Margala FC continue fine run in Women Club Championship

Star-studded Margala FC of Islamabad continued their fine run of Women Club Championship 2011 when they recorded two vital wins i over the last 3 days of action in Islamabad's Jinnah Sports Complex.
On 25 April, Margala FC steam-rolled past Young Rising Star Layyah 7-0. As many as three different players from Margalla scored a brace each, including National Women Team centre-forward Abiha Haider, left-forward Emaan, right-forward Mejzgaan Orakzai, and a goal from left-winger Shumaila.
On 27 April, the tie of tournament saw Margala FC face arch-rivals, and defending women champions, Young Rising Star of Rawalpindi in front of a strong crowd cheering both teams on. A fairly even action-packed contest saw both sides going close to scoring, with Margalla looking more confident with every passing minute. Eventually, Abiha Haider's clinical pass found the feet of Asna, who converted the simplest of chances for a narrow 1-0 win for Margala over their star-studden arch-rivals.

[AWAITING DETAILS OF REMAINING GAMES FROM PFF]

Brazilian Ambassador praises Faisal as Shehzad Anwar gets a trip to Brazil!

                         

Unopposed Provincial FA elections expected

The scrutiny of nomination papers of the candidates from Punjab and Balochistan was held on 28 April 2011 by the respective Election Commissioners for the 2011 Elections for Provincial FAs across Pakistan.
The nomination papers of following individuals from Punjab were rejected as these were not submitted to the Election Commissioner in accordance with the 'PFF Election Rules and Directives 2011'.
Punjab
1. Mr Raja Amer Khan    Candidate for post of President, Punjab FA
2. Mr Muhammad Khalid    Candidate for post of Vice President, Punjab FA
3. Mr Mujeeb ur Rehman    Candidate for post of Vice President, Punjab FA
The nomination papers of following individuals are accepted as their nominations paper fulfill all requirements of 'PFF Election Rules & Directives 2011'. Since, there are no other contestants, as such these candidates are elected unopposed to their respective positions:-
Balochistan
1 Haji Khalil Ahmed        President, Balochistan FA
2. Mir Inayat Ullah Baloch        Vice President, Balochistan FA
3. Mr Sana Ullah            Vice President, Balochistan FA
4. Mr Saif Ullah Baloch        Vice President, Balochistan FA
5. Mr Ayaz Zahoor Advocate       Member, PFF Congress
6. Mir Muhammad Jan Marri        Member, PFF Congress
7. Mir Khuda Baksh            Member, PFF Congress

Khyber Pakhtoonkhawa
1. Syed Zahir Ali Shah        President, KPK FA
2. Syed Ishfaq Hussain Shah        Vice President, KPK FA
3. Mohammad Saeed Khan        Vice President, KPK FA
4. Mohammad Saleem Awan        Vice President, KPK FA
Punjab
1. Muhammad Arshad Khan Lodhi    President, Punjab FA
2. Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada        Vice President, Punjab FA
3. Malik Salah uddin Dogar        Vice President, Punjab FA
4. Muhammad Naseem Khan Niazi    Vice President, Punjab FA
5. Raja Muhammad Ishtiaq        Vice President, Punjab FA
6. Khalid Iqbal Sheikh        Vice President, Punjab FA
Sindh
1. Syed Khadim Ali Shah        President, Sindh FA
2. Muhammad Iqbal        Vice President, Sindh FA
3. Azam Khan            Vice President, Sindh FA
4. Mir Yaqoob Ali Shah        Vice President, Sindh FA
5. Fateh Mohammad        Vice President, Sindh FA

The Life of Akber Wahidi (1957-2011)

Legendary sports writer, journalist, statistician, enthusiast, promoter, and PFF Media Manager, Syed Akber Ali Wahidi was found dead in his hotel room in Faisalabad this morning on Monday, 25 April 2011 at 9 AM. He was 53 years old, with cause of death determined as cardiac arrest suffered during his sleep.

The late Akber Wahidi was in Faisalabad to cover the final games of the 21st NBP National Football Challenge Cup 2011 on special invite of tournament organiser Rai Saif ur Rehman Bhatti. He had just enjoyed the nail-biting semi-final between KRL and Army at Bohranwali Ground on 24 April 2011 and was in good spirits. But his passing away just 8 hours after the end of the game in his hotel room has broken many hearts across Pakistan.

His body will be brought by air from Faisalabad to his native city of Karachi for burial later today. He leaves behind a widow, young son Ahmed Wahidi, mother, sister, and brother as mourners.

