New Delhi: The Santosh Trophy, scheduled to be held in Haryana from September 14, could turn out to be one of the longest in recent memory and may disrupt local engagements in Bengal and Goa.

According to All India Football Federation (AIFF) sources, the Santosh Trophy may run for a month and a half, with a 15-day gap between the preliminary phase and the main round.

In the Santosh Trophy rules and regulations book, circulated to all state associations, the AIFF indicated that while the preliminary round will be held between September 14 and 29, the main round will only be held from October 14 to 25.

In another shift from tradition, teams which qualify from the preliminary round will be allowed to go home and return after a fortnight — on federation expense. These teams will also be allowed to induct six fresh players.

While Sunil Bhardwaj, secretary of the Haryana state association, said the 15-day gap will allow top footballers attend the national camp for the Asian Cup tie in Bangalore, such scheduling will affect the Bengal and Goa leagues even if both states send their second strings for the national meet.

Under AIFF’s ‘sons of the soil’ rule, all clubs and states will have to release their outstation players (if demanded by their respective state associations) for Santosh Trophy duty 15 days prior to the tournament. Top clubs in Calcutta may be badly affected by this arrangement this time.