AKU Inter-University Football: NED hammer MAJU 12-1

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 3 games in Day 4 of its competition on 7 April 2011.

In Group 'C', the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science & Technology (SZABIST) overcame Sir Syed University of Engineering & Technology (SSUET) in a tight afair 1-0. Waleed Rashid's 49th minute goal proved to be enough for SZABIST as they maintained their positive start to the AKU Championship.

In Group 'D', Ziauddin University (ZU) had to fight hard against Hamdard University (HU) to win the game 3-2 at the end in an entertaining affair. Shoaib Ahmed gave ZU the lead after just 4 minutes, but HU's Sir Syed equalised in 13th minute. However, Shehzad Afzal gave Hamdard a 2-1 lead in 24th minute as the scorelines remained in favour of HU at half time. Second half saw Ziauddin fight back with Talha Chaudhry making it 2-2 in 59th minute before Shoaib Ahmed scored his second of the game to make it 3-2 in 63rd minute. The scores remained same at the end to give ZU a vital win.

Perhaps the most stunning result of the day was defending champions NED University's 12-1 demolition of Muhammad Ali Jinnah University (MAJU) in Group 'A'. A devastating four-goal burst each from Umer Mumtaz (4', 23', 26', 55') and Areeb Ali (60', 62', 64', 65') stunned MAJU who had taken an early lead through Khalil Ahmed after just 3 minutes. Further goals from Rafay Fahim (19'), Danish Ali (49'), Khizer Khan (71'), and Jaleed Aslam (68') completed the record-breaking 12-1 rout in favour of NED at the end.

The matches were supervised by Referees Naseer Ahmed, Khalid Mumtaz, Abdul Wahid, and Shaukat Ali, with Official Scorer Sajjad Akbar and Match Commissioner Munawar Khan.

On Saturday (9 April 2011), four matches will take place. NED University face JMDC at 12:30 PM, BMU face PNEC-NUST at 2 PM, SZABIST face IBA United at 3:30 PM, and hosts AKU face DUHS at 5 PM.

FPDC Preview: National Football Challenge Cup ’11, Faisalabad

The magic of cup football can see epic David beat Goliath battles. Minnows in 90 minutes can upset giants. A champion effort from one athlete can earn him glory over a more consistent adversary. This is the beauty associated with knock-out football that will be on show as the 21st NBP National Football Challenge Cup ’11 kicks off from the 14^th of April, at the Manchester of Pakistan i.e. Faisalabad.

The Pakistani version of the famous English FA Cup through the 14^th to the 27^th of April will see the 15 top department football sides and the host team PMC Athletico Club Faisalabad fighting it out for the 2^nd most coveted trophy in Pakistani football.

And the venue is perfect for this showpiece event. Known as the long-ball capital of Pakistan, Faisalabad has produced top footballers for the National team throughout history. The current captain of the National side, Samar Ishaq, hailing from the city is a testament. Faisalabad also houses the PMC Athletico club side that is one of if not the top football club in Pakistan. The club president, Rai Saif Ur Rehman Bhatti, is a diehard football promoter and fan. On getting hosting rights of the event he expressed his joy and exclaimed, ‘’the Challenge Cup is coming home.’’.

The format for this year’s cup is a sees the inclusion of a first round group stage. The 16 teams will be grouped in 4 groups of 4 teams with the top two qualifying to the Quater-Finals. The knock-out stages will be held at Faisalabad’s Iqbal Stadium. It is ironic how while cricket leaves the venue empty, football looks to get it full and to serve its purpose.

The sides taking part this year are defending Champions Khan Research Laboratories (KRL), National Champions WAPDA, Pakistan ARMY, NBP, KPT, PIA, Pakistan NAVY, KESC, HBL, PTV, PAF, Pakistan Police, Pakistan Railways, ZTBL, Ashraf Sugar Mills and PMC Athletico.

Favourites for this year’s title are definitely the impressive KRL side. Champions in the last two editions, the now Tariq Lutfi boys will look to make this a hat-trick of titles. The feat will be made easier as National Champions WAPDA are focusing on the AFC President's Cup later this month and will only send their Multan region (MEPCO) side for this competition.

