Srinagar: J&K Forest XI defeated Accountant General’s (AG’s) XI by a solitary goal in the Premier Division match of the ongoing State Football League-2017, at Synthetic Turf TRC on Wednesday (Oct 25).
The high voltage Super Division match between the Forest and AG’s XI, witnessed by huge football fans, and turned out a mouth watering encounter. Forest players played aggressive football right from the word go; the AG’s team was determined to thwart their attempts to score. The Forest players focused more on attacking the goal post while AG’s XI was content with keeping the forward line of the opposite team at bay. The first half ended with no team able to score.
In the second half, the Forest team played better coordinated game and they were rewarded in the 50th minute of the play as the referee awarded a penalty kick in their favour after a foul by the opposite team. After conceding a goal, the AG players made several attempts to score an equaliser and came closer several times. However, they couldn’t break the defence line of the Forest team and when the referee blew the final whistle, the score line read 1-0. Javeed Ahmad of Forest team was declared as footballer of the match for his excellent performance.
The State Football League, a mega event first of its kind in the history of J&K football, is proving a super hit this season as football fever has gripped the state and the football governing body in the state – JK Football Association (JKFA) – is making all efforts to make it count.
JKFA President Zamir Thakur says, “This year’s State Football League has already turned out as a mega hit among the fans and we are hopeful it will in long run help us to find raw talent from across the state. Football has given the state 30 international players and is most popular game here. It has history of more than 100 years in valley and from that time it has come a long way. From last few years, it is regaining its popularity and we are sure that this event will bring it back the lost glory.”
Every day thousands of football fans watch the keenly contested matches not only in Srinagar, but in other district headquarters of Kashmir. At Srinagar’s Synthetic Turf Football Stadium, not even a single seat remains free in the evenings with football spectators from all corners of the city converging at the venue to support their favourite teams and the clubs.
More than 500 football teams and clubs with over 12000 players and over 1500 team officials are participating in the mega event, the aim of which is to unearth the hidden talent across the State. The event is being held across the 22 districts of the state these days and is being organized by the Jammu and Kashmir Football Association (JKFA) under the auspices of State Sports Council and on the directions of All India Football F
