Dhaka, May 19 (UNB) – Bangladesh Sports Journalists Association (BSJA) arranged a discussion on ‘Budget & Sports’ at the Handball Stadium on the Bangabandhu National Stadium premises on Sunday.  

Addressing the function, speakers stressed the need for adequate allocation for the sports in the upcoming national budget, saying sports can bring laurel for the country and as well as brighten its image in the international arena.

Secretary General of Bangladesh Olympic Association (BOA) Syed Shahed Reza, BOA Deputy Secretaries General Ashiqur Rahman Miku and Asaduzzaman Kohinoor, BOA Treasurer Kazi Rajibuddin Ahmed Chapal and general secretary of Bangladesh Women’s Sports Association Firoza Karim Neily spoke on the occasion.

BSJA President Motahar Hossain Masum presented the keynote paper on the occasion.

The BSJA also wished good luck for the Bangladesh National Cricket team in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 beginning in England on May 30.  

BSJA handed over a sketch of the 15-member Bangladesh Cricket Team to BCB Director Naimur Rahman Durjoy, MP, BCB Directors Akram Khan, Ahmed Sajjadul Alam Boby and Hanif Bhuiyan and BCB national selector Habibul Bashar Sumon on the occasion.

The meeting was followed by doa and iftar mahfil which was participated by a large number of sports organisers, sportsmen and sports journalists.
 

Dhaka, May 19 (UNB) – Uttar Baridhara Club and Farashganj Sporting Club won their respective matches in the Bangladesh Championship League (BCL) Football at the Bir Shrestha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur on Sunday.

Farashganj SC beat Victoria SC by 1-0 goal in the day’s first match scored by Mithun in the 28th minute.

In the day’s other match, Uttar Baridhara Club outplayed lowly Swadinata KS by 3-1 goals.

Arif, Jewel and Zikon scored one each for the winners while Imran netted the lone goal for the losers, all in the first half.

Dhaka, May 19 (UNB) – East End Club finished runners-up in the 13-team Dhaka Metropolis 2nd Division Football League beating Dilkusha Sporting Club by 1-0 goals in a place-deciding play-off match at the Bir Shreshta Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur on Sunday.

Luxman scored the match-winning goal for East End Club in the very 9th minute.

The two teams took part in runners-up deciding play-off match this morning as both the teams have secured 25 points each on completion of all the 12 league encounters.
 
Earlier, Mugda Samaj Kallyan & Krira Sangsad clinched the league title securing 26 points from all the 12 matches.
 

Dhaka, May 19 (UNB) - Bangladesh women booters started leaving Dhaka on Sunday for their respective village homes to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr with their near and dear ones.

Head coach of Bangladesh women football team Golam Rabbani Choton on Sunday the women footballers, who were attending a resident camp, will enjoy a 19-day vacation from Monday.

He said the camp will remain closed from May 20 to June 7. “All the activities will remain suspended from May 20 to June 7 and will resume on June 8. Girls started heading to their village homes from today (Sunday),” he said.

The female booters have been given some time for taking rest as they are continuously participating in international tournaments.

Bangladesh ended the first edition of Bangamata Under-19 Women’s International Gold Cup 2019 in Dhaka on May 3 and SAFF Women’s Championship in Biratnagar, Nepal on March 20.

Returning to Dhaka after the Eid vacation, the female booters will begin a preparation camp for the upcoming AFC Under-16 Women Championship and FIFA Under-17 Women World Cup qualifiers billed for September in Thailand.

Choton believes that the break will be proved to be helpful ahead of their next assignments. “Girls need rest and recuperation. I hope they’ll utilise the vacation ahead of their next competitions,” he said.

Bangladesh U-19 Women’s team skipper Misrat Jahan Mousumi also felt that the vacation will be beneficial for the booters. “It’s so important to spend some time with family and friends. It will make us fresh,” she said.

Midfielder Monika Chakma said holidays will help them recover their minds and physiques. “It is also part of our training camp.”

Dhaka, May 19 (UNB) — Bangladesh national cricket team wanted to win the final of the just-concluded tri-nation series in Ireland at any cost, said all-rounder Farhad Reza upon his return to Dhaka after the triumph. 

Farhad had got the chance in the squad of Ireland tri-series but failed to impress the team management to get selected in the playing XI. 

“We never thought that we can lose the match. We just wanted to win the final against West Indies at any cost. I think our positive mindset helped us to seal the game,” Farhad told the reporters. 

Before the final, Bangladesh had beaten the Carribean boys twice in the league stage games, which had earned the favourite tag for the Tigers, and eventually, they proved their capability in the final as well. 

While batting first, West Indies put up 131 in 20.1 overs. After that, the rain came in and washed five hours away. Due to the interruption, the match was reduced to a 24-overs-a-side affair. West Indies finished their innings on 152 for one wicket in 24 overs. 

However, as per the DL method, Bangladesh got a revised target of 210. SoumyaSarkar and MosaddekHossain two brilliant fifties to seal the game for the Tigers, which helped them to win their first-ever title in a multi-nation cricketing event. 

“It was tough to adapt to the condition because there was too much cold. However, we wanted to stay positive and play our natural game,” Farhad added. 

Bangladesh team is now in England to prepare ahead of the World Cup. They will start their World Cup assault with the match against South Africa on June 2. Before that, the Tigers will play two warm-up games against Pakistan and India respectively on 26 and 28 May.