SAFF- Oppurtunity Up for Grabs

SAFF football is just around the corner and the quest for much needed glory in Nepali football is about to begin. 20 years since the start of regional football competition, Nepal has nothing substantial to show for. The tournament could not have come at right time for Nepal. While the country is in stalemate, a tournament win could be paving stone for happy days, or a loss would be just another chapter of sad days of Nepal. As I see, there is nothing to lose for Nepal and everything to gain for. Although we are playing in home, we are not considered title favorites and that helps us in some ways. We are tabled in the group of deaths. There are opportunities to be grabbed and plenty to play for.

Nepal’s build up to the much awaited tournament has to be said fair. The team is back to homeland having toured two gulf countries, playing 5 matches, winning 4 of them. Whatever may be the strength of opposition, Nepal team would have loved to have wins under the belt. After all winning is a habit, which Nepal has acquired. It would also have been helpful to players to be in the right kind of mood and shape. A nice play combination must have been established.

 The strikers look like are firing. Again, it is about feeling good about being in the field, determination to be in the right place, making the opportunities and making opportunities count. Goals of any nature would have helped them. It is not time to criticize strikers for their failure in the past; they need our support which there will surely be plenty of. I believe Nepal has to play with two strikers; constantly changing position because that will keep the defenders engaged and create space in the midfield. Football is a team game and it is not only striker’s fault to not score goals. It is important to understand that there have not been enough balls from the midfield for them to play with.

Play from the midfield is dependent on the formation team plays in. Jagjeet Shrestha (if totally fit) is a sure starter and he is the most important player for Nepal, in other words playmaker. But I have a problem, if he has not got pace to work with his skills, opposition will easily close him down and Nepal may never get going. So it is important for team to have someone easily available around him to receive pass and distribute the play. Play in the midfield must be such that there are always multiple passing opportunities. We need players in midfield who can ride out the challenge, both defensively and offensively.  Mid fielders who can move the ball very quickly while in attack and while defensively close the opposition and slow the pace of the opposition must be included in the team set up.

Five of the six defenders selected for the tournament will surely start any game. If opposition can beat our defense in anything, that is in pace. There are experienced players in the defense, so defense may not be a big problem for Nepal. It is occasional lack of concentration while going for goal, that Nepal often concedes a goal. Nepal win not concede too many goals, so that should not be a problem.

All in all, this is the best side we can gather and the team looks balanced. What is important is the team to play as a team and to play for each other and for the crowd. All the fans want to see is a determined performance. It is important for players to understand that this is the last opportunity for them to create glory and make name in the history. International careers of most of the players are in line and they too must be determined to create history. The team is fairly unchanged for almost about 3-4 years with occasional new names, so they all understand each other.

I believe Nepal has to play very tactical game. Best team according to the tactics should be fielded from the start. Nepal always starts brightly but that slowly fades as the game progresses, and opposition gains confidence. The crowd goes erratic and Nepal loses all the momentum. So, Nepal should go on aggressively from the start and try to create chances. The crowd will be after them, opposition will take time to settle. Scoring early will help everyone settle and the crowd will surely win the match for us.

Other thing is the players taking on chances. Someone from midfield taking shots on target will always encourage the crowd. A powerful shot will always bring different factors in play. A deflection may result in a goal, or the team can get set play to work with. Why not keep the ball in opposition half?  Being thoughtful in match should also be helpful for Nepal, like taking the freekicks early, making most of the tackles and getting into referee’s ear to bring out card for opposition players. These small things are important in football.

A regional tournament against some fierce local rivals is surely going to be fascinating. There is nothing to lose for Nepal and a place in history to be gained. So bring on, we are all ready to get behind the team.

Differential Gear Mechanism

BE in Mechanical Engineering has a subject called ‘Theory Of Machine’. In that subject we are required to read various mechanisms about how machine and other things work. The notable mechanisms are Four bar mechanism, Slider crank, belt and rope drive mechanism and gear mechanism.  We are required to a mini project for the internal assessment. We choose to develop a differential mechanism to show exactly how the differential in automobiles works.

In automobiles and other wheeled vehicles, a differential is the usual way to allow the driving roadwheels to rotate at different speeds. This is necessary when the vehicle turns, making the wheel that is travelling around the outside of the turning curve roll farther and faster than the other. The engine is connected to the shaft rotating at angular velocity . The driving wheels are connected to the other two shafts, and  and  are equal. If the engine is running at a constant speed, the rotational speed of each driving wheel can vary, but the sum (or average) of the two wheels' speeds can not change. An increase in the speed of one wheel must be balanced by an equal decrease in the speed of the other. (If one wheel is rotating backward, which is possible in very tight turns, its speed should be counted as negative.)