Akber Wahidi was famed for his sharp memory and enthusiasm for compiling statistics, records, history, and trivia related to both football and field hockey. He was often called the Walking Encyclopedia of Football. So much was his knowledge about the beautiful game, that even the football authorities around the world had to stand up and notice his remarkable memory and enthusiasm for the game.

In 2003, he acheived considerable fame when he wrote to FIFA and asked them to correct their record books for fastest goals scored from kick-off in a FIFA World Cup match. He pointed out that Václav Mašek of Czechoslovakia should be in second place for fastest goalscorer when he scored after just 16 seconds against Mexico in 1962 World Cup, rather than FIFA's then-second placed record holder Bryan Robson of England who scored after 27 seconds against France in 1982 World Cup. The fastest goal scored was by Turkey's legendary captain Hakan Şükür after just 11 seconds against South Korea in 3rd/4th place play-off in 2002 World Cup.

FIFA was surprised at this information and immediately acknowledged their mistake and sent Akber Wahidi an honorary letter thanking for his contribution and knowledge. In 2010, he was sent a special ticket by FIFA to vist and cover a match in the 2010 FIFA World Cup held in South Africa on FIFA's own expenses. He stated later that visiting and watching a FIFA World Cup game inside a stadium live was his dream come true.

Born on 7 August 1957, the late Akber Wahidi completed his BA in Civil Engineering from Karachi's renowned NED University of Engineering  & Technology as a youth, but decided not to pursue a career in Civil Engineering and instead focused on writing about his one true love: football.

From 1974, Akber Wahidi was involved in football & sports journalism and wrote fluently in both Urdu and English news articles. He first became renowned when he began writing exclusively for Urdu magazine 'Khel ki Dunya' that was owned by late sports journalist and Wahidi sahib's own mentor Alauddin Ghauri. Akber Wahidi would interview and profile the various football players and football teams across Karachi and rest of Pakistan, and showed immense dedication to his passion that won him many fans across Pakistan's football fraternity and sports journalism circles.

In 1992, Akber Wahidi became personally affiliated with the National Football Championship which was sponsored by Lifebuoy Soap for the first time Pakistani football history. As media in-charge for the tournament, Akber Wahidi's unprecedented coverage of the event brought the national media to take strong notice of almost every game and every result that was witnessed throughout Pakistan.

Eventually, the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) took notice of Akber Wahidi's tremendous knowledge, writing skills, and experience and made him Media Manager in 2004; a post he kept with full honour and committment till his shocking demise today.

A simple man, he did not let his fame as a sports journalist affect his humbleness and modesty throughout his life. He was offered a better pay to become Media Manager of the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) many times but he flatly refused each time to give up his love and loyalty towards football.

He also won many admirers across the South Asian region with many sports journalists from Nepal, India, Bangladesh etc regarding him as one of their own. Akber Wahidi was also Executive Editor of the now defunct Karach-based Urdu-language football gazette 'Monthly Football Magazine' where he worked with his close friend and protégé Riaz Ahmed

Akber Wahidi also had a very close and personal friendship with FootballPakistan.Com (FPDC) since 2001. He got in touch with a young Malik Riaz Hai Naveed and supported the fellow's dream of giving Pakistani football a voice on the internet media which would evolve into FootballPakistan.Com (FPDC) in 2003. Akber Wahidi was always enthusiastic about supporting FPDC and provided its growing staffers with up-to-date Pakistani football news, statistics, reports, histories, content etc for almost 10 years without a pause. The FPDC team regarded him as one of their own because of his dedication to football and willingness to let the world read about it.

His death has given Pakistani football journalism and media involvement a huge blow because no one can be as enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and eloquent as Akber Wahidi was throughout his life.

The PFF Officials expressed immense sadness and shock regarding Akber Wahidi's sudden demise. PFF President Mahdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat, General Secretary Col (Retd) Ahmedyar Khan Lodhi, Director Operations Wing Commander (Retd) Pervez Saeed Mir et al. fondly recalled his enthusiasm for the beautiful game and prayed for the departed soul and his grieving family.

