Kerala football team

Kerala football team
Full name	Kerala football team
Founded	1948; 76 years ago
Ground	Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Capacity	80,000
Owner	Kerala Football Association
Head coach	Satheevan Balan
League	Santosh Trophy
2022–23	Final Round
	Current season

The Kerala football team (Malayalam: കേരള കാൽപന്തുകളി ഗണം) is an Indian state level football team representing Kerala in Indian state football competitions including the Santosh Trophy.^[1]^[2]

History

The team appeared in the Santosh Trophy finals 15 times, and have won the trophy 7 times. Kerala last won the Santhosh Trophy in 2022 by defeating Bengal in the final on 2 May at the Payyanadu Stadium in Malappuram. The Kerala team was captained by Jijo Joseph under head coach Bino George, being unbeaten during the tournament.

Players

Current squad

As of 03 February 2023:^[3]

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Club
23	1GK	Midhun V	(1994-06-13) 13 June 1994 (age 29)	Kickstart FC
32	1GK	Ajmal P. A.	(1995-11-12) 12 November 1995 (age 28)	FC Areekode
33	1GK	Alkesh Raj	(2000-02-15) 15 February 2000 (age 23)	SAI Kollam

2	2DF	Akhil Chandran	(1997-01-24) 24 January 1997 (age 26)	Gokulam Kerala FC (Reserves)
3	2DF	Sanju G
4	2DF	Sachu Siby	(2000-05-31) 31 May 2000 (age 23)	Kerala United FC
5	2DF	Shinu R		Kovalam Football Club
22	2DF	Muhammed Salim	(2000-11-02) 2 November 2000 (age 23)	KSEB
24	2DF	Ameen K		FC Areekode
29	2DF	Belgin Bolster		KSEB
30	2DF	Manoj M	(1996-08-21) 21 August 1996 (age 27)	Kerala United FC

7	3MF	Nijo Gilbert	(1999-10-16) 16 October 1999 (age 24)	KSEB
11	3MF	Abdu Raheem		BASCO Othukkungal
13	3MF	Hrishidath	(2000-02-05) 5 February 2000 (age 23)	Gokulam Kerala FC (Reserves)
14	3MF	Arjun V		Don Bosco
17	3MF	Vishak Mohanan		Gokulam Kerala FC (Reserves)
18	3MF	vinayak		Thrikkarippur FA
25	3MF	Gifty Gracious	(1999-08-16) 16 August 1999 (age 24)	KSEB

9	4FW	Riswan Ali	(1996-12-19) 19 December 1996 (age 27)	FC Areekode
16	4FW	George Ns	(2000-06-14) 14 June 2000 (age 23)
19	4FW	John Paul		KSEB
26	4FW	Naresh Bagyanathan		Muthoot FA

Current technical staff

As of 31 August 2023

Position	Name
Head coach	Satheevan Balan
Assistant coach	Bineesh Kiran
Goalkeeping coach	Hameed KK
Physio	Akshay R
Manager	Mohammed Rafeek

Results and Fixtures

26 December 2022 Santosh Trophy Qualification	Rajasthan	0–7	Kerala	Kozhikode
15:30		Report	Nijo Gilbert 6' Viknesh M 12', 20' Naresh Bhagyanathan 23', 36' Riswanali Edakkavil 55', 81'	Stadium: EMS Stadium

29 December 2022 Santosh Trophy Qualification	Bihar	1–4	Kerala	Kozhikode
15:30	Munna Mandi 70'	Report	Nijo Gilbert 24', 28' Vishak Mohanan 81' Abdu Raheem K. 85'	Stadium: EMS Stadium

1 January 2023 Santosh Trophy Qualification	Kerala	5–0	Andhra Pradesh	Kozhikode
15:30	Nijo Gilbert 16' Mohamed Salim 19' Abdu Raheem K 45+4' Vishak Mohanan 53' Viknesh M 62'	Report		Stadium: EMS Stadium

5 January 2023 Santosh Trophy Qualification	Kerala	3–0	Jammu & Kashmir	Kozhikode
15:30	Viknesh M 51' Riswanali Edakkavil 76' Nijo Gilbert 90+3'	Report		Stadium: EMS Stadium Referee: Deepraj Damodar Sangelkar