Differential gear

It may seem illogical that the speed of one input shaft can determine the speeds of two output shafts, which are allowed to vary. Logically, the number of inputs should be at least as great as the number of outputs. However, the system has another constraint. Under normal conditions (i.e. only small tyre slip), the ratio of the speeds of the two driving wheels equals the ratio of the radii of the paths around which the two wheels are rolling, which is determined by the track-width of the vehicle (the distance between the driving wheels) and the radius of the turn. Thus the system does not have one input and two independent outputs. It has two inputs and two outputs. 

Here is how differential mechanism was developed and works. 

I will keep updating the blog as my project work continues.

Sadly, the end semester came a  bit quicker and we could not complete the project. However a little design was made.

My Favourite Sports Person

A man is defined by his passion. My passion is sports. Since childhood, my love for sports has not changed; the range of sports has however changed. I now watch a lot of sports on TV and play a few. Here I talk about some of my favorite sports person and role models. 

The Wall-Rahul Dravid

Rahul Dravid is one of the greatest batsman to have played cricket. Very passionate and dedicated to his game, he is role model for thousands of kids aspiring to play cricket. Famously referred to as “The Wall”, born on 11 January 1973, Dravid is nicknamed Jammy by his friends.

Rahul Dravid for India

Playing for neighbour India, it was obvious for me to follow Indian cricket. Since I have followed cricket, Dravid was there carrying the weight of Indian batting forward. He was always among the runs and was always a big resistance for the opposition. Class touch, picture perfect shots and timing defines Dravid’s batting. Good player of spin and pace and in any condition and wicket, Dravid’s technique was surreal. Starting as a wicket keeper, he has always been a terrific catcher all round the field, especially in the slips.  Dravid is one of the players to have scored 10,000 runs in both ODI and Test cricket. He has been awarded reputed awards throughout his career for his flawless batting.

Dravid has always set high standards on and off the field. Very calm and composed, he was always given respect by his opponents. He is a true role model.

Churchy- Adam Gilchrist

You would never want to be missing a certain Adam Gilchrist bat. Born on 14 November 1971, he was an integral part of the almost invincible Australian cricket team. A wicket keeper batsman, Gilly was prolific. Shots all round the park, hitting sixes and fours at ease, his strike rate is among the highest. No matter what form of cricket he was playing, the approach was same. For me, he redefined batting. Gilly was a bowler’s nightmare and a glorious entertainer for the fans.

Adam Gilchrist with Ashes and Baggy Green

One of the best wicket-keeper to add to his batting, he has most catches for a player in ODI cricket. Gilchrist seldom missed catches and was always active behind the wicket. He was also someone to set high standards and deserved respect for his acts. He is most renowned for walking if he thought he was out, not even waiting for Umpire’s decision. Gilly never feared of anything and was a great example for sportsmanship. You would have to wait for long time to see another wicket keeper batsman like Gilly.

In addition to these cricketers, some other cricketers I idolise are Sachin Tendulkar, Brett Lee, Shane Bond,AB de Villiers, Brendon McCullum. 

Schuey- Michael Schumacher

Even before I knew what sport Formula 1 was, I was a Ferrari fan as a car manufacturer.  Being a Ferrari fan, it was obvious to love Michael Schumacher. Schumacher was born on 3 January 1969 in Germany. Schumacher has played important role in making Ferrari as competitive as it in now. Though privileged to be sitting in a great car, Schumi was some racer. We fans had habit of seeing his Ferrari cross the line as winner.

 

Schumi is an unprecedented seven times world champion and arguably the greatest F1 driver. He won 5 consecutive driver champions with Ferrari and the earlier two with Benetton. Shumi has almost every F1 record in his bag. His ability of driving in wet condition is considered as the best. He had the ability of producing fastest laps in vital time of a grand prix.  His second stint of F1 racing with Mercedes did not go well and has been retired now.

The Iceman- Kimi Raikonnen

Another driver you got to love is Kimi Raikonnen who cares nothing except racing. Hard to find a true racer as him, Kimi is a Finnish driver born in1979. Kimi won the driver championship with Ferrari. He has returned to F1 after taking break of 2 seasons.

Nicknamed “The Iceman” Kimi’s a hard racing driver. He can produce unreal pace, brave impossible overtakes and make overtaking for opponent as hard as it can get.  Kimi is a class act and there in nothing not to like about the iceman

Apart from these drivers my other favorites are Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button.

