The city’s iconic football coach Rufus D’Souza has been invited to be the chief guest at the annual day celebrations of the Al Ethihad Sports Academy in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, in the first week of June.
After the annual day celebrations of the club, Mr. D’Souza will travel to Dubai and also engage in coaching young people for more than a week in the two UAE cities.
Though he had been requested to stay on for a longer period, the veteran coach cited family reasons for cutting short the visit to the Middle East country.
He said on Sunday that he would have loved to stay on for a longer period given the love of football in the country.
Mr. D’Souza is into the 46th year of coaching young people.
He is permanent presence at the Fort Kochi Parade Ground, which goes back to the colonial period of Kochi’s history.
He has coached dozens of players who have shone at the national and State level and most of the current crop of players remember his skills and passion for the game.
Holiday season
The school holiday season, that is at its end now in the State, saw more than a hundred young people flocking to ‘Uncle Rufus’ coaching classes.
The number of youngsters coming to his classes has continued to increase over the years.
