Army set final clash with police

SOURCE: REPUBLICA

POKHARA, Feb 4: Nepal Army Club set up the final clash with Nepal Police Club as they defeated New Road Team (NRT) 2-1 on Thursday in the last semifinal of the ongoing Aaha Gold Cup Football Tournament held at the Pokhara Stadium.

Bikarna Shrestha, who was declared man-of-the-match, scored both the goals for the army in the first half while the only goal for NRT came from Shayan Moshavi, a Danish national, in the same half.

In the competitive match, army took an early lead in the sixth minute through a header of Bikarna from the box in a pass supplied by Bishwabairag Samal.

The NRT made an attempt to bounce back in the match and equaled the score in the 24th minute through Shayan.

However, they were unable to hold the army in 1-1 draw for long as Bikarna struck again for the army eight minutes later to double the lead. Bikarna sent the ball past net after NRT goalie Tulsi Baju moved forward to handle the ball.

NRT squandered two good chances of scoring in the entire match after the goal went wide hitting goal post in one occasion and in other army goalie Gangaram Deuja headed to deny the ball from entering inside the net. The army too missed a few chances of scoring.

Despite the win, army coach Rajukaji Shakya remained dissatisfied with his side´s performance. “The players failed to play up to my expectations.” He also lauded the opponents´ performance. “NRT showed better performance than army, they played a technical game.”

NRT coach Diken Suwal said his team came under pressure after conceding an early goal.

The final will be held on Saturday.

Pankaj steers police to final

SOURCE: REPUBLICA

POKHARA, Feb 3: A lone goal from Pankaj Shahi helped Nepal Police Club (NPC) secure final berth in the Aaha Gold Cup Football Tournament on Wednesday as they defeated Manang Marshyangdi Club 1-0 at the Pokhara Stadium.

The decider of the match came in the 49th minute through a strike of Pankaj from the box when MMC goalie Bishal Shreshta came forward to collect the ball.

Police will take on the Thursday´s winners between New Road Team (NRT) and Nepal Army Club in the final match on Saturday.

In the competitive match, MMC backed by huge spectators seemed to be unlucky as the assistant referee ruled Shiva Shrestha´s goal for MMC as offside.

Police goalie Ritesh Thapa was declared the man-of-the-match. Both the teams squandered some good chances of scoring in the match.

Senior player of Police Hari Khadka commented that the police emerged victorious due to good coordination among the players. “The team spirit was one of the factors behind our win and we also utilized scoring opportunity,” Khadka said.

MMC officials refused to comment about the match.

The police team came on the ground minus half-a-dozen of their prominent players as they have gone to Dhaka to play SAG football. Jumanu Rai, Chetan Ghimire, Bhola Silwal, Yogesh Shrestha, Rabin Shrestha and Suman Subedi are in Dhaka. The police players are scheduled to arrive in Pokhara on Friday.

“If needed I will also play in the final,” Khadka said.

Police have entered the final of all the editions of Aaha Gold Cup they have participated in. They are the title holders of the first, sixth and seventh editions of the tournament and are looking to defend the title in the eighth edition.

NRT shoot Sahara UK out in quarters

Rup Narayan Dhakal

Source: Himalayan News Service

POKHARA: Tulasi Baiju became the hero saving denying to spot kicks as New Road Team (NRT) defeated the visiting Sahara Football Club of UK 4-2 in the tie breakers to reach the semi-finals of the eighth Aaha Gold Cup here today.

In a nail biting match at the Pokhara Stadium, the regular 90 minutes ended on 1-1 stalemate. With 30 minutes of added time, both teams failed to break the deadlock and the match reached to the tie breakers.

Naveen Neupane brought the heart out on sleeves missing the first NRT spot kick but skipper Jeevan Sinkeman, Umesh Upreti, Nirajan Rayamajhi and Rajesh Shahi converted to give life to the Kathmandu based team. It was custodian Baiju who booked the last four berth for NRT denying Peter Wiggs and Gabs to knock the visitors out. Gopal Thapa and Eugene Ashanti converted the first two spot kicks.

Sahara UK took lead in the 40th minute after Jordan Watson took the ball alone from the centre line and gave no time for Baiju to react. NRT gave their best to level the scoring after conceding a goal but they had to wait till the dying moments of the match. Nirajan Rayamajhi met a brilliant cross from skipper Jeevan and made no mistake converting it in the injury time.