Moving on, here are my favourites in the field of lawn tennis. Grandslams are a must watch for me. The players I love are rated very highly but have underachieved.

Maria Sharapova

Maria is a Russian beauty and tennis sensation. She might be the most loved tennis player. Maria is a power packed player with fierce backhand and forehand from the baseline. That is her strength. Very calm and composed on the tennis court, she understands the game very well. Her grunting and unforced errors are the only things that you tend to get irritated with. Otherwise, she is picture perfect. The way she approaches the play, the pause before serving, the way she caresses the ball, the palm hitting the thigh, the ball tossing just makes you adore her even more. She might not have won enough grand slam tournaments as she should have done. She has got time and her beauty added with the powerful strike of the ball will surely make her the loved one in tennis.

Rafael Nadal

Rafa is a dominant figure in the age of Spanish domination of sports. Making good name since childhood, people often comment on his longevity in sport. Rafa has a personality matched by none. Very dignified, shy and full of respect, Rafa is people’s favourite. Having rivalry with some of best tennis player in an era also helps to fuel his popularity. His accomplishments in grand slam tournaments have not been matched. Rafa is an attacking player with amazing defensive qualities. Rafa is renowned to turn offensive while in defensive and it has given him a lot of success. The trend of biting trophy is a Rafa trademark.

All is not lost for Nepal

Nepal failed to qualify for AFC Challenge Cup going to be held in Maldives. Nepal finished 3^rd in the Group D qualifiers behind Palestine and Bangladesh. It failed to utilize the home advantage and let down thousands of spectators in the stadium and Nepali around the world. As always seen, its inability to score goals acted as a major problem. It scored 6 goals against lowly Northern Mariana Island which was not even a contest, but failed to score against both Bangladesh and Palestine.

The loss to Bangladesh was a major setback to Nepal. The score line does not reflect the performance, but when you do not make chances count, you are left helpless. That game however was marred by bad referee decision. Nepal conceded a penalty which never seemed to be one. On many other times, linesman made mistake in their offside decision.  The referee decision made crowd very restless and they showed their frustration by throwing various things in the ground and stopped play for some time. Bangladeshis were not helping either, going down softly and wasting time. Nepal was playing good in possession and created a lot of chances, but the finishing touches were never there. Some ball went marginally wide, some hit the bar and as the game progressed, Nepal did not seem like scoring. Nepal conceded the second goal in what was the best passage of play for them. The absolutely vocal crowds were stunned and their frustration crept in the players in the field too. Nepal was unable to use the ball against them and had to face defeat leaving uphill task against Palestine to qualify for the Challenge Cup.

Nepal played highly spirited game against Palestine. The game ended in a nil-nil draw which was not enough for Nepal to qualify for second round. Nepal’s performance was highly improved in the game. The players in the wing were highly involved throughout the game. Nepal also won the battle of midfield. However, Nepal could do nothing to score against a highly physical side. The defense was organized and was able to secure a clean sheet. Both sides created a handful of chances but were unable to open the scoring. Nepal has lot of positives to take from the game.

Nepali supporter are left heartbroken once again. The support from them has not been justified by the players in the field. The spirit as well as pace of Nepali players fades out as the game progresses. We understand that players try to perform the best, but spectators like to see that seen in the field. Performance of players like Bharat Khawas, Jagjeet Shrestha, and Robin Shrestha were outstanding. Other players have to improve their performance. The coaches have some time before the next tournament and they should be involved in improving the overall performance of Nepal.

Nepal’s next tournament is SAFF Championship to be organized at home. It is the only tournament that realistically we are capable of winning. As the coaches have already said, they want Nepal to be the best team in South Asia. Nepal has not won the South Asian Cup for a long time and there is desperation now to win that tournament. With pride and rivalry involved, you can only imagine what the scenes will be like at the stadium. The supporters will be there to support Nepal whatever happens.

The preparation to that tournament should start from now. ANFA has to provide coaches the facility that they require. Nepal needs international exposure; hence international friendly should be organized. ANFA has done a good job by providing 50000 to every player. That will keep players motivated to perform good in the tournament. Nepal has to win the SAFF to stamp their authority in football in South Asia otherwise the excitement and passion in people about football may fade out.

PS: This blog post first published on 7 march 2013 in Other blog. It was also published in GoalNepal.com's website on March 7. 

