Hosts Mumbai will set ball rolling when they take on Osmanabad in the opening match, a Group-A tie, on the first day of the WIFA (Western India Football Association)-Maharashtra State Inter-District Women’s (Senior) Football Championship -2016, sponsored by LIC and organized by MDFA (Mumbai District Football Association) and to be played at the Goan Sports Association ground, Cross Maidan on Tuesday evening at 5.00pm.
Yuva Sena leader, Shri Aditya Thackeray, Chairman of MDFA will inaugurate the tournament at the Goans Ground.
Meanwhile in Group-C encounters, Gondia meet Jalgaon at 3.00pm followed by the match between Amravati and Kolhapur at 5.00pm at the Karnatak Sporting Association ground, Churchgate.
A total of 15 district teams from across Maharashtra will be seen in action during this 11-day tournament. The finals are slated to be played under floodlights at the Cooperage ground on Friday, May 6.
The participating teams have been divided into four groups and the tournament will be played in two phases. Matches in the first phase will be conducted for teams from Group-A and Group-C from April 26 and will be completed by April 29. Teams from Group-B and Group-D then compete in the second phase which will start from May 1 and fini sh on May 3.
The team which tops the group will qualify for the semi-finals, which will be played at the Cooperage ground. The winner’s of Group-A and Group-C will contest the first semi-final to be played on Saturday, May 30 and the winner’s of Group-B and Group-D will contest the second semi-final on Thursday, May 5. The grand finale is slated to be played under floodlights on Friday, May 6.
The winning team will be presented with the Champions’ trophy and a cash prize of Rs 15,000, while the losing finalist will receive the runners-up trophy and a cash award of Rs 10,000. A special award of Rs 5,000 will be presented to the ‘Best player of the tournament’.
The Groupings:
Group ‘A’: Mumbai, Ahmednagar, Bhandara, Osmanabad.
Group ‘B’: Pune, Aurangabad, Satara.
Group ‘C’: Gondia, Amravati, Jalgaon, Kolhapur.
Group ‘D’: Nagpur, Dhulia, Sangli, Thane.