Afzaal shines as Army demolish Huma FC [The News]

KARACHI: Midfielder Mohammad Afzaal hit the first treble of the season as former two-time champions Army recorded their first win when they demolished Islamabad’s Huma FC 6-0 in their second round fixture of the 13th Pakistan Premier Football League (PPFL) at the floodlit Qasim Bagh Stadium in Multan on Saturday night.

In another match, defending champions Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) were surprised by Faisalabad’s Lyallpur FC with a goalless draw.

In the first game, debutant Huma FC had no answer to Army’s young but strong attack. Right-winger Afzaal, who belongs to Faisalabad, was the hero for Army as the young midfielder completed the first hat-trick of the season. Army took the initiative through Mateen Tariq who hit a solid goal in the 27th minute. Afzaal then joined the party, netting goals in the 33rd and 53rd minutes to enable the soldiers to take their lead to 3-0.

Farmanullah added to Huma FC’s misery with a strike in the 70th minute before Afzaal hammered another in the 88th minute. Farman struck another in the 90th minute. Huma FC squandered a few open-net chances.

Army’s head coach Jaffar Khan was happy with the outcome. “We played really well today,” Jaffar told ‘The News’. “The opposition was not a weak one but we played a tight game. Huma FC have some good players and if they are able to play like this then they have the ability to trouble their rivals in the season onwards,” Jaffar said.

Army opened their account with three points. They had lost their opener against PAF 0-1 a few days ago. They will now face Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) on August 25.

At the same venue, Lyallpur FC did a terrific job to hold the record five-time champions KRL to a goalless draw to win one point. Rajab Ali was booked in the ninth minute for a foul. KRL missed four corners while Lyallpur FC failed to take advantage of the two corners they got.

Published in The News, 23 August 2021