Onus on girls to extend dominance

Captain Afeida Khandokar, forwards Mosammat Sagorika, Munki Akhter, Puja Das, and others looked calm and relaxed as they had a light practice session on the eve of the SAFF U-19 Women's Championship final against India today.

The girls certainly have reasons to be stress-free and relaxed as they stand on the verge of yet another triumph in the regional age-level women's football tournaments which were introduced for various age groups in 2017.

At the age level, Bangladesh lifted trophies a record four times, one more than today's opponents India. Bangladesh won all of those titles -- U-15, U-18, U-19, and U-20 -- at the Birshrestha Shaheed Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur which is also the venue for today's final.

Bangladesh are now set for their fifth final at home and expecting to keep their winning record intact. The fact that they have defeated India thrice in the final of the U-15, U-18, and U-19 championships also bodes well for the girls in red and green.

"Definitely, we will have some advantage playing on the ground where the girls train regularly," head coach Saiful Bari Titu was optimistic ahead of facing a strong India side. "The advantage will come into play if the girls can perform on this ground and know what they have to do tomorrow [Thursday]."

Titu, who took charge of the side following the departure of successful coach Golam Rabbani Choton, believes his charges are inspired enough to deliver the best.

"The girls have always been inspired because they became champions before too. The mentality of the girls is different than others and I think I don't need to motivate them much for the final because they know what they have to do in the final," said the experienced coach.

Captain Afeida was confident as well ahead of the all-important clash against India, a team they beat 1-0 in the group stage.

"We are not taking any extra pressure for the final because it will put us under pressure," Afieda said. "We have full belief in the hard work we did for this tournament and we will take to the ground with the belief of doing well."