Others wishing their prayers and dedications to the late Akber Wahidi include sports journalist Riaz Ahmed, FPDC Webmaster Malik Riaz Hai Naveed, FPDC Chief Editor Ali Ahsan, FPDC editor Gauhar Mahmood Azeem, FPDC staffers M. Shahnawaz and Zaka Ahmed Gondal, PMC Athletico Faisalabad President Saif ur Rehman Bhatti, PMC Athletico Media Manager Waheed Nagra, former PFF officials M. Muslim Butt and Faisal Amir Khan, SSGC head coach Nasim Ahmed, Sindh FA chairman Ghulam Abbas Baloch, senior vice chairman Syed Khadim Ali Shah, national coach Tariq Lutfi, Karachi Zone West FA chairman Zafar Iqbal, secretary Rahim Bakhsh, Karachi Malir FA chairman Fateh Muhammad Baloch, secretary Shahid Taj, Karachi Zone South FA chairman Gulab Baloch, secretary Jan Muhammad, Murad Bakhsh, Karachi Zone East FA chairman Abdul Malik Khan, secretary Ubaid Ullah, Karachi Zone Central FA chairman Aqeel Tazeem Naqvi, secretary Asif Zaheer, member Abdul Karim, former international Saleem Patni, Karachi United FC director Taha Alizai, National Soccer Academy chairman Arshad Jamal, senior vice chairman Asif Khan, Khalid Majeed, Saleem Arif, Syed Usman Shah, Usman Baloch, Master Riasat Ali, Mirza Anees Baig, Rasheed Khan, Karim Bakhsh Chandio, et al.

May the departed hero of Pakistani football rest in peace, and may the grieving family have the patience and resolve to overcome the passing away of their beloved one.

A short biography by Riaz Ahmed and Ali Ahsan about the life of Syed Akber Ali Wahidi, the late PFF Media Manager and football enthusiast who was found dead in his hotel room in Faisalabad this morning.

KESC reach NFCC 2011 Final, beat PIA on penalties 4-2

Just like the 1st semi-final between KRL and Army, it took another penalty shoot-out to decide winner of the 2nd semi-final of 21st NBP National Football Challenge Cup 2011 between KESC and PIA today (25 April 2011) at Bohranwali Ground, Faisalabad.

The occasion was significantly marred by the earlier death of PFF Media Manager Syed Akber Ali Wahidi in the morning of the game. In his memory, there was a special prayer and applause done by both teams, officials, guests, and spectators before kick-off. The match was also attended by chief guest Syed Naveed Asghar, Senior VP of National Bank of Pakistan.

KESC were missing services of star striker Muhammad Rasool, who suffered injury in group stages that ruled him out for rest of tournament as they failed to score. The match was further compounded by a fine save by PIA goalkeeper Bilal Rafique to stop KESC skipper Muhammad Essa from giving his side the lead with a 43rd minute penalty kick before half-time. The match eventually ended 0-0 after 90 minutes as both sides failed to score from the chances they had, leading to extra time.

After a scoreless 1st half of extra time, the match exploded into late frenzy as PIA skipper #10 Nasrullah Khan gave his side a 1-0 lead in 109th minute that looked like it would be enough to see them through to face former coach Tariq Lutfi and his KRL side in final. But KESC veteran striker and vice-captain #10 Aurangzeb Shahmir equalised in 115th minute as extra time eventually finished all-square at the end, leading to the dreaded penalty shoot-out.

Pishin hosts teams from Ziarat and Chaman for Sports Festival

Pishin District of Balochistan province recently concluded a Sports Festival Week at Taj Lala Stadium, inviting various school and college teams from neighbouring Ziarat and Qilla Abdullah (Chaman) districts of Balochistan to take part in Cricket and Football events.

Pishin teams completed clean sweep in all the sports events over their neighbouring districts, including the Pishin Girls College teams facing similar victories in female events.

The concluding ceremonies of the Pishin Sports Festival Week was attended by chief guest Muneer Ahmed Badini, Balochistan Sports Secretary, who praised the arrangement of such events for young students.

He said that young people can only succeed in life when they concentrate fully on their studies and participate in sports to encourage healthy activity and thrill in a safe environment that helps to stay away from the vices of society as well as poor health.

Muneer Badini also said the Balochistan Govt is doing its utmost to encourage and facilitate sports activities and events to create world class sportsmen from all ages to compete at national levels, as well as vowing to improve sports facilities in Pishin District.

The event was also attended by Pishin District's Education Officer Rasheed Tareen, DPO Asad Nasir, Sports Officer Idrees Khan, and Pishin Press Club President Saad Ullah Jan Tareen.

PMC Athletico President Saif Bhatti expresses deep sorrow at Akber Wahidi’ sad demise

The entire Pakistan football fraternity was today shook by the sad, unexpected demise of Akber Wahidi, the pen to Pakistani football. From officials to fans, from journalists to students of NED, his alma-mater, all are grieved at this devastating news.

