A window into the future
Shamsunnahar was not the centre of attention when the SAFF Under-15 Women's Championship got underway in Dhaka a week ago. With nippy forwards like Saraban Tahura and creative midfielders like Monica Chakma and Maria Manda hogging the limelight, Shamsunnahar was mostly called into action for taking spot kicks, aside from her usual defensive duties.
But she proved her versatility when she hogged the limelight with a sublime performance in the final against India yesterday, scoring the decisive goal and creating a number of scoring chances for her teammates, that too playing in a position she was not accustomed to thus far.
The dependable left-back turned into a threatening winger and made life difficult for the opposition teams all through the tournament, saving the best for the final.
“Someone asked sir [Golam Rabbani Choton] a few days ago how a left-back would cope with the duties of a forward. Sir had said 'she will show you how it is done',” was her reply when asked how she felt about contributing to the title triumph at the post-match press conference.
Choton explained his belief behind playing her in a new position. “Shamsunnahar is a gifted player; one with great skills with the ball and good at going forward. Moreover, we had a good left-back in Nila [Nilufa Yasmin], so trying Shamsunnahar in the wing was a good option for me,” Choton said. “In fact, we have quite a few players like that on both wings and wing-back positions."
Indeed, there are quite a few fine players among this group. And that gives Choton, who has been the head coach of the Bangladesh women's teams of all age groups for close to a decade, hope for the future.
“When we played the first SAFF Women's Championship in 2010, we conceded six goals against India within the first half. I used to walk to the dugout wondering how many goals we would concede. But last year in the final in Siliguri, we fought hard, and with a bit of luck, we could have beaten India in the final,” the successful coach opined.
This group of players, some of whom have already played for the senior side, and those who have graduated through, makes the coach optimistic that Bangladesh can win the SAFF Women's Championship title in three years' time, if not less.
“I really think and hope that we will be in a position to win the title in 2020,” he said.
Choton was probably being a bit conservative in his assessment. Truth be told, if the current blend of youth and experienced players are properly guided and kept in training, they can win the title as early as the next edition in 2018.
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