2002–03 National Football League (India)

The 2002–03 Indian National Football League, also known as the Oil PSU National Football League[3] for sponsorship reasons, was the seventh season of National Football League, the top Indian league for association football clubs, since its inception in 1996. The season began on 17 November 2002[4] and concluded on 28 April 2003.[1] East Bengal won the title, their second, with a game to spare.[5]

National Football League
Season2002–03
Dates15 November 2002 – 28 April 2003
ChampionsEast Bengal
2nd NFL title
2nd Indian title
Relegated
AFC Cup
Matches played132
Top goalscorerYusif Yakubu (21 goals)[1]
Biggest home winVasco 8–0 HAL[2]

Overview

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It was contested by 12 teams, and East Bengal won the championship under the coach Subhas Bhowmick and this was their second title. Salgaonkar came second and Vasco again came third. HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) and ITI (Indian Telephone Industries) were relegated from the National Football League next season.

League standings

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Locations of teams in the 2002–03 National Football League
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 East Bengal 22 15 4 3 44 22 +22 49
2 Salgaocar 22 13 5 4 43 17 +26 44
3 Vasco 22 12 7 3 40 21 +19 43
4 JCT Mills 22 11 5 6 34 21 +13 38
5 Churchill Brothers 22 10 7 5 33 22 +11 37
6 Dempo 22 10 5 7 34 29 +5 35
7 Mohun Bagan 22 9 6 7 35 25 +10 33
8 Mahindra United 22 7 5 10 27 30 −3 26
9 Tollygunge Agragami 22 6 5 11 29 38 −9 23
10 Indian Bank 22 6 2 14 31 53 −22 20
11 Hindustan Aeronautics Limited 22 3 2 17 17 54 −37 11
12 Indian Telephone Industries 22 1 5 16 14 49 −35 8
Source: rsssf.com

References

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  1. ^ a b "Salgaocar finish second". Rediff.com. Press Trust of India. 28 April 2003. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  2. ^ "Vasco rout HAL 8-0". Rediff.com. 9 April 2003. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  3. ^ "Oil PSUs to Games' rescue". The Hindu. 6 December 2002. Retrieved 21 October 2018.[dead link]
  4. ^ Serrao, Francis (14 November 2002). "Churchill, Salgaocar set to kick-off NFL". Rediff.com. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  5. ^ "East Bengal champs". Rediff.com. 25 April 2003. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
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