The 7th HBL Karachi United Schools Championship 2011-12 saw the culmination of its 2 semi-finals yesterday, 20 January 2012, at Baloch Mujahid Stadium in Ibrahim Hyderi, Karachi.
Geo Super broadcasted the semis live on air across Pakistan, as a large crowd gathered at the venue to see both games taking place.
1st Semi-final saw The City School, PAF Chapter beat Aga Khan Higher Secondary School (AKHSS) 2-0, while in 2nd semi-final Nixor College overcame St. Patrick’s High School 4-1 on penalties.
The final will be played on Sunday, 22 January between TCS PAF and Nixor College at 2 PM kick-off, live on Geo Super. Before the final, the 3rd place game between AKHSS and St. Patrick’s will be played at 12 PM.
City School PAF completely dominated AKHSS from the start in 1st semi-final as captain Naveed Subhan scored from 25 yard free-kick to give TCS PAF a 1-0 lead after just 4 minutes played. City School PAF then went 2-0 up in 9th minute when Salman Shahid scored for his side, as Aga Khan Higher Secondary School were blown away by TCS PAF’s opening assaults.
City School could have made it 3-0 in 56th minute, but top scorer Shabir Ali Rizvi failed to convert his spot kick as AKHSS goalkeeper Ashfaq Rehman saved the penalty. However, TCS PAF maintained their control of match till final whistle as they eased into the KUSC 2011-12 final with a convincing performance and a 2-0 scoreline.
The 2nd semi-final between Nixor College and St. Patrick’s High School was a tense affair as both teams remained score-less at half time. Both teams attempted to score, only to be denied by opposing goalkeepers.
In 56th minute, St. Patrick’s Daniyal Mehmood was sent-off for a straight red card following a dangerous challenge on Nixor’s captain Kareem Kerai just outside the box. Kareem Kerai’s free-kick then beat St Pats goalie Salik Hashmi to give Nixor College the lead as the clock ticked down.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaxIjZ6Hfio[/youtube]
But St Pats came back to equalise with a free-kick of their own as Umar Younas’ fierce shot went past Nixor goalie Haris Ahmed deep into injury time (62′).
The tied score-line of 1-1 forced a penalty shoot-out after the final whistle, in which Nixor College maintained composure to beat St Patrick’s High 4-1. Khizer Hussain, Muzammil Farishta, Kareem Kerai, and Riyan Pervaiz converted their penalties for Nixor, while only Umar Kidwai managed for St Pats as Nixor College won the game and reached the final.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87qhhRzVhj4[/youtube]
Referees were Habib Ullah, Adnan Khan, Shaukat Ali, M Tahir, Babar Khan, Farrukh Riaz, Ch Sarfraz, Ilyas Khan, match commissioner Abdul Karim, and referees inspector M Shamim.