Football match

A FOOTBALL MATCH

Football is a simple and cheap game. The equipment needed is neither much elaborated nor so expensive. If a playground is available what is required is just a football of regular size and shape. Last winter I had the happy chance of witnessing a match played between our school team and the visiting team from Hyderabad. Both sides had put forth good teams. The match was played on our ground and players of our team were very happy. The team of Govt: High School Hyderabad was considered to be a strong team because one of their backs and two forms of ward line players had been selected by the Board.

The match was scheduled for 4:30 PM and our hopes were high. All the students of the school, the staff, and the headmaster arrived on the playground well in time. Both teams, in their respective uniforms, entered the field and every player took up his position. Exactly at 4:30 p.m., the referee blew the whistle and the game began. The first kick was awarded to our team. Arshad, our center forward, gave the kick and sent the ball to Aziz who dribbled it into the D; but Abdur Rasool failed to connect and the full back of the Hyderabad team kicked it back to our side of the field.

It turned out to be a keenly contested match. The captain of the Hyderabad side hit the ball with such force that our goalkeeper, Munir, failed to stop it and a goal was given. The referee gave the half-time whistle and the game stopped for the break.

After the interval, the game began again and this time Arshad took no chances. He dribbled the ball toward the opponent's goal and passed it on the right-in Abdur Rasool. Abdur Rasool passed it back to Arshad. Our captain rose to the occasion and kicked the ball through the goalposts. It was a clear goal and also an equalizer. The game began and Abdur Rasool got a chance of showing his mettle. Heroically, he ran with the ball, dribbled it for a short while, took it clean past the full-back and passed it on the left in who headed another clean goal. Just before the close Arshad converted a penalty kick into a goal. Thus we won the match by two goals. It was really happy day in our lives and I will never, in my life, forget the joy and pleasure I had on that day.