WAPDA, PAF make winning start in PPFL

KARACHI: Former four-time champions WAPDA and Pakistan Air Force (PAF) were off to a winning start in the Pakistan Premier Football League (PPFL) which commenced at the Qasim Bagh Stadium in Multan on Saturday night.

Both WAPDA and PAF produced identical 1-0 wins over Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) and Army, respectively.

The WAPDA-SSGC clash was extremely tough as both sides tried their best to penetrate. After a barren first half, Mohammad Bilal produced the winner for WAPDA in the 69th minute.

“We were given a tough time by SSGC in the initial ten minutes and then we strengthened our defence,” WAPDA head coach Tanvir Ahmed told ‘The News’.

“We had marked their key midfielder Saddam Hussain and in the second half we sent in young striker Maaz (from Chitral) and he made a stunning fight. Again it happened like the previous events that we scored after the breather when our skipper Bilal hit the winner on a free-kick from Faheem,” said Tanvir, a former international.

“It was overall a fair play and the weather was also not bad. And today Lahore received rain also and I hope the next few days will be good as matches are held at night,” Tanvir said.In the other show, experienced PAF were offered tough resistance by the young Army side. Samad Khan put PAF in front with a fine strike in the 17th minute and they kept the lead until the final whistle.

Earlier, Deputy Commissioner Multan Ali Shahzad formally opened the 12-team event.

Malik Amir Dogar, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, was also present during the opening ceremony.