Naveed Ahmed’s 43rd minute penalty kick proved to be enough for Muhammad Habib’s Faisalabad AID-27 to edge past Sindh FA and be crowned the 2011 National U19 Football Champions.
The Model Town FC Ground in Lahore witnessed a closely fought game between Faisalabad AID-27 and Sindh FA for the National U19 Championship final today 23 Sept 2011 at 1600 hrs. Faisalabad were confident favourites for the crown after breezing past their previous opponents with ease and without conceding a single goal, while Sindh were determined to take their never say die attitude from their thrilling semi-final win over Balochistan FA to the winner’s stand.
But Faisalabad found a firm grip in the tie, forcing errors from Sindh’s defensive line. Minutes before half time, a hand ball in the box by Sindhi defender gave Faisalabad a penalty kick. Naveed Ahmed duly stepped up and wrong footed the goalkeeper to give Faisalabad a 1-0 lead in the final.
Second half saw plenty of action, as both sides came close to scoring. Sindh’s impressive forward Abdul Salam was determined to get on the score sheet but luck didn’t favour him as Faisalabad’s defence held firm. Eventually, this narrow 1-0 lead proved to be enough for Habib’s men as Faisalabad were crowned National U19 champions at the final whistle much to the dejection of Sindh’s brave boys.
Quetta AID-27 had beaten a visibly fatigued Balochistan FA 1-0 the day before at same venue to win the 3rd place game thanks to a 61st minute goal from Asim.
The presentation ceremony was headed by PFF General Secretary, Lt Col (Retd) Ahmed Yar Khan Lodhi who handed various prizes to both teams and players. Ahmed Yar Lodhi thanked the organisers Mian Rizwan Ali (MTFC) for hosting a successful tournament, and said that the PFF takes youth development seriously and such nationwide youth events will help bring in new generations of talented players for the benefit of Pakistani football all over.
Faisalabad AID-27 won the first prize of Rs 50,000, Sindh FA got Rs 30,000 2nd place prize, Quetta AID-27 got Rs 20,000 3rd place prize. Faisalabad AID-27 also won the Fair Play Award and Rs 10,000 to boot. Sindh FA’s striker Abdul Salam was named Best Player of the Tournament with Rs 5,000, Faisalabad’s Muhammad Bilal Khan was top scorer with 9 goals and got Rs 5,000, and Faisalabad’s captain Jehanzeb was named best goal keeper with Rs 5,000 prize.
