vidyasagar Krirangan for some of their home games. It has Artificial turf and achieved a two-star rating from FIFA.[31]

Players

First-team squad

As of 5 August 2022

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
4 DF India IND Sourish Lodh Chowdhury
5 DF India IND Mohon Sarkar (Captain)
8 FW India IND Souvik Kar
9 FW Mali MLI Abdoulaye Kanouté
10 FW Argentina ARG Matías Verón
11 FW India IND Goutam Das
13 MF India IND Souvik Ghosal
20 FW India IND Sachin Singh
25 DF Liberia LBR Varney Kallon
No. Pos. Nation Player
30 MF India IND Ameen Palakkathodi
31 GK India IND Arup Debnath
44 DF India IND Chandril Basu
— GK India IND Bhaskar Routh
— MF India IND Rathindranath Karmakar
— MF India IND Rudra Pratap Singh Bist
— FW India IND Sougata Hansda
— DF India IND Sk. Abdul

Club officials

As of 3 July 2020

Personnel

  • General secretary: Subrata Dutta
  • Joint secretary : Anirban Dutta
  • Executive secretary: Adhiraj Dutta
  • Team manager: Sabyasachi Sarkar

Coaching and medical staff

  • Head coach: Goutam Ghosh
  • Assistant coach: Samar Deb
  • Goalkeeping coach: Jagadish Ghosh
  • Physio: Murtuza Sabuwala