One person especially aggrieved is PMC Athletico President and NBP Challenge Cup organizer Rai Saif Ur Rehman Bhatti, as Wahidi passed away whilst his guest at the event.'I cannot express my feelings, I feel as I have lost myself somewhere. We have lost a great man. He died in my own arms and as my guest, you can't even imagine the pain.'' Saif Bhatti said when asked about Wahidi' death.

He added, 'I called him on the 19th of April and inquired why he hadn't come to Faisalabad to cover the Challenge Cup. He replied this assignment wasn't given to him. I asked him on personal behalf to come as my special guest to witness and cover the event as only he could. He accepted my invitation and came to Faisalabad on the 21st of April and I provided him the best possible stay available and my best hospitality. He was enjoying it here, and was covering the event, and also appreciated my efforts in organizing this event which are comments I now cherish. This is the least I could do such a humble man, who can be best known as a Malang.

It was alarming when I received a call from (PFF Manager Competitions) Rauf Bari at 9:15 am today telling me that Akber Wahidi is not responding, I reached there as soon as I could to find rescue 1122 declare him dead. What an unrepairable loss indeed.'

When asked if he would ask the PFF management to dedicate the final or an award to Akber Wahidi, Saif Bhatti said he will try his best to make that possible, and that he had ensured the stadium sound system today lay silent for a minute today to honour Wahidi and a Dua was offered for his forgiveness.

'In two or three days with him, I got to know what a dynamic man he was. He was a civil engineer and I was surprised by his humility and his love for football, which was un-paralleled. Football may never recover from this loss.' He concluded.

DFA Nawabshah Chairman praises King Baloch FC

The successful King Baloch Football League Championship in Nawabshah by local side King Baloch FC brought praise and felicitations from Yaqoob Baloch, the Chairman of District FA Nawabshah. He also stated the importance of such events to help promote football across the Nawabshah (Shaheed Benazirabad) District.
The DFA Chairman met club chairman Faiz Muhammad Baloch and congratulated King Baloch FC for organising the event with 6 of its own teams participating in the King Baloch Championship. King Baloch beat King Baloch Green in final on penalties a few weeks ago to win the event, with national football organiser Master Riasat Ali present as chief guest
.

NFCC 2011: Day 5 results

Results of 21st NBP National Football Challenge Cup 2011, Day 5 (18 April 2011) in Faisalabad

Match #13: KESC vs Pakistan Railways. KESC win 4-3.
Ground: Agricultural University Ground, Faisalabad
Scorers: (KESC) #9 Muhammad Rasool (10,71,77 min) and #17 M Riaz (55 min). (Railways) #7 Imran (67 min), #4 Waseem Abbas (80 min), and #8 Usman (86 min).
Cautions: (Railway) #1 Aqeel Ahmed, YC 19
Match Commissioner: Mr. M. Iqbal Jr.
Referee Assessor:
Referees: Rana Naseer, Muzammil, Hafiz Irfan, Mian Shahbaz

Match #14: PMC Athletico vs Pakistan Army. Army win 1-0.
Ground: PMC Ground, Faisalabad
Scorers: (Army) #35 Ikram (45 min).
Caution: (PMC) #19 Ejaz Ahmed, YC 41min, (Army) #12 Mickal YC 72min
Match Commissioner: Mr. Naveed Butt
Referee Assessor: Mr. Qazi M. Asif
Referees: Khuram Shahzad, Jehangir Khan, Adnan Anjum, Iftikhar

Match #15: WAPDA vs National Bank. WAPDA win 2-1.
Ground: Bohranwali Ground, Faisalabad
Scorers: (WAPDA) #9 Shahid Baloch (5 min) and #5 Ayaz Baloch (54 min). (NBP) #11 Misbah (90+3 min)
Caution: (NBP) #19 Waseem Qadir YC 56min, Farooq Shah YC 57 min, 25 Amir Siddique YC 38min. (Wapda) #17 Naeemullah YC 66 min+YC 73 min=RC 73 min
Match Commissioner: Mr. Ahmed Ali
Referee Assessor: Mr.
Referees: Shafaat Habib, Irshad ul Haq, Aamir Bhatti, Irfan Aslam

Match #16: Pakistan Navy vs Ashraf Sugar Mills. Navy win 1-0.
Ground: PMC Ground, Faisalabad
Scorers: (Navy) #19 Asif Bakhsh (45+1 min)
Caution: (ASM) #16 Mazhar YC 85 min+ YC 91 min=RC 90+1 min, #17 M. Arif YC 89 min
Match Commissioner: Mr.Naveed Bashir Butt
Referee Assessor: Mr. Qazi M. Asif
Referees: Waheed Murad, Rana Jehanzeb, M. Ayub, Shoaib Baig

 omorrow on 19th April, 2011 matches: match # 17 PAF VS KRL at Bohranwali ground at 14:00 hours, match # 18. ZTBL vs HBL at PMC Ground at 14:00 hours. Match #. 19 KPT vs PIA at Bohranwali Ground at 16:00 hours and match # 20. PTV vs POLICE at PMC Ground at 

16:00 hours.

