Champions crowned, future stars discovered

The National Stadium yesterday witnessed the jubilant celebrations of the Rajshahi Division girls, who emerged as champions in the National Gold Cup Football Tournament with an emphatic 3-0 win over the once-strong Mymensingh Division in the final.

While the girls' celebration was visible to those present, another occasion for celebration perhaps went unnoticed by the general eye.

National women's team assistant coach Mahabubur Rahman Litu, who watched the final, has already selected a few players from both teams for various age-group national teams – a milestone for those working to advance women's football in the country.

"Three players – one from Dhaka Division and two from Chattogram Division – have already joined the ongoing U-17 national camp. We also saw promising players like Jannatul, Aleya, Saleha, and Sadia from Rajshahi Division. We will verify their ages before considering them for different age-group national camps," said Litu.

It was fitting that this group of girls is already dreaming of donning the national jersey in the future.

"It feels really good to be named the best player of the tournament -- this is beyond my imagination. We also fulfilled our dream of becoming champions," said Rajshahi Division's Aleya, who expressed her desire to play for the national team.

Rajshahi Division also claimed three more individual accolades -- best player of the final, top scorer, and best goalkeeper -- as they made a strong statement in the fourth edition of the girls' U-17 tournament. Remarkably, coach Zahir Iqbal had only three days to prepare the team, which was composed of players from Chapainawabganj, Rajshahi, Natore, Sirajganj, and other areas of the division.

"We know each other very well and had good coordination. That's why we became champions," said Jannatul Ferdous, the final's best player, adding that she was optimistic about receiving a national call-up.

"I'm really happy because I helped the team win by scoring a brace, and I feel proud," said top-scorer Mousumi Khatun, who scored three goals in the final round.

While Rajshahi celebrated their maiden final appearance with the title, it was a somber day for Mymensingh Division, who had reached the final in the previous edition, which was ultimately canceled.

Mymensingh, particularly through Kalshindhur Primary School in Dobaura Upazila, once produced several national players like Sanjida Akhter, Tahura Khatun, Maria Manda, Shamsunnahar Sr, and Shamsunnahar Jr. However, the talent pipeline has now shifted to Ishorganj Upazila, more specifically, the Ishorganj Football Academy.

Of the 18-member Mymensingh squad, nine players were from the Ishorganj Football Academy, run by local referee and coach Mithun Chandra Sen. Two players came from Dobaura Upazila, with the rest hailing from other districts.

"Kalshindhur Primary School once produced many players under Mofiz Bhai, but no such initiatives exist there now," said Mithun. He added that he has been running the academy since 2018 with financial support from Choronikhola High School in Ishorganj.

"I'm hopeful that the players emerging from the Ishorganj Football Academy will get chances to play in different national teams. Litu Sir has already noted the names of three of our players -- Muslima Akter, Rimi Akter, and another," Mithun said.

Meanwhile, Rangpur Division clinched the boys' title of the tournament, coming from two goals down to beat Mymensingh 4-3 in a penalty shootout at the same venue.