SAFF Women’s Championship: Hosts may be out, but all semi-finalists feel at home
Nepal, Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh all praise Pakistan’s hospitality
ISLAMABAD:
To Nepal captain Anu and her teammates, Islamabad feels like home away from home. A role model for her side, she believes that with this kind of atmosphere and winning attitude, claiming the South Asian Football Federation (Saff) Women’s Championship title is a definite possibility this time around.
Nepal were finalists in the previous two editions, but lost to India both the times. However, the skipper feels Islamabad can be the ‘the lucky city’ for her team.
“Pakistan feels like home. It really does,” Anu told The Express Tribune. “The weather here is like what we have back home and we can’t seem to get enough of daal. It’s so far my favourite food here. Although we haven’t gone out much, we are quite comfortable. We feel at peace, as if we are home.”
This is Anu’s first trip to Pakistan, but the 27-year-old, hailing from the Raufahat village of Nepal, has been a part-time UN peace-keeping soldier as well.
Even though football helped her land a job with the Nepal Police Force, she says that by just being a footballer, she was a soldier too.
“Football is a passion; I’ve been playing it since I was three. You see, football in Nepal is like what cricket is in Pakistan,” she said. “I got a job in the force because of my talent, but then I learnt combat as well; I know all the drills and I can handle a gun. This has made be stronger.”
She added that prior to the event, she had been in South Africa on a peace-keeping mission for seven months, and had only two days to prepare for Saff. “I came back from the mission and I joined the camp just two days before coming to Pakistan,” she said. “I believe that combat training has given me the sense of aiming higher and filling my stride with goals.”
Even though the Nepal captain has her parents’ blessings now, she said that like other South Asian countries, she had faced the same cultural hindrances.
“My mother supported me from the start, but my father took some time to warm up to the idea,” said Anu. “He likes it now when he sees my picture in the papers.”
Anu, who has six other siblings, believes the social environment in Pakistan and Nepal is similar in terms of values. Thus, it would be worthwhile winning the trophy in Islamabad, a home away from home.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, the other team to have reached the semi-finals, will be taking on Nepal today.
And just like their opponent’s attitude, Bangladesh’s midfielder Suineupur Marma says she is looking forward to reaching the final with her team, which has improved a lot over time.
According to Suineuper, they have had a nice stay in Pakistan so far, but back home no one talks about the hosts.
“I hadn’t heard anything about Pakistan before coming here,” said Suineupur. “It’s a big country, people are nice, but that’s about it. Of course it’s not like Bangladesh. That is my home, this is another country. However, I can relate to the problems of the female footballers here as they are the same back home. We only got women’s football in Bangladesh in 2008.”
Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan captain Hasara Dilrangi said that the situation in her country is a little better than that of the rest of the regions, who play the other semi against India on Wednesday too.
“In Sri Lanka, we are encouraged to play,” said the 23-year-old. “In fact, parents want their daughters to excel in sports. I’ve been a part of all three Saff championships and I’ve seen the regional standards improve drastically. We have more opportunities for women’s football. I play for the Air Force and I can tell that our federation is also working hard to promote the sport.”
Even though the weather does not agree with them, Hasara feels that the hospitality and friendliness of the people here reminds her of home.
Sri Lanka will take on India in the other semi-final.
India
“It’s safe and it’s like home,” says Indu Chaudhry, the Indian team manager, about their stay in Pakistan.
After touring the city yesterday, Indu said it is difficult to find a difference between India and Pakistan.
“The only difference I can say is that there is a border drawn between the two countries, but apart from that, everything, from the food to the weather to the people, is the same.
And, just like the other semi-finalists, the manager said her team was focused on crossing the finishing line at the Saff championship.
Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.
To Nepal captain Anu and her teammates, Islamabad feels like home away from home. A role model for her side, she believes that with this kind of atmosphere and winning attitude, claiming the South Asian Football Federation (Saff) Women’s Championship title is a definite possibility this time around.
Nepal were finalists in the previous two editions, but lost to India both the times. However, the skipper feels Islamabad can be the ‘the lucky city’ for her team.
“Pakistan feels like home. It really does,” Anu told The Express Tribune. “The weather here is like what we have back home and we can’t seem to get enough of daal. It’s so far my favourite food here. Although we haven’t gone out much, we are quite comfortable. We feel at peace, as if we are home.”
This is Anu’s first trip to Pakistan, but the 27-year-old, hailing from the Raufahat village of Nepal, has been a part-time UN peace-keeping soldier as well.
Even though football helped her land a job with the Nepal Police Force, she says that by just being a footballer, she was a soldier too.
“Football is a passion; I’ve been playing it since I was three. You see, football in Nepal is like what cricket is in Pakistan,” she said. “I got a job in the force because of my talent, but then I learnt combat as well; I know all the drills and I can handle a gun. This has made be stronger.”
She added that prior to the event, she had been in South Africa on a peace-keeping mission for seven months, and had only two days to prepare for Saff. “I came back from the mission and I joined the camp just two days before coming to Pakistan,” she said. “I believe that combat training has given me the sense of aiming higher and filling my stride with goals.”
Even though the Nepal captain has her parents’ blessings now, she said that like other South Asian countries, she had faced the same cultural hindrances.
“My mother supported me from the start, but my father took some time to warm up to the idea,” said Anu. “He likes it now when he sees my picture in the papers.”
Anu, who has six other siblings, believes the social environment in Pakistan and Nepal is similar in terms of values. Thus, it would be worthwhile winning the trophy in Islamabad, a home away from home.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, the other team to have reached the semi-finals, will be taking on Nepal today.
And just like their opponent’s attitude, Bangladesh’s midfielder Suineupur Marma says she is looking forward to reaching the final with her team, which has improved a lot over time.
According to Suineuper, they have had a nice stay in Pakistan so far, but back home no one talks about the hosts.
“I hadn’t heard anything about Pakistan before coming here,” said Suineupur. “It’s a big country, people are nice, but that’s about it. Of course it’s not like Bangladesh. That is my home, this is another country. However, I can relate to the problems of the female footballers here as they are the same back home. We only got women’s football in Bangladesh in 2008.”
Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan captain Hasara Dilrangi said that the situation in her country is a little better than that of the rest of the regions, who play the other semi against India on Wednesday too.
“In Sri Lanka, we are encouraged to play,” said the 23-year-old. “In fact, parents want their daughters to excel in sports. I’ve been a part of all three Saff championships and I’ve seen the regional standards improve drastically. We have more opportunities for women’s football. I play for the Air Force and I can tell that our federation is also working hard to promote the sport.”
Even though the weather does not agree with them, Hasara feels that the hospitality and friendliness of the people here reminds her of home.
Sri Lanka will take on India in the other semi-final.
India
“It’s safe and it’s like home,” says Indu Chaudhry, the Indian team manager, about their stay in Pakistan.
After touring the city yesterday, Indu said it is difficult to find a difference between India and Pakistan.
“The only difference I can say is that there is a border drawn between the two countries, but apart from that, everything, from the food to the weather to the people, is the same.
And, just like the other semi-finalists, the manager said her team was focused on crossing the finishing line at the Saff championship.
Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.