The 2021 Calcutta Football League Premier Division A was the 123rd season of the top state-level football league of West Bengal. It was held between mid-August and November 2021.[1][2] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was decided to cancel Calcutta League last season,[3] but it was played this year.[4][5]
| Season | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 17 August – 18 November |
| Champions | Mohammedan (12th title) |
| Matches played | 41 |
| Goals scored | 123 (3 per match) |
| Best Player | Anurag Dhawa |
| Top goalscorer | Santosh Baro |
| Best goalkeeper | Kuldeep Singh |
| Highest scoring | Tollygunge Agragami 2–6 Peerless |
← 2019 2022 → | |
Changes from last season
editRules and regulations
edit- Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic in West Bengal, the tournament format is shortened by adopting a league-cum-knockout format.[4] The 14 participating teams would be divided into two groups and each team would play against all the other teams in their respective groups once. The top three teams from each group would earn a direct quarter final berth. The remaining four teams from each group would play against each other once for the last two quarter final spots. The eight qualified teams would then play knockout matches to reach the final of Premier Division A.[5] From similar reasons ATK Mohun Bagan and East Bengal have not participated.
- The IFA had also increased the number of overseas players a club could register from 4 to 6, but only 2 could be named in the starting eleven.[6][7]
- The teams were exempted from relegation this season as the lower divisions of CFL were cancelled due to the pandemic.[6][7]
Promoted clubs
edit- United
- Railway
- Tollygunge Agragami
- Kidderpore
Relegated clubs
editTeams
editManagers and captains
edit| Team | Head coach |
|---|---|
| Aryan |  Rajdeep Nandy
|
| Bhawanipore | Sankarlal Chakraborty
|
| BSS | Goutam Ghosh
|
| Calcutta Customs | |
| George Telegraph | Ranjan Bhattacharjee
|
| Kidderpore | Sanjib Pal
|
| Mohammedan |  Andrey Chernyshov
|
| Tollygunge Agragami | Bimal Ghosh
|
| Peerless | Subrata Bhattacharya
|
| Railway | Souren Dutta
|
| Southern Samity | Biswajit Bhattacharya
|
| United |  Steven Herbots
|
Foreign players
edit| Team | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aryan |  Aristide Vaillant
|
 Kareem Omolaja
|
||
| Bhawanipore |  Kamo Stephane Bayi
|
 Henry Kisekka
|
||
| BSS | Léonce Dodoz
|
Seydou Kourouma
|
||
| Calcutta Customs | Gatch Arthure Diomande
|
 Varney Kallon
|
||
| George Telegraph | Echezona Anyichie
|
|||
| Kidderpore | Ejiogu Chinedu Emmanuel
|
 Stephen Abeiku
|
||
| Mohammedan |  Nikola Stojanović
|
Stefan Ilić
|
 Marcus Joseph
|
 Shaher Shaheen
|
| Peerless | Ansumana Kromah
|
 Dixon Alusine
|
Romaric Bettat
|
|
| Railway | Ben Quansah
|
Rayden Gonzo
|
Kelvin Kollie
|
|
| Southern Samity |  Victor Kamhuka
|
|||
| Tollygunge Agragami | Christopher Chizoba
|
|||
| United | Dennis
|
Matthew Tendai
|
Group stage
editGroup A
edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bhawanipore | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 7 | +7 | 14 | Qualified for Quarterfinals |
| 2 | BSS | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 7 | +6 | 13 | |
| 3 | United | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 5 | +6 | 13 | |
| 4 | Mohammedan | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 5 | +5 | 10 | Relegated to Elimination round |
| 5 | Railway | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 9 | −1 | 7 | |
| 6 | Southern Samity | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 12 | −5 | 3 | |
| 7 | East Bengal | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 18 | −18 | 0 |
Updated to match(es) played on 3 September 2021. Source: The Away End
Note: East Bengal withdrew from the league hence the oppositions were awarded walkover of 3 goals.
Fixtures and results
editGroup B
edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peerless | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 5 | +9 | 13 | Qualified for Quarterfinals |
| 2 | Calcutta Customs | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 4 | +9 | 13 | |
| 3 | George Telegraph | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 12 | |
| 4 | Aryan | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 9 | Relegated to Elimination round |
| 5 | Tollygunge Agragami | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 10 | −2 | 7 | |
| 6 | Kidderpore | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 16 | −10 | 4 | |
| 7 | ATK Mohun Bagan | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 18 | −18 | 0 |
Updated to match(es) played on 26 August 2021. Source: The Away End
Note: ATK Mohun Bagan withdrew from the league hence the oppositions were awarded walkover of 3 goals.
Fixtures and results
editElimination round
edit| Play-off round 1 | Play-off round 2 | |||||
| Mohammedan | w/o | |||||
| ATK Mohun Bagan | ||||||
| Mohammedan | 3 | |||||
| Tollygunge Agragami | 1 | |||||
| Tollygunge Agragami | 2; 5(p) | |||||
| Southern Samity | 2; 4(p) | |||||
| Play-off round 1 | Play-off round 2 | |||||
| Aryan | w/o | |||||
| East Bengal | ||||||
| Aryan | 0; 2(p) | |||||
| Railway | 0; 4(p) | |||||
| Railway | 5 | |||||
| Kidderpore | 0 | |||||
Knockout stage
edit| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 1 October 2021 – Kalyani | ||||||||||
| BSS | 1 | |||||||||
| 8 October 2021 - Naihati Stadium | ||||||||||
| George Telegraph | 2 | |||||||||
| George Telegraph | 0 | |||||||||
| 5 October 2021 – Naihati Stadium | ||||||||||
| Railway (a.e.t.) | 1 | |||||||||
| Peerless | 0 | |||||||||
| 18 November 2021 - Salt Lake Stadium | ||||||||||
| Railway | 4 | |||||||||
| Railway | 0 | |||||||||
| 2 October 2021 – Naihati Stadium | ||||||||||
| Mohammedan | 1 | |||||||||
| United | 3 | |||||||||
| 12 October 2021 - Kalyani | ||||||||||
| Calcutta Customs | 2 | |||||||||
| United | 0 | |||||||||
| 9 October 2021 – Kalyani | ||||||||||
| Mohammedan | 1 | |||||||||
| Bhawanipore | 0 | |||||||||
| Mohammedan | 7 | |||||||||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Ghosh, Sabyasachi (1 July 2021). "আগস্টের মাঝে শুরু হবে কলকাতা লিগ, আইএফএর বৈঠকে গরহাজির এসসি ইস্টবেঙ্গল" [Kolkata League to start mid-August, SC East Bengal absentee in meeting]. XtraTime Bangla (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 1 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
- ^ "CFL: ১৮ অগস্ট থেকে শুরু হচ্ছে কলকাতা ফুটবল লিগ" [Kolkata League to start from 18th August]. Anandabazar (in Bengali). 1 July 2021. Archived from the original on 1 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
- ^ "No Calcutta Football League This Season, Decide Premier Division Clubs". Indian Football Association (West Bengal). 25 February 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ a b Sagnik (1 July 2021). "No East Bengal in Calcutta Football League? IFA to consider shorter format". The Bridge. Archived from the original on 1 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
- ^ a b "Indian Football Association plans Premier Group A from August". The Telegraph. 2 July 2021. Archived from the original on 2 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
- ^ a b "Calcutta Football League pullout may relegate SC East Bengal, says Indian Football Association". Firstpost. 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
- ^ a b "আগস্টের তৃতীয় সপ্তাহেই শুরু কলকাতা লিগ, নিয়মে একাধিক বদল". sangbadpratidin. Archived from the original on 2 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.