Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Experts, fans decry poor performance of JK Bank’s football team



CRITICISE INCLUSION OF OUTSIDE PLAYERS, WANT MANAGEMENT OVERHAUL

ABID KHAN

Srinagar, Jan 16: The JK Bank football is facing a threat of losing its supremacy in the football arena of the state after being beaten comprehensively by the Police junior team in the final of Christian gold cup in Jammu recently. The highflying football team of the bank consists of two foreign players and three from outside the state plus the highly talented players of state.The team was rated as favourites for the gold cup and everyone expected that the bank would run through the junior Police team. But the outcome of the final shocked everyone. It is not the only defeat that JK Bank faced in recent times. They have been going through a bad run for quite some time now. They were knocked out of the national level tournaments, Durand and Federation Cups in the first round followed by two humiliating debacles including a loss in the Sikkim Gold Cup. These were The team management attributed the losses saying the completion was tough while forgetting that they had two foreign and three outside the state professional players in their ranks.That they tasted defeat at the hands of a low-profile Police junior team standing nowhere to the kind of facilities, coaching, monetary benefits and perk they got speaks volumes about their decline. The persistent disappointing performance of the team has raised many voices that include fans, experts and former players against the team and its management: “It is disappointing that JK bank is losing its grip on the game,” said a senior player. “Having earned a respectable name, they have ruined it all in the current season.”Their performance, he said, had been quite good with two or three outside players not long ago but one wondered what happened to the team considering half of the team comprised players from outside. “The continuous defeats despite half a dozen players from outside mean we have comparatively better talent available within the state,” he said. “I don’t think we require outside players.”He said that Kashmiri players like Meraj-ud-din Wadoo, Ishfaq Ahmad and Arun Malhotra earned a respectable name while playing in renowned national clubs. “What more proof do we require of the exceptional talent,” he said.A renowned sports analyst of the valley, Sajid Hameed, commenting on the Bank’s miserable performance said:“It is not bad only for the bank but for the whole state as such. A downgrade performance such as this will send a wrong message to the whole country that JK lacked football talent.”He said the Bank had been a champion and represented the whole state. “Everyone expected a decent performance from them,” he said. “The team needs a transformation. The blame goes on the coach and the management.”The fans of the game are disappointed alike by the lacklustre performance of the players: “The Bank has been performing low for quite some time now,” said a football fan from the old city, Showkat Ahmad. “The recent defeat at the hands of a junior team is really a humiliating one.”They raised the question of the inclusion of outside players in the team: “What’s the fun of hiring foreign players if they’re unable to perform,” said Ubaid Ilahi of Nowhatta. “Considered giants here, two Nigerians and four outside players could not salvage the honour and reputation of the team which had previously been on a winning spree in their absence.”The Bank’s sports board member, Muhammad Amin Khan, refused to comment on the performance of the team. “We have not received report from the manager and the coach yet,” Khan told Greater Kashmir. “As soon as the report comes, we’ll have a word on that.”


pub;lished in Greater Kashmir on janaury 17-2009 link :http://greaterkashmir.com/full_story.asp?Date=17_1_2009&ItemID=20&cat=4)

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