FIFA World Cup Pre-Qualifing Round 2014

Palestine returns friendly series with Palestine National team to be played at Ramallah and Hebron 
– Palestine from 24 to 30th May 2011. 

First match on May 24th on Faisal Al-Hussain International Stadium. (Ramallah) 

Second Match on May 26th Al-Hussein Stadium, Hebron 

For Training Camp National Coach Mr. Tariq Lutfi has Selected 42 players for Palestine tour and 
World Cup pre-Qualifying round against Bangladesh on 29th June at Dhaka Bangladesh and on 
3rd July, 2011 at Lahore Pakistan . Training camp will be starting from 6th May 2011 at Lahore. 

PAF Dominate First Session : Thrash HBL 3-0

Lahore, 14 April: PAF opened their onslaught with 3-0 win over HBL in the Opener of 21st National Bank Football Cup will commence on Thursday, 14 April at Bohranwali Ground, situated on Club Road, near Bagh-i-Jinnah Thursday. It was the clash between two former National Champions of 80s, Pakistan Air Force and Habib Bank Limited that yielded all theee goals in the first session. HBL failed to create any impression. It was Group B clash where other two teams are holders Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) and first timer Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) 

PAF completely dominated the first session and their repeated attacks allowed them the opener in the 24th minute when midfielder Muhammad Arif Nawaz steered the ball inti net from close range. Nawaz is the player from Toba Tek Singh while Kohat-born Amir Khan gave tense moments to bankers with the second in the 30th minute. It was all over when Shahkot-born Irfan Ali hit the back of the net in the 36th minute. 

Earlier the event was inaugurated by Khawaja Shahid Razzak Sikha, President, Anjuman Tajiran, Faisalabad. 

Friday (15 April) Fixture: PIA v Pakistan Television (Bohranwali Ground 2 PM), ZTBL v KRL (PMC Ground 2 PM), KPT v Police (PMC Ground 4 PM

King Baloch win Nawabshah Championship

The King Baloch Nawabshah Football League Championship final was won by host side King Baloch FC when they beat King Baloch Green on penalties after 2-2 score at end of regulation time at King Baloch Football Ground at Sangarh Road, Nawabshah in front of a large crowd.

The event was organised by King Baloch FC (Marium Road, Old Nawabshah) President Faiz Muhammad Baloch, who created 6 teams from his side in King Baloch, King Baloch Greedm, White, Red, Yellow, and Blue to take part in this tournament on single-league format. The final was played between King Baloch and King Baloch Green. Referee was Abdul Latif Baloch with assistants Yaqoob Brohi and Rohiat Sheikh.

Ahmed Brohi gave King Baloch a 2nd minute lead but Nauman equalised for KB Green in 40th minute. In 2nd half, Nauman gave KB Green a 2-1 lead but a minute before the Shehryar equalised for King Baloch to tie the game, forcing a penalty shootout. King Baloch won the shootout 5-4 to be awarded the winners' trophy. Amjad, Ejaz, Farhan, Faiz, and Akbar coverted their tries for winners, but only Shehryar, Nauman, Rehan, and Shoaib managed to convert for KB Green while Arbaz missed his attempt.

The final was attended by many football personalities of the area. Master Riasat Ali was chief guest alongside Faiz Muhammad Baloch, Abdul Sattar Baloch, Murad Baloch, Ustad Mehmood Ali Brohi, Zahid Afridi, etc. Master Riasat Ali spoke on the occasion, praising the organisation of such a tournament to help boost football's profile in Nawabshah.

Karachi Zone West suspends 3 players for bad conduct

Karachi Zone West FA general secretary Rahim Bakhsh ordered strict suspensions on 3 players affiliated with Zone West for consistently showing bad conduct, rough play, and poor discipline in many tournaments played across Karachi in recent times.
Young Ansari FC's star striker Abdul Hameed Afridi was given a 6 month ban scheduled to run from 10 April to 10 October 2011. Malik Star FC's Shabir and Shabaz Green's Rahim Gul were both given 3 month bans each from 10 April to 10 July 2011.

Hameed Afridi's red card suspensions during the 8th Karachi Football League 2010-11 badly affected Young Ansari's chances of making the final. Hameed was top scorer of the tournament but his team failed to make the final in the end. His red card offences in other tournaments also forced Zone West to take drastic action.

