L’ecole hosts FIFA Street to help underprivileged children study

Around 14 teams take part in the Futsal tournament, another version of football.

KARACHI:

Students looked nervously at their opponents from the benches where they were practicing their kicking techniques before the Futsal tournament.

Futsal is the same as footall except that the teams have five members instead of 11. The referee, Hasan Iqbal who is a student at College of Business Management, explained further. “Futsal does not require a proper playing ground. It can be played on a patch of land just as well,” he said, as he pointed towards the concrete ground allocated for the matches.

Iqbal said that Futsal was also referred to as FIFA Street because the environment was very “streetlike.” But the players don’t jostle and shove each other, he said, they did more ball play. Each game is 30 minutes long, and each team has two defenders, two attackers and a goalkeeper.

Many players were playing Futsal for the first time. A student of A’ Level section at DA school, Ovais Ahmed, beamed with excitement. “This is the first time I’m playing a Futsal tournament though I have played football for the last five years.” He waited with his friends anxiously to get on the field and kick some butt.

But everyone waited for the tall brawny boys from Garden East, who play football for the Baloch Youth District team. They had won the Futsal tournament at British International School last month which earned them the title of “gunners.”  They too, seemed ready to put on a show in yellow Arsenal jerseys.

Sameer Sharif, 24, declared, “No one can defeat us.” Although he practiced with his friend every day for two hours but he considered it as merely something to do. “There is so much talent, but sadly no future for football in this country,” he lamented.

“We are the youngest players here,” said Osama Alvi, a ninth-grade student of Beaconhouse School System. “But we will not go down easily.” His friends too, appeared determined as they cracked their knuckles wearing Manchester United t-shirts.

The boys were present at L’ecole for Advanced Studies, which hosted the event under the aegis of Jaag Meray Talib-e-Ilm, a students’ welfare body, with the help of L’ecole Business Society.

The money will be given to Orange Tree, a montessori for underprivileged children.

The knockout tournament, concluded on Friday. The last team standing, out of a total of 14, will get a prize of Rs 10,000.

The registration money will go to Orange Tree, a montessori for underprivileged children.

A representative of the Jaag Meray Talib-e-Ilm, Nabeel Abbasi, said that they aimed to raise Rs 40,000 from the tournament. “Football is loved by all, and sports like these become more enjoyable when they are being played for a good cause.”

Published in The Express Tribune, January 21^st, 2012.