By Novy KapadiaNational coach Bob Houghton has categorically stated that the success of cricket in India is not a deterrent for the growth of football in the country.He has reiterated that long term policies have to be implemented to develop Indian football and to attract sponsors.Such a candid appraisal should be a wakeup call for most sports administrators in India who camouflage their inefficiencies by stating that cricket hogs all the sponsorship money.Houghton’s long term vision if implemented would revolutionise Indian football.He wants the state leagues and the I-League to run simultaneously, from September to March, with a short winter break.So historic tournaments like the Durand, IFA Shield and Santosh Trophy would have to be re-scheduled for the summer months.National league matches would be on weekends and the state leagues will be mid-week, with certain strictures for clubs participating in the I-League. Such clubs should only field their junior teams in the state leagues, along with some reserve players who have played less than forty five minutes during the week-end.Their main players should be available only for the I-League and the Federation Cup to prevent fatigue.Expectedly there has been resistance from the established and high-profile state leagues of Bengal IFA and Goa.They fear that if the popular clubs like East Bengal, Mohun Bagan, Dempo and Churchill Brothers play their second string teams in the state leagues, then both spectator and sponsorship interest will decline, which could cause a decrease in revenue. Careful negotiations can solve this impasse.A solution could be financial compensation by the All India Football Federation to the state associations, with clubs in the I-League.The Goa Football Association has followed Houghton’s proposal this season as the state league is going on simultaneously.However the Kolkata league held before the I-League started has overburdened the players of East Bengal, Mohun Bagan, Mohammedan Sporting and Chirag United, as they have been playing non-stop.Bagan’s coach Karim Bencharifa, feels several of his players, especially his internationals who played for India in the summer months also, are jaded.Houghton’s proposal would compel major clubs to focus not on a small squad of players bolstered by three foreigners but develop a larger pool of players.Also the fringe players in the national team would get more playing opportunity.For instance highly rated striker Manjit Singh of Mahindra United was a regular in the national squad for two seasons.But as his club always has two foreign strikers he gets limited playing opportunities.He lost his cutting edge and is now out of the national team.Similarly defender Gourmangi Singh was benched by his previous club, Sporting Clube de Goa.An injury to Deepak Mondal in the 2007 Nehru Cup helped Gourmangi excel as a central defender for India and it also revived his club career.To attract crowds and thereby sponsors, Houghton wants I-League games under floodlights and the national team to get an identity by playing more matches in the country against Asian rather than European opposition, so that it is an even contest.