8 January 2023 Santosh Trophy Qualification	Mizoram	1–5	Kerala	Kozhikode
15:30	Malsawmfela 80'	Report	Naresh Bhagyanathan 30', 65' Nijo Gilbert 47' Gifty C. Gracious 77' Vishak Mohanan 85'	Stadium: EMS Stadium Referee: Mohammed Junaid Saijad Tanji

10 February 2023 2022–23 Santosh Trophy	Goa	2–3	Kerala	Bhubaneswar
09:00	Mahammed Faheez 60', 73'	Report	Nijo Gilbert 27' Riswanali Edakkavil 57' Asif O M 90+1'	Stadium: Capital Football Arena

12 February 2023 2022–23 Santosh Trophy

Kerala

0–1

Karnataka

Odisha

14 February 2023 2022–23 Santosh Trophy

Kerala

4–4

Maharashtra

Bhubaneswar

17 February 2023 2022–23 Santosh Trophy

Odisha

0–1

Kerala

Bhubaneswar

19 February 2023 2022–23 Santosh Trophy

Kerala

1–1

Punjab

Bhubaneswar

Statistics and records

Season-by-season

As of 19 February 2023

Champions Runners-up Third place

Season	Santosh Trophy							Qualifiers						Top Scorer
Season	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pos	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Player	Goals
1973–74^[4]							Champions	Automatically in the group stage Proper						TKS Mani	7
1987–88	6	4	2	0	10	1	Runners Up	Automatically in the group stage Proper						C. V. Pappachan	5
1988–89^[5]							Runners up	Automatically in the group stage Proper
1989–90	6	3	1	2	11	9	Runners Up	Automatically in the group stage Proper						I. M. Vijayan, Santosh	3
1990–91^[6]							Runners Up	Automatically in the group stage Proper
1991–92	4	3	0	1	12	0	Champions	Automatically in the group stage Proper						PS Asheem, Harshan, Rajeev	3
1992–93	6	4	0	1	8	3	Champions	Automatically in the group stage Proper						I. M. Vijayan	3
1993–94	2	1	0	1	6	1	Runners Up	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Jo Paul Ancheri	3
1996–97	4	2	1	1	6	1	Semi Finalist	Automatically in the group stage Proper						VP Shaji	3
1997–98	3	0	2	1	0	3	Group Stage	Automatically in the group stage Proper
1998–99	1	0	0	1	1	3	Semi Finalist	2	2	0	0	5	1	Asif Saheer	3
1999–00	5	3	1	1	10	5	Runners up	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Asif Saheer	4
2001–02	4	4	0	0	16	8	Champions	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Abdul Hakim	7
2002–03	4	3	0	1	10	7	Runners Up	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Sylvester Ignatius	3
2004–05	4	3	1	0	9	4	Champions	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Abdul Naushad	2
2005–06	3	2	0	1	4	1	Semi Finalist	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Abdul Hakkim	2
2006–07	4	2	2	0	5	1	Semi Finalist	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Pradeep	3
2007–08	3	1	2	0	3	9	Group Stage	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Asif Saheer Abdul Naushad Javed OK	1
2008–09	1	0	0	1	0	1	Pre Quarter	2	2	0	0	8	0	Zubair KP	3
2009–10	1	0	0	1	0	1	Pre Quarter	3	3	0	0	18	3	Javed OK	4
2010–11	1	0	1	0	0	0	Pre Quarter	3	2	1	0	8	1	NA	NA
2011–12	5	3	2	0	8	4	Semi Finalist	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Kannan	2
2012–13	5	3	2	0	8	4	Runners Up	Automatically in the group stage Proper						Kannan	4
2013–14	4	2	0	2	6	4	Group Stage	4	3	0	1	23	4	NA	NA
2014–15	5	3	1	1	4	4	Semi Finalist	2	2	0	0	10	0	V P Suhair	3
2015–16	did not qualify							2	1	1	0	3	1	Firos Seesan Askhar	1
2016–17	5	2	1	2	11	9	Semi Finalist	3	2	1	0	6	2	Jobby Justin	5
2017–18	6	5	1	0	18	3	Champions	2	1	1	0	7	0	Rahul KP Afdal VK Jithin MS	5
2018–19	did not qualify							3	0	2	1	0	1
2019–20	Not held due to covid							2	2	0	0	11	0	Emil Benny	3
2021–22	6	4	2	0	19	7	Champions	3	3	0	0	18	1	Jesin TK	12
2022–23	5	2	2	1	9	8	Final Round	5	5	0	0	24	2	Nijo Gilbert	8

