- Source: TRAU FC
TRAU Football Club (known fully as Tiddim Road Athletic Union Football Club) is an Indian professional football club based in Imphal, Manipur. The club competed in the I-League, the second tier of Indian football league system. Nicknamed "The Red Pythons", the club was founded in 1954.
TRAU made its I-League 2nd Division debut in 2017–18 season. They were promoted to the I-League in 2019, after winning 2nd Division. The club also participates in the Manipur State League.
History
Tiddim Road Athletic Union, which was instituted on 2 October 1954 in Kwakeithel, Imphal, has been a pioneering organisation in the field of sports activities. They have lifted the title of CC Meet, state league of Manipur six times and finished runners up nine times. TRAU was runners up in 1998 Bordoloi Trophy, losing 10–1 to Narbakhar FC, club from Uzbekistan in the final. They began their journey of I-League 2nd Division in 2018, and on 8 May, they qualified for the final round in I-League Qualifiers in their debut season.
In 2018–19 season, they won the I-League 2nd division, their first ever professional league trophy, and gained the promotion to the I-League. On 25 August 2019, TRAU announced Aciesta Sports Alliance Private Limited as its title sponsor. The deal with Aciesta will help the Manipur-based team finance its first-team and development activities and further expand its presence in the top tier of Indian football. In September 2019, Cypriot manager Dimitris Dimitriou joined the club as head coach. Prior to the announcement, TRAU FC signed an agreement with SportiFan Ventures Limited, a sports business management firm based in the United Kingdom, which played a pivotal role in the negotiation process for the aforementioned deal. Later on the club announced Romi Factory as their new kit partner. On 23 October 2019, they roped in Douglas Silva as new manager, and on 1 December, they faced Chennai City. Shortly, his tenure ended as they lost the first three matches as the Brazilian was not at all happy with the supervision of the team.
In the 2020–21 I-League season, which was their second I-League season, TRAU finished at the 3rd position with 26 points. Bidyashagar Singh with 12 goals in 15 matches emerged as the top scorer and became the fourth Indian player to win the Golden boot. In that season, the club took part in Shirui Lily Cup. They achieved ninth place in 2021–22 I-League. In 2022–23 I-League, the club finished on fourth position. In April 2023, TRAU failed to qualify for 2023 Indian Super Cup.
In April 2024, TRAU along with NEROCA, refused to travel to Mizoram to face Aizawl in their away matches – as a result the games were cancelled by the AIFF; Both the teams from Manipur were relegated to I-League 2.
Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
Stadium
Khuman Lampak Main Stadium in Imphal, is used as the home ground of TRAU for all their home matches in both the domestic and regional leagues. Opened in 1999, the stadium has a capacity of 35,285 spectators.
Support and rivalry
= Supporters
=A club recognised Imphal fan club by the name "Red Pythons" has been in support since 2017. The Khuman Lampak Main Stadium has witnessed an average attendance of 35,000.
= Rivalries
=TRAU have participated in the 'Imphal Derby' with their city rivals NEROCA. The two clubs are the only two from Imphal to have played professional league football. The Imphal Derby gained fame in 2022 during the 131st edition of Durand Cup when competitive football returned to the city after COVID-19 pandemic in India. The Government of Manipur declared a half-holiday for all governmental and educational institutions in build-up to the match on 18 August, in which TRAU was defeated by NEROCA 3–1 in Group-C opener.
The club has also enjoyed a rivalry with another Northeast Indian club Aizawl FC at the domestic level.
Players
= First-team squad
=As of 31 January 2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Current technical staff
Records and statistics
= Overall records
=As of 6 April 2023
= Season by season
=As of 6 April 2023
= Managerial record
=As of 6 April 2023
= Other records
=Fastest goal in a match of India's highest division league: 9 seconds – Komron Tursunov for TRAU vs. Real Kashmir (10 January 2021)
Golden Boot winner (highest goal scorer) in I-League: Bidyashagar Singh (with TRAU, in 2020–21 season; 12 goals).
First ever TRAU player to score double hat-tricks in a single season (in I-League): Bidyashagar Singh (against Mohammedan and Real Kashmir during the 2020–21 season).
Notable players
= Past and present internationals
=The foreign players below have senior/youth international cap(s) for their respective countries. Players whose name is listed, represented their countries before or after playing for TRAU FC.
