Kings women break ARB CSC's resistance to seal hattrick WFL title

Bashundhara Kings bagged a hat-trick of Women's Football League title with a 2-0 win over Ataur Rahman Bhuiyan College Sporting Club in their last match of the competition at the Birshreshtha Shaheed Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur today.

The 11th victory this season meant Bashundhara Kings have remained unbeaten for three consecutive seasons and interestingly had avoided a defeat in 37 matches during the period.

Both Kings and ARB CSC came into the last match on the back of 10 successive wins and today's tie turned into the title-deciding match.

The tie can also be termed a clash between the national women's team and national U-19 women's side as Kings featured almost all senior players, from goalkeeper Rupna Chakma to forward Sabina Khatun.

However, Kings had to wait for more than 80 minutes to take the lead as their younger opposition showed stiff resistance to keep their superior players at bay. Sometimes they also countered on breaks to send shivers in Kings' spine. In the end, though, the defending champions utilised their vast experience and broke the deadlock.

Following a short corner, Sabina whipped a ball in front of the goalpost and substitute Shamsunnahar nodded the ball before right-back Sheuli Azim volleyed from close-range to beat goalkeeper Sathi Biswas, who impressed at the post.

In the dying minutes, Kings wrapped up the game with Shamsunnahar Sr. converting from the spot.

"We feel good because we had to fight to win the hat-trick title. This time there were some good teams and the league was more competitive," said Kings captain Sabina after the match.

"The team management wanted a good result because we are all experienced players, and we were also hopeful to deliver our best."

However, Aklima Khatun, a forward of ARB CSC, outshone national striker Sabina by getting the top-scorer award.

Aklima scored 25 goals, six more than Sabina's 19.

"I never thought of being the top-scorer in the league because there were senior players more experienced than me," said an overwhelmed Aklima, who is looking forward to securing a place in the Bangladesh senior women's team.

"I want to perform well in the upcoming SAFF Women's U-20 Championship in February. If I can do better there, I believe I can get a call up to the national team," said the BKSP student, who had before represented Bangladesh U-18 women's team.

Shaheda Aktar Ripa, also a player of ARB CSC, was named the best player of the tournament.