Eyes will also be on competitive sides representing Army, Navy, PAF and KESC who will be hoping to pull a surprise come the NFCC. Eyes will specially be on KESC who many believe have under-achieved in the PPL this season even though they had the services of ex-international skipper Muhammad Essa, striker Muhammad Rasool, goalkeeper Muhammad Omer and the young Muhammad Riaz Ahmed in their ranks. Zabe Khan (Director Football, KESC) needs to ensure the side realizes it’s potential under renowned coach Hassan Baloch.

One side who will be an unknown quantity coming up into this tournament and capable to spring a surprise will be the host side PMC Athletico Faisalabad. Coached by one of the top coaches of Pakistan in recently appointed Akhtar Mohiuddin, PMC will be backed by the local support and will definitely enjoy home crowd support. Akhtar's surprising decision to coach PMC Athletico has been a source of shock and surprise across the football realm of Pakistan. The former national team head coach from Chaman is regarded at par with Tariq Lutfi as being the top coaches ever produced by Pakistan.

Captained by Pakistani Football legend Haroon Yousaf - himself a former NFCC winner with WAPDA and the now-defunct ABL football team -  PMC Athletico will also be the first club in history to play in the National Challenge Cup as it has only seen department’s play thus far. Their success might pave the way for other clubs to play in coming years.

We at FootballPakistan.Com will like to see the Faisalabad public coming in thousands to see this tournament. A centralized venue with the cream of Pakistani football talent on display is a true football fans dream. We will cover the event in great detail at the website and on the Facebook pages. Come on fans, let’s have fun enjoying OUR own FA Cup

FIFA referees to supervise National Challenge Cup matches

Lahore, 7 April : Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) 's President Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat has directed the current FIFA Referees of Pakistan to supervise the 21st NBP National Football Challenge Cup to be played from 14-27 April 2011 at PMC Ground, Faisalabad

All the Referees of various categories are being asked to report to match Commissioner/Referee Assessor for Physical Fitness Test on 13 April 2011 at 3 PM at Faisalabad’s PMC Ground.

The 19 referees posted for the coming National Bank Football Cup are :

FIFA (6): Khurram Shahzad (Kohat), Rana Naseer Ahmed (Faisalabad), Shahid Hussain (Okara), Rana Jehanzeb (Multan), Shafaat Habib (Rawalpindi), Waheed Murad (Lahore)

Ex-FIFA (2): Jehangir Khan (Quetta), Imtiaz Ali Shah (Peshawar)

National/local (11): Muhammad Adnan (Okara), Irfan Aslam (Faisalabad), Arsalan Sharif (Karachi), Zahid Iqbal (Faisalabad), Irfan Shoaib (Faisalabad), Usman Aamir (Faisalabad), Muzamal Hussain (Faisalabad), Waseem Aslam (Faisalabad), Umair Sarwer (Faisalabad), Adeel Anwar (Faisalabad), Arshad-ul-Haq (Sheikhupur)

Karachi Zone West to hold U16 trials from 10 April

In preparation for the Syed Liaquat Ali Shah Memorial Football Tournament, named after the late Senior Vice Chairman of Karachi Zonal FA West who died last month, 8 teams of U16 age bracket will take part from Zone West region.

2 teams from Baldia Town, and one each from Kemari, Mauripur, Orangi, Banaras, Old Golimar, and Garden will be taking part in this memorial tournament for U16 teams.

Secretary West Rahim Bakhsh has directed the members of Zone West to prepare teams for this tournament. Baldia Town resident and member Zone West, Iqbal Minhas, has been named coordinator for the event while former international Ayub Alam will head a selection committee that will supervise the trials. Other members of the selection committee include international star Farooq Shah (NBP), Saleem Faiz, and Fazal Baloch.

Open trials will be held from 10 April 2011 from 3:30 PM onwards at Young Noorani Ground, Baldia Town No. 7. Players born on or after 1 January 1995 will be allowed to take part in trials for their selection. All aspiring players are requested to bring their 'B' Form to prove their ages and report themselves to Iqbal Minhas for taking part in trials.