The visiting team's manager Naveen Gurung said his players lacked coordination and couldn't adapt with the ground conditions. NRT coach Diken Suwal said his players found it difficult to come with rigid strategy against the physically strong UK team. NRT will now take on Tribhuvan Army Club in the semi-finals. Manang Marshyangdi Club will paly title favorites Nepal Police Club in the first semi-final match on Wednesday.

Army book semifinal spot

SOURCE: REPUBLICA

KATHMANDU, Jan 31: Nepal Army Club (NAC) thrashed Machhindra Club 4-1 on Sunday to book a semifinal spot in the ongoing Aaha Gold Cup Football Tournament in Pokhara.

Ram Biswas, Hari Mahato, Raju Tamang and Bikarna Shrestha scored for the army team while the consolation goal for Machhindra came from Naresh Pokharel.

NAC will now take on the winners between New Road Team (NRT) and Sahara FC UK in the semifinal on Thursday.

Dominating the match from the beginning, the army took an early lead and scored the first three goals in the first half. Ram headed the first goal for NAC in the 10th minute in a pass of Raju Tamang. Hari scored in the 17th minute in a pass set by skipper Mahendra Khawas. Likewise, the third goal came from Raju through a penalty. The army were awarded with the penalty after Rupesh BK of Machhindra took down Bishwabairag Samal in the box.

The army scored the last goal eight minutes before regular time through Bikarna in a pass supplied by Chun Bahadur Thapa.

The only goal for Machhindra came in the 78th minute from Naresh Pokharel in a pass of Karna Limbu.

Army coach Raju Shakya lauded his team´s performance. Commenting on the opponents´ performance, he said, “Though they played well, they feared us.”

Machhindra coach Narottam Shakya pointed out the lack of effective performance from his strikers as the cause of the loss.

Parbat guides Police to semifinal

SOURCE: REPUBLICA

KATHMANDU, Jan 30: Title holders Nepal Police Club defeated the hosts Sahara Club, Pokhara 2-1 on Saturday to secure a semifinal spot in the ongoing Aaha Gold Cup Football Tournament held in Pokhara Stadium.

Parbat Pandey, who opened the scoring for the police team, scored the decisive goal through penalty in the second half. The only goal for the hosts came through Pushpa Chhetri.

All the goals came in the second half of the match. Parbat opened the scoring in the 52nd minute through a header in a free-kick of Rakesh Shrestha.

Sahara leveled the scoring in the 67th minute through Pushpa. Pushpa directed the ball toward the net after police custodian Ritesh Thapa failed to control a strike of Sushil KC of Sahara.

The police restored their lead two minutes later through penalty after Man Bahadur Tamang of Sahara hit the ball with his hand in the box. Man Bahadur was sent off the ground for his offense. Both the teams squandered some good chances of scoring in the match. Parbat of the winning side was adjudged the man-of-the-match.

Police coach Birat Krishna Shreshta expressed dissatisfaction over his team´s performance despite the victory. “The team could not put up a good show and the opponents too did not play well,” Shrestha said. “Some of our talented players are in the national squad for SAG football which hampered the team´s performance.”

The police team is without half a dozen first choice players - Jumanu Rai, Rabin Shrestha, Chetan Ghimire, Bhola Silwal, Suman Subedi and Yogesh Shrestha - as they are in Bangladesh to play SAG football.

Sahara coach Kiran Shrestha said that the injury of his key players like Jay Thapa and Kiran Gurung turned unfortunate for the team. “The penalty awarded to the police team became the turning point of the match,” Shrestha said. He also lauded the team´s performance against the strong opponents.

Nepal Army Club will take on Machhindra Club in the second quarterfinal match on Sunday.

NRT sail into quarters

SOURCE: REPUBLICA

POKHARA, Jan 29: With a brace from Jeevan Sinkeman, New Road Team (NRT) defeated Knight Chess Club, Jhapa 3-1 on Friday to sail into the quarterfinals of the Aaha Gold Cup Football Tournament being held at Pokhara Stadium.

Shyan Moshavi added another goal for NRT while the only goal for Knight Chess came as a gift from NRT as Jeevan scored an own goal. NRT will take on Sahara UK on Tuesday.

Dominating the match from the beginning, NRT took an early lead in the 10th minute. Jeevan Sinkeman scored from the box in a cross from Shyan Moshavi.

Shyan doubled the lead in the 30th minute in a pass of Saroj Dahal to pile up more pressure on the opponents.

Eight minutes later, Jeevan scored an own goal while trying to clear a shot of Sudeep Limbu of Knight Chess.