Honours

State

Santosh Trophy
- Winners (7): 1973–74, 1991–92, 1992–93,^[7] 2001–02,^[8] 2004–05, 2017–18, 2021–2022
- Runners-up (8): 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1993–94, 1999–2000, 2002–03, 2012–13
National Games
- Gold medal (2): 1987, 1997
- Silver medal (2): 1994, 2022^[9]^[10]
- Bronze medal (1): 2023
B.C. Roy Trophy
- Winners (3): 1968–69, 1971–72, 1972–73
- Runners-up (5): 1973–74, 1974–75, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1985–86
Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy
- Winners (2): 1981–82, 1983–84
M. Dutta Ray Trophy
- Winners (1): 1995

Others

Sait Nagjee Football Tournament
- Runners-up (1): 1986

References

^ "Kerala Football Association".
^ "West Bengal, Kerala & Punjab drawn together in tantalizing group in 75th edition of Hero Santosh Trophy". the-aiff.com. All India Football Federation. 6 January 2022. Archived from the original on 6 January 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
^ "Goalkeeper Midhun to lead Kerala in Santosh Trophy".
^ "India - List of Santosh Trophy Finals". Retrieved 2 October 2023.
^ "23rd Santosh Trophy". Retrieved 2 October 2023.
^ "India - List of Santosh Trophy Finals". Retrieved 2 October 2023.
^ Bobrowsky, Josef; King, Ian (6 December 2006). "India 1993 – Santosh Trophy". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "2001/02 Season in Indian Football". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
^ "National Games: W Bengal hammer Kerala 5–0 to clinch gold in men's football". wap.business-standard.com. Ahmedabad: Business Standard India. IANS. 12 October 2022. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
^ Sarangi, Y. B. (11 October 2022). "National Games: West Bengal routs Kerala 5–0, wins men's football gold medal after 11 years". sportstar.thehindu.com. Ahmedabad: Sportstar. The Hindu. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.

[1] "Kerala Football Association".

[2] "West Bengal, Kerala & Punjab drawn together in tantalizing group in 75th edition of Hero Santosh Trophy". the-aiff.com. All India Football Federation. 6 January 2022. Archived from the original on 6 January 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.

[3] "Goalkeeper Midhun to lead Kerala in Santosh Trophy".

[4] "India - List of Santosh Trophy Finals". Retrieved 2 October 2023.

[5] "23rd Santosh Trophy". Retrieved 2 October 2023.

[6] "India - List of Santosh Trophy Finals". Retrieved 2 October 2023.

[7] Bobrowsky, Josef; King, Ian (6 December 2006). "India 1993 – Santosh Trophy". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.

[8] Chaudhuri, Arunava. "2001/02 Season in Indian Football". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2021.

[9] "National Games: W Bengal hammer Kerala 5–0 to clinch gold in men's football". wap.business-standard.com. Ahmedabad: Business Standard India. IANS. 12 October 2022. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.

[10] Sarangi, Y. B. (11 October 2022). "National Games: West Bengal routs Kerala 5–0, wins men's football gold medal after 11 years". sportstar.thehindu.com. Ahmedabad: Sportstar. The Hindu. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.

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v t e Santosh Trophy
Seasons	1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
Qualifiers	1999–00 2008–09 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2021–22
Group stage	2021–22 2022–23
Finals	2017 2018 2019
Teams	Andaman and Nicobar Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chandigarh Chhattisgarh Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu Delhi Goa Gujarat Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Ladakh Lakshadweep Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Odisha Pondicherry Punjab Railways Rajasthan Services Sikkim Tamil Nadu Telangana Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand West Bengal

v t e Sports teams based in Kerala
Cricket	Ranji Trophy Kerala IPL Kochi Tuskers Kerala (now defunct) CCL Kerala Strikers
Football	ISL Kerala Blasters I-League Gokulam F.C. Chirag United (now defunct) I-League 2nd Division Kerala Blasters (R) F.C. Kerala Kerala United FC Indian Women's League Gokulam F.C. Women Elite League Kerala Blasters (R) Gokulam F.C. F.C. Kerala MSP Football Academy Santosh Trophy Kerala KPL F.C. Kerala FC Thrissur Gokulam F.C. Kerala Blasters (R) Kerala United FC SBI Kerala Sports Academy Tirur
Futsal	APFC Kerala Blasters FC AFCC Kerala Blasters FC
Volleyball	Prime VL Kochi Blue Spikers Calicut Heroes