All three players have been ordered to stay away from football activties for their ban periods as punishment. The clubs and players have been directed to strictly follow the decision of Zone West FA otherwise the penalties will be increased.

Lahore participants most in PFF Women Referee Courses

Lahore, 11 April: Lahore get lion's share of attention as seven of the Pakistan’s second biggest city girls viz Laila Zafar, Saiqah Waris, Fehmida Ayub, Shazia Ramzan, Sabiha Khalil, Saima Majeed and Bushra Khanam are among the 14 participants of PFF Women Referee Consolidating Course. The six-day Course commenced at FIFA House, Ferozpur Road, Lahore today and will conclude on 15 April 2011.

According to PFF Women Administrator and Course Coordinator Neha Zia, participants from Lahore, Vehari, Rawalpindi, Khybar Pakhtunkhawa and Bahawlpur will learn under Referees Manager Qazi Mohammad Asif and Instructors Salah Uddin Awan and Arif Siddqui. The Course have been designed under directives of Pakistan Football Federation (PFF)’s President Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat to reinforce contacts between Pakistan football’s governing body and women referees at a time when women’s football is developing at a rapid pace.

“In organising this course, PFF is offering women referees the opportunity for expert instruction in the laws of the game and physical preparation, which should enable them to further improve their performance.”

“Women’s football is arguably the fastest growing sport in Asia and it is high time women practitioners of the game received separate and suitable recognition - on par with the men. Gone are the days when the women’s version was considered a pale and inferior shadow of the men’s game in our continent. A time is not far way when a female referee will not only supervise the National event final but Pakistan will also provide a FIFA Female Referee, and ongoing Course will help PFF a lot in this scheme,” added PFF Women Committee Chairperson Robina Irfan. She occupied the new role during 28th December 2010 PFF Congress after being successful Chairperson of PFF Women Wing from 17 December 2005 to 7 August 2010.

The current PFF set-up met another milestone when FIFA gave inclusion to Pakistan Women football team in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking.”Under dynamic leadership of PFF Chief, we have worked hard for seven years to build up women’s football and the appreciation from FIFA means very much to us and will inspire us to do even better,” said Robina who added that Pakistan Women is in 121st spot, above 51 nations, in World Ranking.

“The standard of women’s football is progressing extremely rapidly in PFF,” Neha added, “and referees must be ready to face the challenge presented by a game which is more technical, quicker and more hard-fought on the field.The 14 participants will undergo a fitness test and take part in a training programme at Punjab Stadium, and discuss a series of important topics relating to the laws of the game.”

“Criteria will be issued to help the referees take decisions in certain key situations, such as for tackles and their consequences, and when a goal-scoring opportunity is denied. Discussions will also centre on how referees should act in the case of players who are in an offside position, but who are involved in active play.” concluded Neha.

14 Participants of Women Referee Consolidating Course

Lahore: Laila Zafar, Saiqah Waris, Fehmida Ayub, Shazia Ramzan, Sabiha Khalil, Saima Majeed, Bushra Khanam

Vehari: Huma Shehzadi

Rawalpindi: Sehrish Tariq, Rabia Hameed

Khyber Pakhtunkhawa: Salma Faiz, Shaista Kanwal

Bahawalpur: Shaista Jabeen, Huma Bilal

AKU Championship: NED, Ziauddin, Hamdard, MAJU record wins

Organised by the Aga Khan University (AKU) Sports & Rehabilitation Centre at the AKU Football Ground, the 9th AKU Inter-University Football Tournament 2011 saw the results 5 games in Day 7 of its competition on Sunday, 10 April 2011.

In Group 'C', IBA United held Sir Syed University of Engineering & Technology (SSUET) 1-1. After a goal-less first half, Hunbal bin Sohail gave IBA United the lead in 45th minute, which Kamran Aslam of SSUET equalised barely 4 minutes later. Both sides earned 1 point each with the scores remaining tied at the end.

In Group 'D', Ziauddin University (ZU) romped to a 7-0 win over Liaquat National Medical College (LNMC). ZU's main star was Shoaib Ahmed who scored a brilliant hat-trick (1', 34', 37') to register the eighth hat-trick of the on-going tournament. Talha Chaudhry (33' and 35'), Syed Ali Bazil (1') and Asad Sheikh (36') also scored for ZU in the game.

