The 2018 Pakistan Premier Football League – Multan leg at the Qilla Kohna Qasim Bagh Stadium saw two closely fought encounters last night, 1 October 2018.
Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (SNGPL) from Lahore faced Karachi-based Pakistan Navy in the first game that kicked-off a bit late around 8:30pm due to unknown reasons.
SNGPL looked to get their second win of the campaign following a 2-0 win over Ashraf Sugar Mills on 28 September and started confidently against Navy as they dominated they 1st half. Navy’s defence was struggling to cope with repeated SNGPL attacks. In 40th minute Sada Bahar turned in a cross from the right past Navy goalkeeper Shehroz Ahmed to make SNGPL go 1-0 up at the break.
so to recap tonight's #PPFL2018 action:
1st game saw SNGPL vs Pak Navy in which SNGPL took the lead in 40th minute through Sada Bahar after a nice move from the back. Navy responded by winning a penalty early on in 2nd half pic.twitter.com/81wxF11koA
— FootballPakistan.com (@FootballPak) October 1, 2018
The second half saw more urgency in Navy’s ranks as they pressed hard for an equaliser. Navy won a penalty barely 5 minutes after the break as Muhammad Amin stepped to take up the spot kick. Amin had also scored a penalty against Muslim FC Chaman late on 27 September but against SNGPL his penalty was tame and easily stopped by opposing goalkeeper Naqash.
Navy's Muhammad Amin stepped up from the spot but his poor penalty was saved by SNGPL's Naqash Khalid but he couldnt clear the ball and Amin pounced to score the rebound. #PPFL2018 pic.twitter.com/pn9xeCLQaq
— FootballPakistan.com (@FootballPak) October 1, 2018
However, Amin was quick to hammer in the rebound as ball wasnt properly cleared to make it 1-1. The rest of the game were mostly half-chances for either side and eventually fizzled out into a draw and a share of the points.
The second game of the night saw National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) finally register their first league win of the season as they edged past Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) 1-0. Maqbool’s 27th minute strike after some good moves by NBP midfield was enough for the bankers.
The second game saw NBP needing a sole goal from Maqbool in 27th minute to beat PCAA 1-0. PCAA tried to press hard in second half but couldnt find the net. #PPFL2018 pic.twitter.com/OvoPgeUY5d
— FootballPakistan.com (@FootballPak) October 1, 2018
PCAA tried hard for most of the game for an equaliser but ultimately couldn’t test NBP goalkeeper Muhammed Umer that much. NBP coach Nasir Ismail will surely be relieved to see his side win after suffering a 3-0 mauling at the hands of KRL on 26 September.
With the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) still lethargic in getting any broadcast coverage in 14 years of PPFL football, the people at Panjnad Sports managed to provide live streaming of both games and are likely to continue this in the remaining Multan leg matches at least.
Tomorrow, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) have still not arrived in Multan from Karachi due to financial woes and will see their game against Ashraf Sugar Mills of Bahawalpur postponed. However, star-studded Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) will look for their first win against Pakistan Army tomorrow.
The News (3 October 2018) adds:
KARACHI: Maqbool’s first half goal enabled National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) to pull off their maiden win as they beat Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) 1-0 in the 12th Pakistan Premier Football League at the floodlit Qasim Bagh Stadium in Multan on Monday night.
Having faced a 0-3 drubbing at the hands of former champions Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) in their opener last week, NBP got onto the field with a different strategy and showed improved performance against PCAA to secure three crucial points.
Maqbool, who was part of Pakistan’s side in the Asian Games in Indonesia, hit the winner in the 33rd minute when he capitalised on a pass from Sher Ali. NBP coach Nasir Ismail was happy with his side’s victory. “It’s a welcome win for us. We needed this as we had lost badly our first game,” he told ‘The News’ on Tuesday.
“After our first loss, we made several changes and worked hard in the last few days over our weak points. Last night we started with a defensive mood as we could not afford taking risk and played with a different strategy that helped us open our account,” said Nasir, a former Pakistan coach.
He was quick to add that his side missed a few open net chances. “The pitch is not that good and is creating problems for the players,” Nasir said. In the other outing of the night, Navy came from behind to hold Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) to a 1-1 draw to secure one point.
Sada Bahar put SNGPL ahead in the 40th minute. Mohammad Amin brought an equaliser in the 53rd minute through a superb hit from the spot that beat the opponents’ glove-man.