Guwahati: Oil India Ltd (OIL), the promoter of Oil India FC, will make a fresh bid to field the team in the I-League, the apex football tournament of the country.

OIL chairman and managing director Utpal Bora, who was apparently unaware of the team's potential to vie for the honours in the national circuit and that it had played in the first three editions of the second division I-League that serves as the qualifiers for the I-League from 2008 to 2011, told The Telegraph that a fresh initiative could be made to represent Assam in the top tier.

Apprised by the general manager for sports and public relations, Raji Baruah, about the club's earlier ventures into the second division league, Bora said the shortcomings in criteria to play in the league could be sorted out and the team should be fielded.

"Sponsoring any other team in the I-League is an expensive affair, which is difficult under the present circumstances. But since we have our own team with enough potential, the shortcomings should be overcome and our team should play at the national level," Bora said.

"We want the team to play in the I-League and are in talks with the Assam Football Association (AFA) to work out ways for compliance of our team to play in the I-League. I am hopeful of a way out very soon," Baruah said.

Oil India FC does not comply with the I-league criterion of being a commercial private limited entity which the OIL management has not been agreeing to over the past half a decade. The club has its own stadium at Duliajan, corporate support from OIL, OIL-backed football academy that could be taken over and other criteria in compliance with the I-League rules.

"Not only the AFA, all the people of Assam look forward to OIL to fill up the void for Assam in the I-League. Smaller states like Manipur (Neroca FC and Tiddim Road Athletic Union), Mizoram (Aizawl FC), Sikkim (Sikkim United FC) and Meghalaya (Shillong Lajong FC, Rangdajied United FC and Royal Wahingdoh FC) have their teams in the I-League and we don't. It's unfortunate that Gauhati Town Club and Green Valley Sports Club also failed to sustain their efforts," said AFA secretary Ankur Dutta.

"We are always ready to help Oil India FC make it to the apex league. All they need to do is simply agree to comply with the rules laid down by the AIFF which is not very difficult. I will personally put in my best efforts to get the team into the I-League fold if they cooperate," Dutta added.

The club recruits the best footballers of the state but the careers of most of them are spoilt for lack of exposure at the national level. Talents like F. Wary, Jyotish Basumatary, Mintu Boro, Jayanta Basumatary, Jitu Chettry and others in the current squad had absolute potential to represent the country but remained unnoticed for lack of exposure at the national level.

The team, raised in 1964, has always shone at the state level winning the Bordoloi Trophy, Independence Day Cup, ATPA Shield, Assam Club Championship and other invitation tournaments apart from the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board meets. The last time it won a title outside Assam was the Kalinga Cup at Cuttack in 2006.