Football Club Kochin was an Indian association football club based in Kochi, Kerala. In the 1990s, it was the only football club from Kerala to play in the National Football League, then top tier of Indian football league system. FC Kochin played at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kaloor, Kochi. They have also competed in Kerala Premier League under license from

Kerala Football Association The Kerala Football Association (abbreviated ''Kerala FA''), formerly the Travancore-Cochin Football Association, is one of the 37 Indian state football associations that are affiliated to the All India Football Federation (AIFF). The Kerala ...

(KFA), until their dissolvent in 2002.

History

Formation and journey

Football Club Kochin was founded in April 1997, with aims to develop the structure of association football in the state of Kerala. Paul Varghese is the chief Patron behind the making of the club and K.J.Varoo was the first Manager.

M. P. Kurian was the founder cum chairman of the FC Kochin Trust and M. K. Joseph was the founder cum chairman of the FC Kochin Limited Company. These organisations played a key role behind the development of the club during the late 1990s. After the fall of Kerala Police FC, FC Kochin filled the void of football in the state. FC Kochin was unique because of promoting modern footballing infrastructure. It's considered as the first professional club in India, whose motto was ''"a new approach to the game"''. The development of FC Kochin lit a spark in Kerala, with the football-mad people embracing the club with open arms. In the 1997–98 Indian National Football League, the FC Kochin finished on fourth position with 29 points in 18 league matches and club captain Raman Vijayan won the golden boot with 10 goals.

Durand victory

FC Kochin began their 1997 Durand Cup campaign by beating seven times Durand champion, Border Security Force by 21. In the next match, they thrashed Kolkata giant, Mohammedan Sporting by 50 with Vijayan scoring his first hat-trick for Kochin followed by goals from Raman Vijayan and B. Deepu. They went into the knock-out of their first Durand Cup as group-topper which attracted many Keralites settled in the capital to watch their match. In the semifinal, they locked horns with the then best team, JCT FC. In the final, they emerged as champions in the prestigious tournament, defeating Mohun Bagan AC by 3–1, under captaincy of Jo Paul Ancheri. India star I. M. Vijayan also led the team later. Foreign players like Mykola Shevchenko of Ukraine, Josiah Seton of Liberia, Obinna Winners Onyia of Benin and Ali Abubakkar of Ghana were included in the squad for both the Durand Cup and NFL of 1997.

Scissors Cup

In 1997, FC Kochin participated in the Scissors Cup and reached to the final, that held in Kerala. The final, against Bahraini side West Riffa club, turned out to be a damp squib with the game abandoned due to a power cut in the stadium. The Bahraini team were adjudged winners after a coin toss.

NFL 1998

In the coming years they were not able to replicate the form they showed in their first season, although they managed to come fourth in the national football league in 1998. The next three seasons saw them finishing sixth, fourth and fourth again in the National Football League. This was the time when FC Kochin was coached by T.K. Chathunni, one of the best football coaches in India.

Home stadium

FC Kochin used the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium also known as ''Kaloor Stadium'', for their home matches in both of the National Football League (India) and Kerala Premier League. The stadium has a capacity of 60,000 spectators. Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (Kochi)

Achievements

FC Kochin had contributed substantially to the advancement of Kerala football within its short span. The most prestigious achievement for FC Kochin was winning the Durand Cup in New Delhi in 1997. In that year, they clinched Kerala State Football League title, defeating

State Bank of Travancore State Bank of Travancore (SBT) was a major Indian bank headquartered in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, and was a major associate of State Bank of India. SBT was a subsidiary of the State Bank Group, but also had private share-holders. It was ...

. FC Kochin had also put up a consistent performance in the National Football League, until their relegation in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

Rivalries

FC Kochin shared rivalries predominantly with Kerala-based clubs Kerala Police FC, SBI Kerala, Titanium XI and Quartz Calicut, whom they faced in domestic and regional tournaments.

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

''The official sponsors of FC Kochin'' (1998–2002)

Former players

This list comprises notable Indian and foreign footballers, who played for FC Kochin (between 1997 and 2004) in the National Football League of India. Some of them have also represented their respective countries before or after joining the club. * I. M. Vijayan (1997—1998), (1999—2001) * Keith Jennings (1998—2000) *

Friday Elahor Friday Elahor (born 14 November 1967) is a Nigerian former footballer who played at both professional and international levels as a midfielder. Career Elahor played club football in Nigeria, Denmark, Ivory Coast and India for Bendel Insurance, ...

(1997—1998) * Pewou Bestman (2001—2002) * Mykola Shevchenko (1997) * Mahesh Gawli (1998—1999) *

Eugene Gray Eugene Gray (born 12 May 1974 in Liberia) is a Liberia, Liberian retired footballer. Career Indonesia Previously on the books of Persitara Jakarta Utara, Gray stated that the football in Indonesia is more organized, elaborating that money is ...

(1999—2001) *

Noel Wilson Noel Anthony Wilson (born 24 December 1979) is a former Indian professional footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Kochin, Churchill Brothers, Mohun Bagan, Mohamedan Sporting and Mumbai FC, in the I-League. He has represented the India ...

(1998—2000) * Obinna Winners Onyia (1997—1998) * Jo Paul Ancheri (1997—1998), (1999—2001) * Sunday Seah (1999—2001) *

C. V. Pappachan C. V. Pappachan (born 20 May 1965) is a former Indian football player and a retired police officer from Thrissur, Kerala. He captained India in a couple of tournaments. Career Born in Parappur in Thrissur district, Pappachan turned profession ...

(1998—1999) * Isaac Tondo (1999—2000)

Honours

League

* Kerala State Football League **Champions (2): 1998–99, 1999–00 **Runners-up (1): 2003–04

Cup

* Durand Cup **Champions (1): 1997 * IFA Shield **Runners-up (1): 1997 * Kerala State Championship **Champions (1): 1997 * All India Central Revenue Cup **Champions (1): 1999 * Central Railway Open **Champions (1): 1997 * Scissors Cup **Runners-up (1): 1997 *

Mcdowell's Cup McDowell's Cup (named after sponsor McDowell's of the United Breweries Group) was an Indian association football tournament held in Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of t ...

**Runners-up (1): 1997

Withdrawal

With reduced sponsorship money after declining performance, and with Indian Football Federation failing to pay the dues to the club, it faced a financial crunch. Unpaid salaries and exodus of good players led to a low performance of the club in the top league. The club finished at 11th position in 2001–02 season and got relegated to Second Division. The club played Second Division twice, but failed to get promoted to

Premier Division Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of gov ...

. The club could never resurrect itself after that, and went defunct in 2002 after it was revealed that the club had not paid salaries since 2000 after running up 2.5 crores in losses a season.

Managerial history

* A. M. Sreedharan (1997–1999) * K. Bharathan (1999) * T. K. Chathunni (1999–2001) * A. M. Sreedharan (2000–2001) * T. A. Jaffar (2001) *

Karel Stromšík Karel Stromšík (born 12 April 1958) is a former football goalkeeper from Czechoslovakia. He was a member of the national team that competed at the 1982 FIFA World Cup, playing 2 group games after replacing the injured Stanislav Seman in the se ...

(2001–2002)

Notes

References

External links

* *
FC Kochin
at Global Sports Archive
FC Kochin
at WorldFootball.net {{DEFAULTSORT:Kochin, FC Association football clubs established in 1998 Association football clubs disestablished in 2002 Football clubs in Kerala Defunct football clubs in India Works association football clubs in India 1998 establishments in Kerala 2002 disestablishments in India Culture of Kochi Sport in Kochi Football clubs in Kochi