Jeevan scored the third goal for his team in the last minute. Jeevan was later adjudged man-of-the-match.

Knight Chess missed some good chances of scoring in the match. Rajkumar KC and Rajkumar Ghising squandered some good chances for Knight Chess.

Nepal Police Club will take on the hosts Sahara Club on Saturday in the first quarterfinal match of the tournament.

Despite the victory, NRT coach Diken Suwal pointed out the weaknesses in midfield and defense. "We felt pressure after conceding an own goal and our defenders and midfielders lack experience," Suwal said.

Knight Chess coach Basanta Shrestha said the team came under pressure after conceding an early goal. "The team played well but there was lack of coordination in timing," Shrestha said.

Jagjeet stars as MMC outplay APF

source: The Himalayan Times

Rup Narayan Dhakal

POKHARA: Jagjeet Shrestha scored two and assisted another for Shiva Shrestha as Manang Marshyangdi Club (MMC) defeated Nepal APF Club 3-1 to enter the quarter-finals of the eighth Aaha Gold Cup here at the Pokhara Stadium today.

MMC scored all three goals through dead ball as Jagjeet converted two free kicks and Shiva struck another on Jagjeet’s free kick. Jibesh Pandey was the lone scorer for APF.

MMC took the lead in the 31st minute when Jagjeet converted the free kick after APF goalkeeper Chandan Sardar failed to judge the ball that kissed the net through his side. Jibesh scored the equaliser in the 50th minute following a pass from Nar Kumar Rai.

MMC restored the lead in the 78th minute when Shiva Shrestha scored on a Jagjeet’s free kick. APF were pressing hard for the equaliser but Jagjeet converted another free kick in the injury time to steer his team into the last eight.

It was APF who made the first attempt on the post. Things could have been different had Ganesh Lawati not wasted a chance in the 15th minute. Arbinda Chaudhary muffed up another chance for APF in the 37th minute when he failed to score on Lawati’s pass. The lone goal scorer Jibesh was denied by MMC goalkeeper in the 47th minute, while Tanka Basnet failed to convert on one-to-one situation with the MMC goalie.

On the other hand, MMC also wasted a couple of opportunities with Deepak Bhusal’s long shot going inches above the cross bar in the 16th minute. MMC’s Deepak Bhusal was named the man of the match.

Meanwhile, referee Sudish Pandey expelled MMC’s office secretary Kumar Bhattarai from the players’ box for using abusive language.

MMC coach Chhiring Lopsang Gurung credited the win to the teamwork of his players and the weakness of the APF goalkeeper. “Definitely we had a good teamwork today and the APF’s goalkeeping was also weak,” said Lopsang. APF coach Maheshwor Mulmi said his team played better than the opponents. “We performed better to that of our opponents, but we faced defeat because of the weak keeping,” said Mulmi.

On Friday, New Road Team will take on Knight Chess Club of Jhapa.

Machhindra advance into quarters

Source: ekantipur.com

KASKI, JAN 28 -

Machhindra Club booked their berth in the quarterfinal of the Eight Aaha Gold Cup with a 3-2 win over visitors Gurkha United on Wednesday. Machhindra will take on Army on Sunday. In a highly competitive match, the two teams fought tooth and nail.

The match was drawn until the 75th minute at two goals a piece. Diego Rahim Koji scored the decider on the 75th minute to take Machhindra into last eight. Koji diverted Karna Limbu's pass from the penalty box into the net.

Despite dominating the match right from the beginning, Machhindra scored the first at the end of the first half. Limbu gave Machhindra the lead on the 45th minute when he guided Bikash Rai's long pass from the right corner into the post easily.

The visitors came out attacking in the second half. They equalised on the first minute when Rahul Negi thread through a pass for Balbindra Singh to score. Gurkha United again took the lead on 52nd minute as Goswami's shot from the penalty box caressed the back of the net.

However, Koji fooled the opposing defence and the keeper to bring Machhindra back into the match. Despite the win, Machhindra's coach Narottam Shakya was unhappy with his team's performance. “There were many loopholes in our game. The boys missed a couple of golden opportunities,” said Shakya. He also attributed the loss to his players' unfamiliarity with the ground in Pokhara.

The opposing coach Samir Gurung conceded that his team had gone down to a better team.

Hosts Sahara start on a winning note

SOURCE: Republica

SANTOSH POKHAREL

POKHARA, Jan 26: The hosts Sahara Club won the inaugural match of the Eighth Aaha Gold Cup Football Tournament on Tuesday at the Pokhara Stadium. A brace from Pushpa Chhetri shaped Sahara´s 3-2 victory over Rupandehi-XI.