Isaac Isinde (2019)
Oguchi Uche (2019–2020)
Petru Leucă (2020)
Gerard Williams (2019–2020; 2021–)
Komron Tursunov (2020–2021; 2022–2023)
Akobir Turaev (2021–2022)
Gerson Vieira (2022–2023)
Ibrahima Baldé (2023–)
Honours
= Domestic tournaments
=League
I-League
Third place (1): 2020–21
I-League 2nd Division
Champions (1): 2018–19
Manipur State League
Champions (2): 2006, 2010
Runners-up (2): 2011 2016
Cup
Bordoloi Trophy
Runners-up (1): 1998
Churachand Singh Trophy
Winners (6): 1960, 1961, 1974, 1981, 2004, 2009
Runners-up (7): 1963, 1964, 1965, 1970, 1988, 1989, 2013–14
Tiddim Invitational Football Trophy
Champions (1): 2007
Naorem Bhubon Memorial Trophy
Champions (1): 2017
Mayanglambam Chittamani Memorial Cup
Runners-up (1): 2004
= Awards
=AIFF Fair Play Award: 2022–23
Other department
= Futsal
=The club has a men's futsal section. The club has competed in the All Manipur Football Association Futsal Cup, which is the highest division of the sport in the state. TRAU took part in the inaugural edition of AIFF Futsal Club Championship.
Honours
AMFA Futsal Cup
Runners-up (1): 2004
See also
List of football clubs in Manipur
Sports in Manipur
References
Cited sources
Bibliography
Sharma, Nikhil Paramjit; Gupta, Shantanu (4 February 2019). India's Football Dream. SAGE Publications India. ISBN 9789353283063. Archived from the original on 4 October 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
Shreekumar, S. S. (15 August 2020). THE BEST WAY FORWARD FOR INDIA'S FOOTBALL. HSRA Publications. ISBN 9788194721697. Archived from the original on 4 February 2023. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
Further reading
Bhattacharya, Arka (1 June 2018). "14 years a slave: The story of Hindustan FC's 'emotional' stay in Indian football's 2nd division". Scroll.in. New Delhi. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
"TRAU FC vs. Churchill Brothers – Football Match Line-Ups – March 21, 2021 – ESPN". ESPN. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
Sourav (2 March 2020). "Kiyan Nassiri: I try to think like Fran Gonzalez and Dhanachandra Singh". Khel Now. Imphal. Archived from the original on 26 June 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
"I-League 2019–20, East Bengal FC vs TRAU FC: EB ekes out 2–1 win, moves top of table". Sportstar. 14 December 2019. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
"I-League: Kanoute brace propels Aizawl past TRAU, Arrows draws with NEROCA". Sportstar. 11 February 2020. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
"Shillong Lajong return to Hero I-League after four years". the-aiff.com. New Delhi: All India Football Federation. 21 May 2022. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
"TRAU FC sign former East Bengal starlet Bidyashagar Singh". Khelnow. 10 July 2021. Archived from the original on 13 March 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
"Real Kashmir vs. TRAU FC Football Match Summary". ESPN. 10 January 2021. Archived from the original on 28 August 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
"TRAU FC register maiden win of season, beats Chennai City FC". Khelnow. 24 January 2021. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
"I-League Round-Up: Churchill Brothers hold TRAU, Chennai City beat Indian Arrows". Goal. 30 January 2021. Archived from the original on 28 August 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
"I-League 2021: TRAU put five past Indian Arrows to move into fifth spot". Firstpost. 24 February 2021. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
Media Team, AIFF (18 June 2024). "16 tournaments, 11,000 players: A hectic 2023–24 domestic season with class and character". the-aiff.com. New Delhi: All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
External links
TRAU FC on Twitter
TRAU FC on Facebook
TRAU FC at ESPN
TRAU FC at WorldFootball.net
TRAU FC at Global Sports Archive
Kata Kunci Pencarian:
- Ramandeep Singh (pemain sepak bola)
- Fernandinho (footballer, born 1994)
- Tim nasional sepak bola Tajikistan
- TRAU FC
- NEROCA FC
- Gokulam Kerala FC
- Dimitris Dimitriou (football manager)
- Ozone FC
- Gerard Williams (footballer)
- Khuman Lampak Main Stadium
- 2023–24 TRAU FC season
- Princewill Emeka
- Bidyashagar Singh
