Heavy football menu on heat

Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) will hand over the national football team to Iraqi coach Shamir Sakir to prepare for the forthcoming second SAF football championship, to be held in the Indian city of Goa from April 17.

Although BFF sent a letter to the National Sports Council last week praying for the extension of the Iraqi World Cupper's contract, which expired on December 31, the federation took the formal decision in its executive body meeting held at the BFF office yesterday afternoon.

Sakir, who was appointed by the NSC last October on a temporary basis for three months, will begin his camp from the end of this month. The BFF technical committee has selected 31 booters for the camp. The names will be announced after the Eid vacation.

Six South Asian countries -- Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and hosts India will take part in the 15-day meet.

The BFF meeting, chaired by vice-president Anjan Chowdhury Pinto, also decided to introduce Office League in Dhaka, which will begin from the last week of February. A committee for organising the office league where all the service teams and other office teams will take part, has been formed with Shah Abul Kashem and Moazzem Hossain as convenor and secretary.

Office league apart, the ruling body of Bangladesh football also drafted the calendar for the year 1999 which begins with the preliminary round of the national under-19 football championship from January 29.

Sixty districts and Bangla-desh Krira Shikkha Protisthan (BKSP) will take part in the qualifying round, which will be held in eight zonal venues--Dhaka, Narshingdi, Sirajganj, Kurigram, Chapai Nawabganj, Jessore, Sylhet and Noakhali. Only two districts--Jhalakathi and Moulvibazar--are not taking part in the champi-onship. The winners of the eight zones will join defending champions Tangail and hosts Rangpur in the final round, scheduled to start from February 9.

After the under-19 tournament, Biman Cup under-14 championship will be held in February and March.

The inter-club booters transfer for the Dhaka Premier league will also be held in March. The league will be held in May after the Federation Cup in April. BFF has been allotted the Bangabandhu National Stadium from April to September.

Talking to The Daily Star, Sirajul Islam Bachchu, the BFF joint-secretary, informed that the Mahanagari Cup will be held after the Premier League. The calendar of BFF will be finalised in a couple of days.

Bachchu, however, could not give any details about the much-talked-about National League other than saying that the matter was yet to be finalised.