Come On Nepal, We either Do Or Die

International football is knocking on our doors and when it comes to Nepal’s international matches in Nepal, the excitement level is very very high. Football is once again talk of the town. Nepalese football, which once seemed to be improving all the time after some courageous performance, is having bad time living up to the expectation of supporters. And the time has come for the team to deliver. Winning the heart of supporters is one thing; it is points that matter for now. Nepal is playing Group D Qualifiers for the AFC Challenge Cup scheduled to be held in Maldives. Palestine, Northern Mariana Island and Bangladesh are Nepal’s competitor in the group. Nepal is playing the qualifier in home soil, which is a massive advantage and they must make it count. The players along with the management must have known this is high time they deliver. It has been long time, Nepal has not scored goal and not won any of its matches.

Most of the people are disappointed with inability of strikers to score goal. Scoring goal is essential but I see problems beyond that. I have been following Nepal’s matches for quite a time. Football is a team game and contribution from every corner is essential. Nepal plays good in possession, but they do not use their possession to create lot of chances. When Nepal gets the ball, they are very slow to use it. They should use the ball fast and string a lot of quick passes that does not let opposition settle and the players can get into a lot of space and create goal scoring opportunities. When the players move with the ball, they are not able to provide a killer ball. Neither the strikers make creative runs. So every time, Nepal comes with the ball, opposition shuts the door and players seem helpless. The opposition closes the player with the ball and he sees none of his friend to pass the ball to. So every Nepali player should be eager to get the ball and get to a position where he should be able to pass the ball to another player. There is not enough penetration from the Nepalese player and it a real disappointment. When every player is creative on the third half of the pitch, goals are eventually there to be taken.

Nepalese defence is good, but at some time in the match, they lose their concentration and concede goal and hence they are needed to be on high alert. Their communication is vital in defensive line. Sagar Thapa is experienced and he should arrange the defence for better performance. The defensive midfielders should help the defence out. Whenever the full backs are on offensive, they should help out the defence by dropping deep. Better is for midfielders closing the ball up the field very quickly, so that opposition has to track back or has no alternative and no idea of using the ball. I think Nepal should double up dangerous player of other team. Nepal should just not allow them to settle down. Defensive midfielders are very important part of the game. With Rohit Chand back into the squad, either he or Sandeep Rai can be used as defensive midfielder. They both are always the best performer on the pitch for Nepal. Their game is important as part of Nepal’s game. Nepal should hunt in pack, be it on offensive or defensive. Biraj Maharjan and Rabin Shrestha are the most likely two full backs. They should be involved throughout the match. Biraj Maharjan has very good crossing and is strong. He should go for overlapping runs more often. Rabin Shrestha may be weak but has very good understanding of the game and he is always going to stick with player in the wing. Their overlapping runs are also something to be seen. Performances of these players are very important.

Nepalese midfield is ok. In Bhola Silwal, we have a player with amazing stamina. He can run around the field with enormous energy. How is he going to use it is important. Jagjeet Shrestha has amazing talent and can create havoc in the D area with his skills. The only problem with him is discipline. We can see his passion for the country and game when he is on the field. He is always eager to get the ball. All the players should learn from him. He can be the play maker for Nepal. He has amazing vision to change flanks and vision to pick out passes. Bharat Khawas is another one with amazing determination. He has been a consistent performer for the country. He can run with the ball against the opposition and do things with it. It is necessary for the midfielders to be creative and should be always thinking of the game. They should have good coordination with the defence and attack. They should be clever in picking out passes.

Nepalese attack is not totally quality less which we have seen from the amount of goal they have scored in the league. Every striker has their own quality. Who gets picked depends on the tactics of coach. Attackers are either required to be creating things in the box or should be at the right place at the right time. Nepali attackers show neither of them. They are not helped by performance of the midfielder too. There are not enough balls from midfield for the attackers to play with. It is very important from them to read the game and make things happen. If it is needed for attackers to drop deep, they should do that. But if attackers try to get the ball from deep and have nowhere to go, that does not do good for the team.

Having said that, Nepal has to be very careful in this tournament. The opposition are well prepared and have come out of intense preparation. The support from the home fans is always going to be there. But the fans tend to get frustrated very quickly. What we have seen from the games recently is, Nepal starts with good energy but that fades up as the time progresses. Then mistakes start to happen. So Nepal should start and settle down quickly. Early on the halves are the best time for Nepal to score goal. That will get every player motivated and can keep the crowd alive. The tactics from the new coaches are surely going to be new things for the players. How good they implement is a big question. Let us hope this tournament can create new road map for Nepalese football; we supporters are ready for the tournament. Let’s hope the players are also ready and up for it.

Come on Nepal.

P.S.: The blog was first published on "http://samaykosanopal.wordpress.com"  on March 1. 

It was also featured in GoalNepal.com's website on March 2. Here's the GoalNepal's version http://www.goalnepal.com/news.php?id=12525