Sabina rises above all

Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club were crowned on Friday as champions in the first ever Walton Women's Football League with a 2-0 win over Mohammedan Sporting Club in a largely one-sided encounter.
The opening goal came from Farhana Khatun but star striker Sabina Khatun sealed the victory with the second goal to take her tally for the tournament to an astronomical 25 goals in 5 games.
Sabina's tally included a quadruple hattrick in a group game against Arambagh and she also plundered a double hattrick in the quarterfinal against Wari.
Such feats are unheard of in modern football but national striker Sabina took the achievements in her stride.
"I came into this tournament hoping to perform my best and I'm happy to say that's what I did. Although I wanted to become the top scorer, my first goal was always to help the team win the title.”
There has been a lot of talk about the one-sided nature of the tournament and many people have voiced their concern about a lack of quality. But Sabina brushed aside those concerns and stated that it was more a case of Sheikh Jamal being strong than the opponents being weak.
“We (Sheikh Jamal) are very strong and organized. It is not that the opponents are weak. It should be our credit that we are playing so well,” she insisted.
The yawning gap in quality between Jamal and the rest of the teams was clearly visible even in the final as Sheikh Jamal totally dominated Mohameddan in possession, rarely letting the opponent have the ball.
But while Sabina will grab all the headlines for her heady goalscoring feats, two other players also stood out with remarkable performances. Mohammedan vice-captain, Suinu in particular won the best player award despite finishing on the losing side in the final. Also catching the eye, was national forward Mainu who displayed some good skills and tackles but still failed to make much of a mark on the Sheikh Jamal side.
Sabina showed great appreciation towards the organizers and the crowd of about 1000 who had turned up to watch the final on the weekly holiday. She thanked everyone for their immense support and remained hopeful that the tournament would come back next year, bigger and better.