Pushpa scored in the 37th and 80th minutes while Bishnu KC added another goal two minutes later to pile up more pressure on the opponents.

However, they were unable to stop Rupandehi from scoring. Rupandehi´s Bishnu Gurung opened their scoring in the 83rd minute in a pass set by Ashok Pun. Bishnu scored the second goal in the dying minutes. He shot the ball inside the net utilizing Krishna Shrestha´s pass in the 89th minute.

Sahara´s Pushpa Shrestha was adjudged the man-of-the-match.

Both the sides created lots of opportunities but failed to convert them. In the early minutes of the match, Rupandehi´s Kumar KC shot in his own post while in a bid to clear, but luckily it deflected hitting the pole.

Rupandehi´s coach Yam Gurung said that his side lost because they lacked team work. He also revealed that they didn´t have sufficient time for preparation. “It was not possible to play well with three day´s training,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sahara´s Coach Kiran Shrestha said his team conceded goals as the players became over-excited after scoring three goals.

The winners Sahara will face the defending champions Nepal Police Club on Saturday while Wednesday´s match will be held between Gorkha United of India and Kathmandu´s Machhindra Club.

Altogether 12 teams are participating in the tournament to be held till February 6. Three departmental teams - Army, Police and Armed Police - along with NRT, Machhindra FC, Manang Marshyangdi Club, Jhapa´s Knight Chess, Rupandehi XI, Dehradun´s Gorkha United, Bangladesh´s Dhaka Sporting, Sahara UK and hosts Sahara Club will compete for the title.

The winners will bag a purse of Rs 150,000 and gold medals while the runners-up will receive Rs 75,000 and a trophy. The best player of the tournament will get a Yamaha bike. Likewise, the highest scorer will receive Rs 15,000 and a trophy. The best coach, goalkeeper, defender, midfielder and striker of the tournament will bag Rs 10,000 each. The disciplined team will receive the fair-play trophy.

Aaha cup kicks off today

source: ekantipur.com

POKHARA, JAN 26 -
The Eighth edition of Aaha Gold Cup, perhaps the most popular football tournament outside the valley, will kick off here on Tuesday with hosts Sahara Club taking on Rupendhai 11 (ANFA) in the inaugural match of the tournament that features local as well as foreign teams. According to the tie-sheet, Machindra Club will take on Gorkha United of India on Wednesday. Thursday's match will see two-time champions Manang Marshyangdi Club battle Armed Police Force, with the winner facing Dhaka Sporting Club in the quarterfinal.

Likewise, Ranipokhari Corner Team and Knight Chess Club of Jhapa will vie in a pre-quarterfinal match on Friday. The winners of this match take on Sahara Club AFC U.K. in the semi-final.

Defending champions Nepal Police Club will meet the winners of the inaugural match in the quarterfinal on Jan. 30. The winner of the 12-day event will receive a cash prize of Rs. 150,000 while the runners-up get Rs. 75,000.

Nepal Police won the first, sixth and seventh edition while Manang Marshyangdi Club were the winners at the second and third edition of the tournament. African United Club and Three Star won the fourth and the fifth edition respectively.

Meanwhile, internet services have been provided at the stadium to make it easy for journalists to file their stories. According to club member Sudarshan Ranjit, World Link is providing internet excess for free. Likewise, information and updates about the tournament can be obtained by dialling 1618061551051.

Preparations For Aaha Gold Cup Over

Source: myrepublica.com

POKHARA, Jan.23: Final preparations for Aaha Gold Cup scheduled to be held from Monday at the Pokhara Stadium have been completed.

Sahara Club, the organiser of the tournament informed this in a press conference here Saturday.

Nepal Police Club, APF Club and Army Club are taking part in the event, the most popular football tournament in the mofussil. NRT Club, Machhindra Football Club, Manag Marsyangdi Club, Night Chess Club Jhapa, Rupandehi-11 (ANFA), Gorkha United Club Deharadoon, Dhaka Sporting Club Bangaldesh, Sahara FC UK and the organiser Sahara Club Pokhara are also competing for the title.

The winner team will get cash prize of Rs.150,000 while the first runner team up will receive Rs. 75,000. Similarly, the most disciplined team will be honoured with the ´Fair Play Trophy´. According to Bikram Thakali, president of the organising club, Sahara FC UK has sponsored Rs. 50,000 for the first prize.