Another Group 'D' encounter saw Hamdard University (HU) beat PNEC-NUST 3-1. Yasir Lashkari gave Hamdard the lead after just 1 minute, with Sir Syed scoring Hamdard's second just a minute after Yasir's goal. The score was 2-0 in HU's favour at half time. Shazi Tahir managed to score for PNEC-NUST in 38th minute but Yasir Lashkari scored his second of the game in 43rd minute that made Hamdard win 3-1 at the end.

In Group 'A', Muhammad Ali Jinnah University (MAJU) scored a 2-0 win over Jinnah Medical & Dental College (JMDC) after 0-0 score at half time. Hamza Ahmed scored both the goals for MAJU in 50th and 54th minutes.

In the other Group 'A' clash, defending champions NED University scored an easy 6-0 win over PAF-KIET as they continued their great form in the competition. Areeb Ali (3' and 24'), Rafay Fahim (8'), Jaleed Aslam (7') and Khurram Shakeel (26') gave NED an imposing 5-0 lead at half time. Rafay Fahim scored his second of the game in 2nd half (42') to complete the easy 6-0 scoreline for NED.

The matches were supervised by Referees Naseer Umar, Khalid Mumtaz, M. Yousuf, and Imran Hussain, with Official Scorer Sajjad Akbar and Match Commissioners Munawar Khan and Qamar Ali.

NBP Fooball Cup to start next week

KARACHI: National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) Football Cup 2011, formerly known as National Challenge Cup, will be held at two different venues in Faisalabad from April 14 to 27 as the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) announced draws on Friday for the 16-team extravaganza.

This is the second major spectacle in the domestic slots after the Pakistan Premier League which takes centre stage with a bulky flux of encounters. As per draws, the sixteen teams have been placed in four different groups. Group A carries WAPDA, Navy, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and Ashraf Sugar Mills while Group B contains KRL, PAF, HBL and ZTBL. PIA, KPT, Police and PTV have been adjusted in Group C while KESC, Army, Railways, and PMC have been bracketed in Group D.

The event will be held on round robin and the two leading teams of each group after group stage competition will move into the quarter-finals which will be held from April 21 to 23. The semifinals will be conducted on April 24 and 25 while the final will be held on April 27. The match for the third place will be held on April 26.

The event will be held at the Bohranwali Ground Club Road Jinnah Bagh and the PMC Football Ground simultaneously. The matches will start at 2:00pm and 4:00pm respectively.

One of the prime clubs of the country Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) will defend the title and Pakistan head coach Tariq Lutfi, who has joined KRL only few days back as head coach cum consultant after getting retirement from PIA, will serve as head coach of the defending champions.

The national champions WAPDA will field their second string in the competition as their senior team will leave for Kathmandu on April 18 to feature in the AFC President’s Cup Group C slots at the Dashrath Stadium from April 20 to 24.

Hosts Punjab Medical College (PMC) will be coached by former Pakistan coach Akhtar Mohiuddin who joined it more recently.

Former Pakistan captain Mohammad Essa, who will reach Faisalabad from his hometown in Chaman on April 13, will lead KESC while another former Pakistan captain and experienced gloveman Jaffar Khan will lead former national champions Army during the tournament.

Six current FIFA referees, two former FIFA referees and eleven national and local referees will supervise the spectacle.

Fixtures: April 14: PAF v HBL. April 15: ZTBL v KRL, KPT v Police, PTV v PIA. April 16: WAPDA v Ashraf Sugar Mills, Bahawalpur, Navy v NBP, KESC v PMC, Army v Railways.

Faisalabad retain Punjab Games title

Lahore, 9 April: Holders Faisalabad staged recovery to beat Lahore 2-1 in the final of 71st Punjab Games Football Tournament at Kotha Pind’s Raiders FC Ground, Faisal Town, Lahore on Saturday morning. It was second consecutive win for Faisalabad in the event. They also defeated the same rival in the final at Model Town Football Academy Ground, Lahore four years ago.

According to President of Lahore District Football Association Mian Rizwan Ali all the seven matches of three-day football event were allotted to Raiders FC Ground at Kotha Pind, Faisal Town, Lahore following a tremendous All Punjab Raiders Cup recently.

The three goals of the final were recoded in the first half while second session remained barren. Imtiaz coached-Faisalabad conceded 28th minute goal when Lahore’s striker Fahad Tariq punished keeper blunder but they drew level through penalty kick in the 35th minute converted by midfielder Basit Naeem. Five minutes Sahiwal outkicked Multan 4-3 on penalties to win bronze medals. 

The final was supervised, under Match Commissioner Chaudhry Abdul Rasheed, by Afzal Bari, supported by Irfan Aslam, Mehr Shabbir and 4th Official Muhammad Anwar.

