Beat
BMI 4 – 2 in the final of the Suzuki Swift Islamabad Soccer Cup 2012 to take
the honours.
On
July 12, 2012, the Red Devils lined up for their date with destiny in the final
of the Suzuki Swift Cup in Islamabad. This final was very significant for the Devils
for a variety of reasons. Firstly, they have enhanced their reputation so much over
the last few years, that they now have a lot of hype surrounding them whenever
they take part in any tournament in Islamabad or Rawalpindi. As a result, living
up to the hype and constantly disproving detractors has become a common challenge.
Moreover, despite an impressive trophy count, tournament success at Islamabad's
main football venue had surprisingly evaded the Red Devils for over four years.
The quest had included four runners up finishes at the very same venue, and numerous
losses as a result of penalty shootouts.
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| Pre Match Rituals for Red Devils F.C |
The
men in red entered the tournament fresh from the success of winning one of the
grandest tournaments in Islamabad's history to date, the 'Pepsi Cup 2012'.
Sameer Hussain continued to lead the team on the pitch in Ammar Zaheer's absence.
Instead, of entering the tournament on a high, the Red Devils seemed to be suffering
a hangover from the success of the Pepsi Cup, and gave very lackluster performances;
even losing a game in the group stages. The same players looked completely
disjointed on the pitch, and were leaking goals because of gaping holes in the
defense. When all seemed lost, with the Devils two goals down in the last group
game and staring an embarrassing elimination in the face, an absolutely key
decision made by the Red Devils think tank (Saqib Akbar aka Martin O'Neil and
Ammar Zaheer aka Rafa Benitez) saw the team make a stunning comeback to scrape through
into the knockout stages.
Predictably,
for the remainder of the tournament, the Red Devils' think tank decided to start
with the lineup which turned around the final group game. This saw the ever dependable
Umair Iftikhar being relegated to a role as an impact player off the bench,
with the lionhearted Usman Mashood dropping into defense alongside the
ever-reliable Mustansir Ali Khan aka Musti; to play in front of their often
heroic goalkeeper, Bilal Liaqat. This meant that star player Haaris Ghafoor
could drop into his favored position and play as a deep-lying playmaker. He was
joined in midfield by the ever present Sameer. That meant that two normally
sole strikers in Harris Qamar and Omer Mashood, finally played as a duo; and
clicked instantly. Although this move meant more defensive work for the
midfielders, it gave the team more zip and potency in attack.
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| Devils in action |
As
a result, both teams entered the final in top form and high spirits. The final
attracted a decent amount of supporters from both sides. The Red Devils were spurred
on by many members of their roster who weren't taking part in the tournament.
They all had to endure a very frustrating start to the much hyped final, as
both teams seemed a bit overawed by the occasion. BMI started the better and threatened
Bilal's goal twice, hitting the post on one occasion. There was a degree of inevitability
about BMI's opener, as hesitancy in the Red Devil's defense allowed BMI's Ali
Imran some space, and he duly capitalized by scoring with an impressive left
footed volley. Bilal's diving attempt to save the ball went in vain, as the
ball was hit across him and skidded into the far corner. The Red Devils think
tank and supporters were standing with their head in their hands as they could
not believe they were witnessing the same team which just gave arguably their
best performance ever only a few days ago. Their team failed to string passes
together and to the bewilderment of their managers, kept hitting long balls.
Key man, Haaris Ghafoor failed to get into the game. This worrying factor made
the managers throw in the sturdy Abbas Taqi in midfield instead of Sameer
Hussain, in an attempt to sure up the midfield more and give Haaris more
freedom on the ball. It was only in the last five minutes of the first half
that they finally came out of their shell, and put together a few decent plays.
Never one to be faulted for his commitment and effort, the physically supreme
Usman Mashood ventured forward in trademark style for a set piece to score with
a header. There was definitely an element of luck in the goal as the ball
barely rolled into the net; however, it could not have gone to a more deserving
player. The goal just before half time spared the team of getting the hairdryer
treatment from Ammar; who by the way was completely dressed for the big occasion.
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| Haaris Ghafoor and Mustansir Ali in action during the Final |
Ammar and Saqib motivated the team to build upon the closing stages of the
first half and take the game more to their opponents. Fortunately for them, the
men in red did absolutely that and finally started playing the football
everyone associated with the team is used to seeing. Haaris became more and
more influential and started spraying the passes. BMI lost all the early
momentum and started finding it almost impossible to go past Usman and Musti.
Not to be left behind in any way, the Red Devils' all-time leading scorer then
produced a moment of magic by scoring with an unstoppable curler from far out.
The keeper was left stranded as the ball flew in the top right corner. Super
sub Muawia Khan was sent on a few minutes later, and scored with one of his
first few touches. The Red Devils earned a free kick within shooting range from
a central position, Haaris Ghafoor smashed it towards goal, Muawia find himself
in the way of the shot and expertly deflected it into the net. BMI had gotten
the stuffing knocked out of them by now; however, UsmanMashood was in no mood
to let them breathe. He went on a lung busting run down the right wing, beat
his man around the byline area and put in a pin point cross for Harris Qamar to
net in his 9th goal of the tournament. Celebrations had already started on the
sidelines, and were not deterred by a late goal by BMI. As the final whistle
blew, the recent curse of the F-6 ground had finally been broken. BMI had won
quite a few fans from this tournament, but it was the mighty Red Devils who went
away with the trophy.
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| Sameer Hussain receives the winners cheque from Chairman CDA |
Haaris
Ghafoor was declared the player of the tournament for his tireless and
inspirational performances for the eventual winners. Bilal Liaqat bagged the
best goalkeeper’s award. A summer that looked to head down the unluckiness road
has quickly taken a U-turn for the Devils as they have clinched arguably the
two most prestigious tournaments in two weeks and this could well be the year
during which they cement themselves as the best team in the twin cities.
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| Champions of Suzuki Swift Islamabad Soccer Cup 2012 |
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