British coach Hugh Kim Lewis (left) at the football coaches’ training camp in Diphu recently. Telegraph picture

Nagaon, Jan. 14: Morning Star Football Club of Diphu is all set to assume company stature involving investments from the corporate sector.

The football club sources told The Telegraph that the concept would be designed on the lines of Calcutta’s East Bengal Club’s tie-up with Kingfisher.

“The initiative is at a very preliminary stage. Preparation of the organisation bylaw as a private limited entity with support from outside experts is under way. This would take at least three months’ time. Within this time, we will finalise the sponsor which may either be a corporate entity like Kingfisher or an individual,” a club official said.

The club has enrolled 200 new life members and raised nearly Rs 2 crore at a rate of Rs 10,000 per head for the membership.

“We want to design the club as a football heavyweight at the national level. Our club will have to play all national tournaments and for that, we feel the Morning Star Club will have to be promoted to the stature of a private limited company,” the club official said.

The club’s senior executive Miji Kro said very recently the Morning Star was awarded ineligibility for international transfer by the All India Football Federation (AIFF).

Two of the club players, George Rangpi and Yaisong Terang, participated in a daylong workshop of the AIFF in New Delhi on an international transfer system.

With this, Morning Star became the second football club in the state after Gauhati Town Club to go directly for foreign players.

“Players from Brazil are our prime target. We will go for that next year,” Kro said. “This year, we aspire to better our performance. Right now the team comprises three Nigerian players. The remaining players include eight from the home district, two from Mizoram and eight from Manipur. The N.M. Gupta Trophy in Silchar, the Assam State Premier League in Silchar and Gossaigaon are our immediate targets to excel in,” he added.

The club was established by a few soccer lovers of Karbi Anglong district in November 2008 and emerged as a strong team after annexing the Assam Club Championship title in Bokajan in January 2009.

Recently, it organised a monthlong coaching training camp where UN coach Hugh Kim Lewis imparted training.

The club established a football academy in Diphu last year to train 200 newcomers on the basics of football.

“The emergence of our team in a big way is only because of the dedication and sacrifice of our local people who, after a long gap of trouble and unrest, want peace and development. We hope this year our team will fulfil the dream of our well-wishers,” said a senior club executive.

NM Gupta football

The 29 Capt. N.M. Gupta prize-money invitational memorial football will be held at Satindra Mohan Dev Stadium in Silchar from January 16. Eight teams are participating in the meet.

Selection: A camp to select the Mangaldoi team for the all-Assam inter-district under-15 cricket tournament at Lakhimpur will be held at Mangaldoi Stadium on Sunday.