KOTA BAHRU: The State Legislative Assembly Elite League (LED) of Kelantan is not merely a community football tournament, but rather an important platform to unearth young talents competing in the Malaysia League (M-League).
State Youth, Sports, Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) and Unity Committee chairman Zamakhshari Muhamad (pic) said the tournament, introduced over 10 years ago, has paved the way for youngsters to show off their talent at a higher level.
“Each year, 500 teams, representing clubs or villages according to the state constituencies across Kelantan, compete in the Under-25 category. The winners of the various constituencies will then slug it out for the Menteri Besar Cup, which is now underway,” he told Bernama recently.
Among the players who were unearthed through the LED are national goalkeeper Ahmad Syahin Hazmi Mohamed (Salor constituency), now with Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT); Mohammad Fikri Che Soh (Kijang), representing Kelantan United FC; Muhammad Hakimi Abdullah (Meranti), playing for Negeri Sembilan FC; Nik Akif Syahiran Nik Mat (Mengkebang), featuring for Immigration FC; and Fakhrul Che Ramli (Kemuning) of Kelantan WTS FC.
“The State Legislative Assembly Elite League is truly a platform to unearth talents capable of breaking into the state and national teams. Many youngsters, who started by playing in small fields around their constituency, are now playing in major stadiums representing states and the country,” he said.
Zamakhshari said the main aim of organising the LED is to produce backup footballers for Kelantan who are competitive, disciplined and have a bright future in the sport. – BERNAMA
