A ground that can’t be played on

Conditions in the Zamzama ground have made playing football impossible - and much of the blame lies with the CBC.

KARACHI: To play or not to play… more importantly how to play and where to play? The majority of football in Karachi is played on mud grounds. This is primarily due to the fact that most grounds simply do not have the funds to plant and then maintain grass, especially in a semi-arid city such as Karachi.

In some cases, players prefer to play on a mud track as the ball travels faster.

Almost 40 years ago, a mud ground was made near main Zamzama. The ground was a perfectly level playing field with a boundary wall and spectator stand.

Since then, the management of Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) only refurbished the ground once. And while they installed floodlights, due to power management by the Karachi Electric Supply Company, the electric connection for them was cut within a year.

This particular playing field is the home ground of six registered clubs.

More than 200 lives centre around this mud football ground as they spend all their spare time training and playing matches here.

Mehmood, the captain of Tanzeem Sports, the main team in the ground, said that he has practically grown up there. It is his second home.

Recently, conditions in the ground have been unplayable. The players say that this is due to the restaurants that have started using the space as a dumping ground for their waste.

Furthermore, Mehmood said the ground stays waterlogged when it rains because of the main lines running underneath. “This has resulted in poor performances,” he said.

The annual tournament has been postponed for five years in a row due to the terrible state of the ground.

It is time the government does something to help these teams who are too embarrassed to invite other teams to their ground. The CBC should undertake a monthly cleaning as a first step. The floodlights should also be reconnected. Both matches and training sessions need to be held so that players do not take time off during the day to train and will be able to work and earn as much as they can to support their families.

Mohammed Khanani is founder and president of Fanats FC and the youngest D-Certificate football coach. His blog can be found at http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/

Published in The Express Tribune, August 29^th, 2010.