WAPDA register another win; NBP, KRL play 2-2 draw

LAHORE: WAPDA managed a narrow 1-0 win over Habib Bank Limited (HBL) in the 3rd Pakistan Premier League (52nd National Football Championship), at the Model Town C-Block Ground here on Friday.

Meanwhile, Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) saw their winning sequence ending at their own stadium at Rawalpindi when they were held to a 2-2 draw by National Bank of Pakistan (NBP).

HBL provided a tough fight to league leaders WAPDA with tight defence, having the services of former national skipper Tariq Hussain, and fine goalkeeping by young keeper Bilal Rafiq.

They allowed few gaps to WAPDA’s Bashir Ahmed, Imran Niazi and Zulfiqar Shah. Only one goal separated the two former national champions when in the 34th minute WAPDA’s left-full Naveed Akram curled a long ball from his gallery. It caused panic in HBL’s defence and midfielder Imran Niazi took possession of a loose ball and rifled a fierce drive into the top right corner as Bilal wondered where his cover might be.

HBL tried to come back through skipper Shahid Saleem, Amjad Yousof and Nazeer Ahmed in the second half but they were not able to dislodge the defence of keeper Aziz Ahmed who extended his minutes to 450 without conceding a goal.

The Match Commissioner was Mian Rizwan Ali while Yunus Kiani acted as a Referee Assessor. Rauf Bari supervised the match, assisted on the line by Fayyaz Siddiqui and Zulfiqar Babli.

The exciting battle between two star-studded teams at the KRL stadium saw the availability of nine South Asian Games gold medallists, five for KRL and four for NBP.

The soccer enthusiasts were thrilled when all the four goals of the event’s best match played so far came within 13 thrilling minutes.

Midfielder Farooq Shah opened the scoring in the 37th minute with a long-range drive leaving keeper Amir Qureshi no chance, but their joy was short-lived as fast-moving striker Shahid Ahmed levelled the issue in the 40th minute with a close-range drive.

NBP regained the lead through long-legged spearhead Sattar Mansuri in the final minute of the first half. NBP led 2-1 at the interval.

Adeel Ahmed, who struck the only goal of South Asian Games 2006 final on August 26, gave a sigh of relief to KRL’s officials and players with a brilliant goal four minutes after the re-start. There was no further scoring as the thriller between two famous, strong outfits of Pakistan ended at 2-2.

The Match Commissioner was Mohammad Zaman while Shahid Ahmed Khan acted as Referee Assessor. Niaz Hussain supervised the match, assisted on the line by Amir Iqbal and Muhammad Sharif.

Today’s fixtures: WAPDA v KESC (Model Town C-Block Ground), Wohaib FC v HBL (Punjab university Ground), KRL v KPT (KRL Stadium, Rawalpindi).