Shillong, Feb 5: Two days from now history will be made with the first Indian Super League match to be held in Shillong at the JN Stadium, Polo, with NorthEast United FC set to face Mumbai City FC on Friday evening.
This will be one of three ISL 2024-25 matches to be held here, with the Highlanders also to face Bengaluru FC (21st February) and East Bengal (8th March).
The last two have, obviously, been here before – East Bengal just last year for the Durand Cup quarterfinal and Bengaluru many moons ago when they were in the I-League. NorthEast United were also here for last year’s Durand Cup where they beat Shillong Lajong in the semifinals before heading to Kolkata where they won the final.
Although fans are expected to turn out in force regardless, many will be hoping that NEUFC forward and local hero Redeem Tlang (pictured) features in the match.
It seemed like only yesterday that Redeem was one of the bright young talents of Shillong Lajong but now he’s approaching 30 (he’ll hit that milestone later this month) and recently celebrated playing in his 100th ISL match.
He had a key role in the Highlanders’ Durand Cup triumph and has played 11 matches so far this ISL season. Naturally, he is thrilled to have the tournament come to Meghalaya.
“It’s a very special moment for me personally and also for the people of Meghalaya to experience ISL matches in Shillong,” said Redeem while speaking to the ISL media team. “ISL is the top league in the country and to have it come to your home is an incredible feeling. People all over Meghalaya love football. I urge them to support us, to give us that extra boost when we play here. We want them to cheer for us from start to finish.”
Beyond the excitement of hosting ISL matches, Redeem believes the league’s presence in Shillong will have a lasting impact on young footballers. Exposure to professional football at a young age can inspire future generations and elevate the sport’s development in the region, he opined.
“The ISL matches happening in Shillong are very important for the kids because they get to enjoy football from a very young age. It wasn’t like this when I was growing up. The grassroots football scene here has been improving steadily and this will further help the sport’s growth in the state and across the country.” Redeem stated.
In the same press release sent out yesterday, NorthEast United CEO Mandar Tamhane said that he was bowled over by the response to the Durand Cup in Shillong.
“When we played the semifinal of the Durand Cup against Shillong Lajong here, it was an eye opener for me even though I’ve been involved in Indian football for over 25 years,” he said. “The online tickets were sold out in 12 minutes and there were 5km long queues for physical tickets. Fan parks in different districts were also jam-packed. We are a club representing eight states and we always wanted to bring football to parts of the North East. Seeing the response we got for the Durand Cup, reaffirmed our decision to come to Shillong this season itself.”
The ISL arguably wouldn’t have come to Shillong had the government not taken the decision a few years ago to make the JN Stadium pitch natural grass. And NEUFC must have been extra motivated to come to Shillong given that the Meghalaya government has generously arranged for 15 acres for the club to set up an academy in Mawkhanu.
(Indian Super League Media photo)
