Army down Baloch FC to start title defence in style

KARACHI: Army started their title defence in style when they downed Nushki’s Baloch FC 3-0 in their Group A opener of the National Football Challenge Cup 2020 which started at two different venues in Lahore on Monday.

Also recording victories on the opening day were Karachi United and Falcon Group.

Army, who had won the previous event in Peshawar, showed that they again were well-prepared for the new challenge, inflicting a crushing defeat on Baloch FC, who have a massive experience of playing in the country’s Premier League.

Mateen, Afzaal and Qadeer Hussain netted goals for Army in the 26th, 44th and 47th minutes, respectively.

In the other Group A fixture, at the Fame FC Ground, Higher Education Commission (HEC) held Police to a 2-2 draw.

HEC came from behind twice during the match after Jamil Ahmed scored the first goal for Police in the third minute. HEC equalised in the 17th minute courtesy a superb strike from Asadullah.

In the 24th minute, Police regained the lead thanks to Qamar’s solid effort. But Abdul Kalam’s 58th minute equaliser meant the two teams took one point each.

In a Group B outing, at the Punjab Stadium, Anees Fakir’s 37th minute goal was enough to give Karachi United a 1-0 triumph over National Bank of Pakistan (NBP).

At the Fame FC Ground, Falcon Company were assisted by goals from Sardar Wali (2nd minute) and Sanaullah (90th minute) to make a solid start in the event.

A minute’s silence was observed before kick-off in all four matches to honour former Pakistan captain Wali Muhammad and Argentina’s Diego Maradona, who passed away recently.

Tuesday’s fixtures: KRL v KPT ( Punjab Stadium, 10am), Saif Tex v Popo FC (Fame FC Ground, 10am), PCAA v Afghan FC Chaman (Punjab Stadium, 12noon), Lyallpur FC v Baloch FC Quetta (Fame FC Ground, 2pm).