Honours

League

Cup

Other department

Men's cricket

The club has its men's cricket section, which is under the jurisdiction of Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB).[40][41] The team participates in First Division League, J.C. Mukherjee T-20 Trophy and other regional tournaments.[42][43]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Sarkhel, Ujjal (9 August 2016). "Mohammedan SC suffers first loss; go down 1–2 to Tollygunge". Kolkata: Thif-Live.com. Archived from the original on 21 August 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  2. ↑ "Calcutta Football League 2018-19". kolkatafootball.com. Archived from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  3. ↑ Maitra, Moinak (18 September 2021). "রবিবার পিয়ারলেসের বিপক্ষে মাঠে নামছে জর্জ টেলিগ্রাফ". rplus.in (in Bengali). Kolkata, West Bengal: R Plus News Bangla. Archived from the original on 18 July 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
  4. ↑ "IFA CFL Premier-A 2019 to start from 26th July". KolkataFootball.com. 22 July 2019. Archived from the original on 27 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  5. ↑ "Calcutta Football League 2019 to kick-off on July 26". Goal.com. 22 July 2019. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  6. ↑ "Official Website". georgetelegraph.org. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  7. ↑ "East Bengal lose 0-1 against George Telegraph in CFL tie". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  8. ↑ "Top five underdog teams in Calcutta Football League 2019". Khel Now. 25 July 2019. Archived from the original on 18 May 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  9. ↑ Chaudhuri, Arunava (5 March 2013). "Mumbai's Kenkre FC name squad for 2nd Division I-League". sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 7 March 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
  10. ↑ Calcutta Football League: George Telegraph vs East Bengal. Archived 12 May 2021 at the Wayback Machine. sportstar.thehindu.com. Sportstar. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  11. ↑ "Calcutta Premier Division A 2019/20". indiafooty.com. Archived from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  12. ↑ East Bengal vs George Telegraph Archived 12 May 2021 at the Wayback Machine. timesofindia.indiatimes.com. The Times of India. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  13. ↑ Ogunyale, Bunmi (12 April 2013). "Indian league is goldmine – Orok Orok Essien". Soccer Star NG. Archived from the original on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 21 September 2013.
  14. 1 2 "ফুটবলার তুলে আনতে জেলামুখী জর্জ টেলিগ্রাফ স্পোর্টস ক্লাব" [District oriented George Telegraph Sports Club to pick up footballers]. insidesports.in (in Bengali). Kolkata: Inside Sports Bengali. 18 July 2021. Archived from the original on 22 October 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  15. ↑ Nasar, S. A. (2020). "SAMAD: FOOTBALL WIZARD OF INDIA". Booksie. Archived from the original on 29 September 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  16. ↑ "Player: Sheoo Mewalal". ifawb.com. Kolkata: Indian Football Association. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  17. ↑ "ইস্টবেঙ্গলের প্রথম কোচ প্রয়াত" [First coach of East Bengal passed away]. www.anandabazar.com (in Bengali). Kolkata: Anandabazar Patrika. 19 July 2015. Archived from the original on 16 August 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  18. ↑ Chowdhury, Ayantan (7 November 2019). "By the touchline: Yan and the Laws of a young football coach". newindianexpress.com. Chandigarh: The New Indian Express. ENS. Archived from the original on 8 November 2019. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  19. ↑ Chakraborty, Debojyoti (29 August 2017). "WHEN EASTERN RAILWAY RAN ON FULL STEAM (1958)". www.goaldentimes.org. Goalden Times. Archived from the original on 11 November 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  20. ↑ Chaudhuri, Arunava (2004). ""Khadims" Traders Cup 2004". indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 18 July 2017. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  21. ↑ "ONGC I-LEAGUE (2nd Division) 2008-2009". kolkatafootball.com. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  22. ↑ I-League 2nd Division 2009 results, standings and statistics Archived 12 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine Soccerway.com. Retrieved 26 February 2021
  23. ↑ "IFA Shield: Real Kashmir win first major tournament, beat George Telegraph 2-1". indianexpress.com. The Indian Express. 19 December 2020. Archived from the original on 8 October 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  24. ↑ "IFA Shield Fixture" (PDF). ifawb.org. 25 November 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 July 2021. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  25. ↑ "123rd IFA Shield 2020–21". kolkatafootball.com. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 5 November 2021.
  26. ↑ "123RD IFA SHIELD RESULTS 2020–21: Awards after the FINAL (VYBK)". kolkatafootball.com. Kolkata Football. 19 December 2020. Archived from the original on 21 November 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  27. ↑ "Calcutta Football League (CFL) goes bigger than ever for its historic 125th season". thefangarage.com. Kolkata: The Fan Garage. 5 June 2023. Archived from the original on 6 June 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  28. ↑ Chakraborty, Sanghamitra (5 June 2023). "Calcutta Football League: মোহনবাগান-মহমেডানের গ্রুপে অভিষেকের ক্লাব, ইস্টবেঙ্গলের গ্রুপে ভবানীপুর" [Calcutta Football League: Debutant club in Mohun Bagan-Mohammedan group, Bhavanipur in East Bengal group]. TV9 Bangla (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  29. ↑ Biswas, Koushik (5 June 2023). "Calcutta Football League : বাজল কলকাতা ফুটবল লিগের ঘণ্টা, কঠিন গ্রুপে মোহনবাগান" [Calcutta Football League: Bell of Calcutta Football League rings, Mohun Bagan in tough group]. Ei Samay (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  30. ↑ "ATK's home ground will be Rabindra Sarobar stadium". Business Standard. Press Trust of India. 21 August 2016. Archived from the original on 17 January 2019. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  31. ↑ "Barasat Turf granted Two-star grading". the-aiff.com. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2013.
  32. ↑ Chattopadhyay, Hariprasad (13 September 2019). "আটান্নর মতো কড়া লড়াই দেখা যাচ্ছে এই লিগেও" [A tough fight like 1958 is also being witnessed in this season's league]. abandabazar.com (in Bengali). Kolkata: Anandabazar Patrika. Archived from the original on 26 September 2022.
  33. ↑ King, Ian; Morrison, Neil; Veroeveren, Piet; Cruickshank, Mark (30 May 2013). "India 1985 – Regional Leagues: Calcutta League". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022.
  34. ↑ "Premier Indian Futuristic Football Academy — Coaches — Subir Ball". piffa.in. Burdwan. 2023. Archived from the original on 8 November 2023. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
  35. ↑ "Sports News | Real Kashmir Win First Major Tournament, Beat George Telegraph 2-1 in IFA Shield Final". LatestLY. 19 December 2020. Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  36. ↑ "IFA Shield: Real Kashmir win first major tournament, beat George Telegraph 2-1". The Indian Express. 19 December 2020. Archived from the original on 8 October 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  37. ↑ Arunava Chaudhary. "List of Winners/Runners-Up of the Airlines Gold Cup:". Indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
  38. ↑ "14th All India Darjeeling Gold Cup: PREVIOUS WINNERS". kolkatafootball.com. Kolkata Football. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  39. ↑ Arunava Chaudhuri. "List of winners and runners-up of the Kohima Royal Gold Cup". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 6 October 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  40. ↑ "The Cricket Association of Bengal: First Division Clubs". cricketassociationofbengal.com. Kolkata: Cricket Association of Bengal. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  41. ↑ Early History of Bengal Cricket leading to the formation of the Cricket Association of Bengal in 1928. Archived 23 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine. The Cricket Association Of Bengal (CAB). Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  42. ↑ "First Division". Cricket Association of Bengal. Archived from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  43. ↑ "IN THE CITY 06-01-2011 — Shreevats slams 201 Cricket meet Chirag win Horse show". telegraphindia.com. Kolkata: The Telegraph India. 6 January 2011. Archived from the original on 14 January 2024. Retrieved 26 December 2023.

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