Multan, 7 October 2018: The 12th Pakistan Premier Football League 2018 – Multan leg saw only one match last night at the Qilla Kohna Qasim Bagh Stadium. With Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) continued absence, their scheduled game with Pakistan Navy was postponed until further notice.
So the 8:30 PM kick-off featured newly promoted Bahawalpur side Ashraf Sugar Mills Ltd (ASML) face Baloch FC Nushki with both sides looking for their first win.
ASM is among the weakest departments that got entry after winning their one-off playoff game against Pak Afghan Clearing Agency (PACA) 3-2 on 17 September at MTFA Ground, Lahore. However, that didn’t deter the side to take the challenge to the team from Balochistan.
A quick attack with barely 10 minutes played saw Kashif Ameen’s shoot past the opposing goalkeeper to give Ashraf Sugar Mills the lead. The goal took everyone by surprise, and Baloch FC tried to claw their way back into the time but some sloppy play in the final third and Ashraf Sugar Mills always looking to hit on the break meant the Nushki side again disappointed.
At the end of the 90 minutes plus stoppages, ASML defended well enough to ensure the scoreline didn’t change and they won 3 precious points after a 2-0 beating by SNGPL on 28 September and a postponement of their 2 October fixture against PIA. Baloch FC remain on 1 point from 3 games.
Tonight, 7 October, SNGPL face PCAA and WAPDA take on KPT.
The News, 8 October 2018, adds:
KARACHI: Bahawalpur’s Ashraf Sugar Mills notched their maiden win when they beat Nushki’s Baloch FC 1-0 in the 12th Pakistan Premier Football League at the floodlit Qasim Bagh Stadium in Multan on Saturday night.
ASM took the decisive lead in the seventh minute when Kashif Amin’s stunning pile-driver went into the net.Baloch FC tried their best to stage a comeback but failed to find an equaliser because of the poor finishing by their frontline which squandered a handful of easy chances.
ASM manager Raja Nasir was happy with his team’s effort. “The team played very well,” he told ‘The News’. “We have mostly young players. There are only a couple of old players. I hope the team will continue to perform well in the coming matches,” Nasir said.
He said that they had 25 players who had been kept on contract with their salaries ranging from Rs15,000 to Rs20,000.
ASM were lucky to get a short cut as they made it to the top-tier league after getting through qualifiers which were unexpectedly introduced following demands of some teams.