LAHORE, May 05 (PPI) Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has announced the team that will take on Sindh Government Press (SGP) today in the Group-C of National Football Challenge Cup 2008 at Karachis CDGK Stadium. It will be a do-or-die clash for both teams who suffered defeats in their opening matches.

PIA lost to HBL 0-1 on May 2 while SGP fell 0-2 to KPT on May 3.

“The PIA-SGP clash will also be the repeat of 37th National Soccer Championship that saw airmen winning 2-1 at Quetta 19 years ago. The most successful team in Pakistan Football Federation (PFF)s 61-year history, PIAs football team have the honour of winning the National Championship nine times and we will go all out to regain ascendancy in domestic soccer,” said former Pakistani and PIA coach Tariq Lutfi who has been appointed as manager of a recharged PIA football team.

He himself was part of several PIA teams that won the National event as player and coach from during the 1970-1990 period.

PIA will be comprised of Muhammad Haji, Muhammad Irfan and Imran Hashmi who were part of National team that overcame Nepal in Two-friendly Pokhara Series on goal counts last March.

Nasrullah Khan, who represented Pakistan U21 team in Beijing Olympics Qualifiers last year, will lead the team while the other players are Syed Sultan Ali, Bilal Rafiq, Abdul Jabbar, Zubair Moazzam, Ali Ehsan, Wali Khan, Shakir lashari, Abdul Ghaffar, Nadeem Tariq, Ali Adeem Shahzad, Liaquat Ali, Nazir Ahmed, Zeeshan Ali and Waseem Ullah.

Despite, nine titles in National Championship, PIA managed only one win in National Challenge Cup when they won the second edition at Quetta 24 years ago.

       

Opinion

Editorial

Growth to stability
29 Apr, 2026

Growth to stability

THE State Bank’s decision to raise its key policy rate by 100 basis points to 11.5pc signals a shift in priorities...
Constitutional order
29 Apr, 2026

Constitutional order

FOLLOWING the passage of the 26th and 27th Amendments, in 2024 and 2025 respectively, jurists and members of the...
Protecting childhood
29 Apr, 2026

Protecting childhood

AN important victory for child protection was secured on Monday with the Punjab Assembly’s passage of the Child...
Unlearnt lessons
Updated 28 Apr, 2026

Unlearnt lessons

THE US is undoubtedly the world’s top military and economic power at this time. Yet as the Iran quagmire has ...
Solar vision?
28 Apr, 2026

Solar vision?

THE recent imposition of certain regulatory requirements for small-scale solar systems, followed by the reversal of...
Breaking malaria’s grip
28 Apr, 2026

Breaking malaria’s grip

FOR the first time in decades, defeating malaria in our lifetime is possible, according to WHO. Yet in Pakistan,...