The top 3 teams from the Syed Liaquat Ali Shah Memorial Tournament will then represent Zone West in the KESC U16 Football Tournament to be scheduled in coming months

AKU Inter-University Football: BMU beat LNMC 6-1, BUITMS stun hosts AKU 1-0

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 3 games in Day 3 of its competition on 6 April 2011.

In Group 'D', Baqai Medical College (BMU) smashed hapless Liaquat National Medical College (LNMU) a resounding 6-1, after being 3-0 up at half time. A brace each from Attaullah (19' & 23') and Rafiullah (13' & 69') as well as goals from Murtaza Ghazi (56') and Shaz Zafar (62') completed the rout for BMU. Muhammad Ashraf managed solitary goal for LNMU in 48th minute.

In another Group 'D' encounter, PNEC-NUST beat Ziauddin University (ZU) 3-0 after a goal-less first half. Abdul Rehman (46'), Muhammad Hamza (64') and Najam Shah (65') scored in 2nd half to give PNEC-NUST their first win of the campaign.

In Group 'B', hosts Aga Khan University (AKU) were stunned to a 0-1 defeat at hands of gutsy Balochistan University of Information Technology & Management Sciences (BUITMS) team. An unfortunate own goal by AKU's Moiz Salahuddin in 24th minute was enough for BUITMS to battle out a narrow 1-0 win at the end.

The matches were supervised by Referees Naseer Ahmed, Khalid Mumtaz, Abdul Wahid, Javed Bangash, while Official Scorer was Sajjad Akbar and Match Commissioner was Munawar Khan.

On Friday, 8 April 2011, 3 more matches will be played in the tournament. At 2 PM, Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) will face BUITMS, IBA-Reserves face Institute of Business Management (IoBM) at 3 PM, while Hamdard University face LNMU at 5 PM

PFF announce format for 2011 National Challenge Cup

Lahore, 6 April : Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has announced Competition System for the National Bank Football Cup to be played from 14-27 April 2011 at Faisalabad.

According to PFF Operation Cell, the Competition shall consist of two stages: Group Stage (league system) and Knock-out Stage (quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals)

The sixteen teams in Group Stage shall be divided into four groups of four teams each with three points will be awarded for a win, one point for a draw and zero point for a loss.

The Organizing Committee for 14-day show divide the teams into groups by drawing lots during 13th April Manager’s meeting at 5 PM, whilst taking sports, geographic and economic factors into consideration, as far as possible.

The teams in the four groups shall be designated as follows:

Group A : A1,A2,A3,A4
Group B : B1,B2,B3,B4
Group C : C1,C2,C3,C4
Group D : D1,D2,D3,D4

The following match sequence applies (the number designates the position drawn in each group on 15 April Meet) with matches to be held from 14 to 21 April 2011.

1st Match day: 1 v 2, 3 v 4
2nd Match day: 2 v 3, 1 v 4
3rd Match day: 1 v 3, 2 v 4

The teams ranked first and second in each group qualify for the quarter-finals and the eight teams that advance from the group stage shall contest quarter-finals on 22, 23 April as follows:

Winner A v Runner-up D (I)
Winner D v Runner-up A (II)
Winner B v Runner-up C (III)
Winner C v Runner-up B (III)

The four winners of the quarter-finals will qualify for the 25th April semi-finals as follows :

Winner I v Winner III (E)
Winner II v Winner IV (F)

The losers in Matches E and F will play bronze medal match on 26 April while the winner of Matches E & F will appear in 27th April Final.

Raiders Club to host D.G. Khan/Sahiwal tie in Punjab Games

Lahore, 6 April : DG Khan will take on Sahiwal at 8 AM and Multan will face Gujranwala at 3 PM when 71st Punjab Games Football Tournament will commence at Kotha Pind’s Raiders FC Ground, Faisal Town, Lahore on Thursday, 7 April 2011.

According to President of Lahore District Football Association Mian Rizwan Ali the initial matches of three-day football event allotted to Raiders FC Ground following a tremendous All Punjab Raiders Cup recently. However, the final and bronze medal decided will be staged at Model Town Football Academy Ground.

