K-Electric, PAF suffer shock defeats

KARACHI: Pakistan Premier Football League on Wednesday saw two huge upsets when little-known Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) shocked holders K-Electric 3-0 and National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) overwhelmed table leaders Pakistan Air Force (PAF) 2-0.

In the first outing at Punjab Stadium Lahore, SNGPL did a stunning job to produce their second win from ten matches when they humiliated star-studded K-Electric, the winners of the last edition held in 2014.

Samad Khan provided lead to SNGPL in the 22nd minute. At half time, SNGPL were leading 1-0. In the second session tough contest was witnessed with SNGPL scoring through Abdul Wasay (80th minute) and Tauseef (87th minute) to seal a splendid victory.

SNGPL’s Samad Khan and Imran were also shown yellow cards in the second half. The loss, their second so far, has shocked K-Electric coach Hassan Baloch.

“Luck did not favour us today and it really hurt me,” Hassan told ‘The News’.“Our team had controlled the game, had more possession but could not score. The oppositions got three chances which they converted,” said Hassan, also a former Pakistan assistant coach.

He said they had several of their key players on the injury list.“There are a lot of injuries and it’s an issue. It has been unfortunate for us so far but I hope we will bounce back in Karachi round,” Hassan said.

The win took SNGPL to 13 points. The loss left K-Electric at 17 points from 11 meetings.Meanwhile in the other show at the City School Ground Lahore, NBP defeated strong PAF 2-0 with Dawood Junaid (13th minute) and Sher Ali (15th minute) scoring goals in the first half.

Sher Ali of NBP was also shown yellow card in the 29th minute. NBP coach Nasir Ismail appreciated his boys’ glorious effort.“It has been our history that we give tough time to top teams. I am happy today as the boys played outstandingly. They were really motivated and showed terrific aggression on the field,” Nasir said.

“Our players will get a few days rest before Karachi round and then we will try to improve our position,” said Nasir, also a former Pakistan assistant coach.PAF assistant coach Mohammad Arshad appreciated NBP for their fine performance.

“I think it was NBP’s day. They played very well,” Arshad said.“Before the match I had told my boys that they should not take this game easy. NBP have youngsters but all have represented Pakistan at different level but our boys did not take my words seriously and you see the result,” Arshad said.The win took NBP to 11 points from ten matches. Despite the loss, PAF still lead the journey with 24 points to their credit.