Bengal regained the Santosh Trophy with a 1-0 victory over Kerala at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad on Tuesday. And much of the credit goes to coach Sanjoy Sen.

The 62-year-old venerable coach, who completed his AFC pro licence course in 2023, said he felt honoured to take the trophy back to Calcutta after seven years.

“In Bengal, it is all about winning the Santosh Trophy. To finish runners-up would be considered a failure. I was aware of the pressure but took up the challenge. We had a completely young team, but they performed in the most incredible way throughout the tournament. Congratulations to my boys for doing such a great job,” Sen, who guided Mohun Bagan to I-League triumph in the summer of 2015, said on Tuesday.

The star of the tournament was Robi Hansda who scored a record 12 goals bettering Mohammed Habib's 11-goal mark for Bengal in the 1969-70 Santosh Trophy. “That I could score the match-winner is a huge bonus for me. I dedicate this victory to my father,” Hansda said.

IFA secretary Anirban Dutta was understandably happy with the performance.

"It was a conscious decision to appoint Sen as the coach. He has kept himself updated with modern football. Importantly, he was not with any club and we thought that would help him to work with a free mind," Dutta said on Wednesday.

Incidentally, Bengal won the Santosh Trophy four times when Dutta's father Pradyut was the secretary. Dutta Senior passed away in 1994.

Sanjoy Sen and his men arrived in the city on Wednesday night. Sports minister Aroop Biswas, IFA president Ajit Banerjee, secretary Dutta and other top officials of the association were present at the airport to welcome the squad.