The 71st Punjab Games, after being postponed four times, have finally made it to the calendar .The general council of the Punjab Olympics Association (PbOA) finalised the dates of the Punjab Games while also announcing that the 32nd National Games 2012 will be held between October 21 to 27 next

The Punjab Olympic Association (POA) is organising the 71st Punjab Games Altogether nine regions of Punjab including Rawalpindi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, Gujranwala, Dera Ghazi Khan and Sargodha will participate in the games. Men will take part in 18 disciplines while women will display their talent in eight events.

Lahore has won the 70th Punjab Games in 2007 with 27 Gold, 34 Silver, 70 Bronze. Runners up were Faisalabad and Gujranwala achieved third position. Closing ceremony then was held in Punjab Stadium, in which Governor Punjab closed the games with the promise to get together once again to maintain the harmony and peaceful environment between all districts.

PFA President Muhammad Arshad Khan Lodhi will be chief guest on concluding day. "The friendly atmosphere prevailed throughout the duration of the Games, which will be inaugurated 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

DRAWS OF PUNJAB GAMES FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT

7 April : DG Khan v Sahiwal (8 AM), Multan v Gujranwala (3 PM) at Raiders FC Ground

8 April : Lahore v Winner Multan/Gujranwala (8 AM), Faisalabad v DG Khan/Sahiwal (3 PM) at Raiders FC Ground

9 April : Bronze Medal Match (8 AM), Final (10 AM) at MTFA Ground

Butt upbeat ahead of WAPDA camp

KARACHI: WAPDA will begin preparations for their AFC President’s Cup campaign from Thursday as their players will start to gather for their training camp in Lahore on Wednesday (today).

WAPDA have been placed in Group C of Asia’s third-tier continental club competition which will be held from April 20-24 at the Dashrath Stadium in Kathmandu, Nepal.

But WAPDA’s pereparations have been hampered as they were expecting to play their group matches in May.

“We were expecting the slots in May, but the early schedule has put us in trouble,” WAPDA head coach Khalid Butt told ‘The News’ on Tuesday.

“We have invited 25 players to the camp which will begin with full force from Thursday (tomorrow).

“We have invited the best players and all are fit with the exception of experienced striker Arif Mehmood.

“Arif pulled his thigh muscles during Pakistanís engagement in the AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers in Kuala Lumpur last month but I hope that he will soon be fit for the event as we direly need him.”

WAPDA will start their campaign against Nepal Police Club on April 20, followed by their game against Taiwan Power Company of Chinese Taipei on April 22 and Nebitchi FC of Turkmenistan on April 24.

The President’s Cup is contested by the league champions of AFC’s 12 developing members which have been bracketed in three groups. The top two teams from each group will make it to the six-team final round which will be conducted at a centralised venue.

Group A competition, carrying Kyrgyzstan’s Neftchi Kochkor-Ata, Bangladesh champions Abahani, Sri Lanka’s Don Bosco Sports Club and Cambodia’s Phnom Penh Crown FC, will be contested in Cambodia from May 21 to 25 while Group B matches, featuring defending champions Yadanarbon of Myanmar, debutants Jabal Al Mukaber Club of Palestine and Tajik club Istiklol and Bhutan’s Yeedzin FC, will be played from May 13 to 17 in Yangon Stadium in Myanmar.

WAPDA, which will leave for Nepal on April 18, have less than two weeks for preparations but their coach said that he has devised a tough training schedule which will help his team catch rhythm ahead of the event.

“Time is running out but I have planned to train the players twice a day. Though I would not like to put an extra burden on them but we will be able to do practice of twenty days in only ten days,” Butt said.

However, he said that the hectic exercise will require balanced nutrition for the players.

“The players will need quality diet during these days. I am going to meet with the WAPDA administration tomorrow and will discuss with them what assistance I will need for the players during the training tenure,” Butt said.

Butt, who created history when he took his side to the semifinals of the 2009 edition of the AFC Presidentís Cup, is confident that his team will produce a good result.

“Though Nebitchi FC from Turkmenistan is a tough team in our pool but we are capable to beat the other two sides in our group to move ahead,” Butt said.