Punjab Olympic Association (POA) organised Games participated by nine regions of Punjab including Rawalpindi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, Gujranwala, Dera Ghazi Khan and Sargodha.

"The friendly atmosphere prevailed throughout the duration of the Games, which is concluded with the hopes of bringing the all districts of Punjab together. The districts share a common history and culture, with many people on every side of the districts related to one another," said Rizwan Ali. Earlier in semi-finals, Lahore beat Multan 4-2 and Faisalabad overran Sahiwal 2-1

Full Results

7 April: Multan 1 Gujranwala 0, Sahiwal 1 Dera Ghazi Khan 0, Faisalabad 3 Sargodha 2
8 April: ( semi-finals) Lahore 4 Multan 2, Faisalabad 2 Sahiwal 1
9 April: Final : Faisalabad 2 Lahore 1 ¾ : Multan 1 Sahiwal 1 ( Sahiwal won 4-3 on PSO)

PEL’s Asghar shows guts as Pakistan football talent hunter

Lahore, 8 April: Pak Elektron Limited (PEL), who will play their fourth season in Pakistan Premier League 2011 from June, contributed a number of players to the Pakistan football team, including Muhammad Adil, Alamgir Khan, Ehsan Ullah who represented Pakistan in 4th AFC Challenge Cup last month, and Asian Star Safi Ullah. Besides appearance in Pakistan Premier Football League from 2008 to 2010, Lahore-based PEL actually created a nursery for the Pakistan football taking over the responsibility from Crescent Textile Mills’s Allah Dita Awan who was known for digging out players from villages and far-flung areas.

The man behind the scene of PEL fine work is Asghar Khan Anjum, a qualified coach who assisted George Kottan in SAFF Championship 2009 and played again European team Moldova in his playing days. Rahim Yar Khan-born Asghar talent-hunted several stars on Pakistan soil and all the PPFL teams are now filled with the players produced by Asghar in his all out spell.

PEL’s former Safi Ullah Khan became only player in Pakistan soccer history to score four goals in an international fixture and rose further into limelight when he finished as leading marksmen of third AFC Challenge Cup Qualifier 2009. Muhammad Tauseef Ahmed, who struck a goal against Palestine in Lahore Test recently also emerged from PEL. Goal keeper Saqib Hanif, midfielder Waheed Hameed who helped PEL in snatching tenth spot in PPFL 2010, will now play for Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited in coming 21st National Bank Cup (NFCC) at Faisalabad. In the same way, PEL’s leading scorer Saad Ullah in PPFL 2010 will represent titleist KRL in coming NFCC.

“When it comes to producing star booters, PEL is clearly at the top. It is clearly the soccer nursery and players from this organization went on to wear national color. PEL is known for producing a tremendous quantity of fine footballers and one can judge also that PEL’s former players Rahim and Shahid Ali are now central defenders of former National and NFCC Champion HBL. But talent alone is not enough to become an outstanding player, as extraordinary levels of preparation and development are also needed. The infrastructure, facilities of sports were utilized under tremendous vision of Asghar Anjum,”said PEL’s Director Operation Murad Saigol “Of course PEL offers its own football school,”

Murad believes the man from Rahim Yar Khan will remain a huge success at PEL. He is a elegant coach with immense visualization of talent hunting and one of the most exciting young coaches in Pakistan presently. His style and ability will give any team a different dimension and I’m sure he will be a popular with the team and fans in future too.”

“We need to keep developing our game and our players.” That was the vision, thinking of Pakistan Football Federation (PFF)’s President Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat right from 2003 and a year later he created the PPFL that broaden the pool of top Pakistani footballers. Tasked with developing the football in efficient, long and short term strategy throughout the whole country, his steps meet successes, and the team that provided more and more players regularly to PFF and Pakistan is PEL who joined Faisal-led country’s ruling body in top ranked event in 2008, after winning PFF League 2007.

The 23 players produced under PEL’s coach Asghar Anjum and now attending other organizations are Aqeel Ahmed, Kamran (Railways), Tauseef Ahmed, Basit Ghafoor, Haider Ali (WAPDA), Jalil Ahmed, Safi Ullah Khan, Abid Ghafoor, Muhammad Adil, Muhammad Bilawal, Ehsan Ullah, Jahanzeb, Saad Ullah (KRL), Rahim, Shahid Ali (HBL), Saqib Hanif, Waheed Hameed ( ZTBL), Ali Raza (PMC Athletico), Asad Ullah, Alamgir Khan (Police), Muhammad Sher, Muhammad Bilal, Muhammad Usman (PAF).