Because of the senior team’s engagement in the Kathmandu event, WAPDA will field its Multan unit team in the National Football Challenge Cup slated to be held in Faisalabad from April 14 to 27

AKU Inter-University Football begins, 3 matches decided

The Aga Khan University Football Ground in Karachi hosted the inauguration and first three league games of the 9th AKU Inter-University Football Tournament 2011. Dr. K. M. Inam Pal, Associate Professor & Section Head, General Surgery, Department of Surgery, AKU along with Riaz Akbar Contractor (Chief Organizer & Manager, AKU Sports Centre), Zahid Taj, Munawar Khan, Qamar Ali, M. Nizam inaugurated the Tournament. The Teams and the officials were introduced to the Chief Guest who later kicked the ball and officially inaugurated the Tournament.

The AKU Inter-University Tournament is being held as round robin basis with an initial league group round, followed by a knock-out stage of quarters, semis, and the final.

In the first game, hosts Aga Khan University (AKU) beat the reserve team of Institute of Business Administration (IBA Reserves) 2-1. Karachi United star Rehan Munir, who is also a student at AKU, gave his team the lead after just 3 minutes played as AKU led 1-0 at half time. In 2nd half, IBA-Reserves' Rizwan Ahmed Khan equalised in 53rd minute but Omer Akhtar gave AKU the lead again with his goal in 63rd minute as the host maintained the lead to win the game at the end.

In the second game, Ziauddin University (ZU) beat Baqai Medical University (BMU) 2-1. BMU took an early lead when Attaullah scored in 3rd minute, but goals by Syed Ali Bazil (8') and Raza Naqvi (12') have ZU a 2-1 lead before half-time. The 2nd half saw the scoreline remain same as ZU also won their game 2-1 at the end.

In third game, PAF-KIET hammered Jinnah Medical and Dental College (JMDC) 5-1 thanks to a superb hat-trick by Waqar Hussain. JMDC took an early lead through Munsif Adil (5') but Waqar Hussain equalised in 10th minute as the game was 1-1 at half time. In 2nd half, PAF-KIET dominated the game as Waqar Hussain scored twice more in 71st and 72nd minutes to complete his hat-trick while fellow team-mates Waqas Ilyas (51') and Syed Danish Hasan Rizvi (53') also added goals early in the 2nd half as PAF-KIET ran away 5-1 winners at the end.

The matches were supervised by Referees Naseer Ahmed, Khalid Mumtaz, Abdul Wahid, Javed Bangash, Official Scorer Sajjad Akbar and Match Commissioners Munawar Khan.

Greenshirts to start 2014 preparations next month

KARACHI: Pakistan are more likely to start their preparatory campaign next month for the first round of the FIFA World Cup 2014 qualifiers against Bangladesh.

“I will soon meet the top officials of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) and will then chalk out a plan. But we would like to begin the preparation for the vital two-legged round against Bangladesh soon at the end of the National Challenge Cup which will conclude at the end of this month,” Pakistan’s head coach Tariq Lutfi told ‘The News’ here on Friday.

“This is the right time to give some good news to the nation and the way we have raised the team through preparation in the last two months, I am optimistic that we will beat Bangladesh in both the legs this time,” Lutfi, who replaced Akhtar Mohiuddin in January, said.

Both the teams will clash each other in the qualifiers on June 29 and July3 on home and away basis in a yet to be decided venues.

It will be the first meeting between the two nations since their goalless draw encounter of the SAFF Championship in December, 2009, when Austrian George Kottan was Pakistan’s coach.

The coach ruled out any drastic changes in the side recently played in the AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers in Kuala Lumpur.

“There would be no such major changes in the lot already used this year in international circuit, but I will try to pick some more players, the fitter ones, for the camp during the National Challenge Cup,” Lutfi said.

Before fielding in the World Cup qualifiers against Bangladesh, besides the already scheduled couple of encounters against Palestine, Pakistan are also expected to play four or five matches against other nations.

“We believe that the team needs a lot of exposure but it is possible only if you have hefty amount in your purse. We are always short of funds but still we would like to see our team play more international matches before or after the Palestine trip against countries like Syria, Lebanon, Jordan etc,” the PFF President Faisal Saleh Hayat told ‘The News’ on Friday.

The PFF chief added that Pakistan direly need a foreign coach to raise the team further

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