Opening Ceremony
Notably, for the first time in its history, the 20th edition of the Karachi United School Championship kicked off with an opening ceremony. Moreover, the 20th edition of the KUSC was sponsored by Peek Freans Smile as the title sponsor. Additionally, teams were drawn into pots based on their past performances. In what was a first for the tournament, this laid the base for the competition to set the bar high, hosted by our very own Ahmed Khan, alongside Hira Khanum. During the event, the ceremony featured drawing teams into groups, unveiling kits for the seeded teams, and presenting the trophy. Affan Siddiqui, Sahiba Sirdil, and Altamash Jiwa helped draw the teams for the group stages.
The trophy unveiling at the opening ceremony.
Senior Boys
Groups
The groups for the senior boy’s category were as follows –
Group A – Sceptre College, Credo College, SMS Aga Khan – Morning, St. Patrick’s High School
Group B – Aga Khan HSS Karimbad, Bahria College Karsaz, Aga Khan HSS Kharadar, Bahria College NORE
Group C – Eden College, Habib Public School, Bahria Foundation College, Cedar College PECHS
Group D – Alpha College, Foundation Public School, SMS Aga Khan – Evening, Karachi Public School
Group E – The Lyceum, The City School PAF, Beaconhouse College PECHS, CAMS College
Group F – Nixor College, Highbrow College, Alpha School, Happy Palace Grammar School
Group G – Cedar College DHA, Generation’s School, Commecs College, The Learning House
Group H – Karachi Grammar School, Whales College, Wahaj Hussain Schooling System, NCR-CET
Affan Siddiqui drawing the teams during the opening ceremony.
Group Stages
The group stage matches were held at the Aga Khan Gymkhana.
Group A
Firstly, Sceptre College and Credo College got off to winning starts by winning their opening matches. However, they both faced tough tests by St. Patrick’s High School and SMS Aga Khan – Morning respectively. Besides this, SMS Aga Khan – M overcame St. Patrick’s in the final match as they finished in third place. Ultimately, Credo overcame Sceptre 2-1 to top the group.
Credo captain Rayyan in action during the group stages.
Group B
Meanwhile, in Group B, as the seeded team in the group, Aga Khan Karimabad carried high expectations for strong performance. Moreover, Bahria sides occupied the top spots, with NORE needing a win in the last game to top the group. After the sides played out a draw, Karsaz finished top, NORE second, and Aga Khan third by 1 point.
Aga Khan HSS up against Bahria College NORE as the sides play out a draw.
Group C
Group C, on the other hand, proved to be one of the most dramatic. Habib headed into the final match with two wins, whereas Eden and Cedar had a win and a loss. As a result, this kept qualification to the KOs open for all three sides. The standings before the game were Habib, Cedar, Eden, and Bahria who were already eliminated. Then Eden won their match against Habib, while Cedar ran riot against Bahria. Consequently, the final standings were Cedar, Eden, Habib, and then Bahria.
Cedar College PECHS against Habib Public School during their opening group stage game.
Group D
Moreover, Group D featured competitive matchups. One of the bright young teams, Karachi Public School (KPS), gave Alpha College a tough test but was eventually beaten 2-0. Nevertheless, they bounced back against Foundation Public 4-0 and played out a goalless draw against SMS Aga Khan. As a result, Alpha College went on to top the group with three wins. Subsequently, KPS qualified in 2nd place with a better goal difference than SMS Aga Khan.
KPS, one of the teams with the youngest squad, in action.
Group E
The City School PAF overcame favorites Lyceum to top the group. Meanwhile, it all came down for second place. Lyceum needed to draw to go through against Beaconhouse College PECHS as this back-and-forth match resulted in a close victory. Therefore, Lyceum qualified for the knockouts.
The Lyceum in action during the gorup stages.
Group F
Moreover, in Group F, things played out differently. The tournament favorites, Nixor College, started strongly and topped the group. Consequently, HPGS and Highbrow were battling it out for second place and played a goalless draw. As a result, Highbrow went through courtesy of a better goal difference.
Highbrow captain Umer in action against Alpha School.
Group G
Finally, defending champions Cedar College DHA were off to a good start by winning 4-0 against The Learning House. Generation’s School proved to be a good test for them but were ultimately defeated by a score line of 2-0. Similarly, Commecs College also proved to be a tough test for the champions as they played out an 8-goal thriller. Eventually Cedar came out on top with a score of 5-3. The battle for second place between Generation’s and Commecs was a cagey affair. Generation’s School held on for 2-1 victory and qualified for the knockouts.
Jan Ansari after scoring against The Learning House.
Group H
Lastly, Group H brought its own set of surprises. The runners-up, KGS, also got off to a winning start by thrashing NCR-CET and going past WHSS. Whales College brushed aside WHSS before a shocking walkover loss to NCR-CET. Whales College needed to beat KGS to qualify for the knockouts. Firstly, things did not start in their favor as they went 2-0 down in the first 10 minutes. However, the tide turned and Whales rallied back by scoring 3 goals, before a red card to KGS inflicted more misery. As a result, the demoralized KGS team then conceded two more goals.
Whales College celebrating their comeback victory against KGS.
Knockouts
Following the intense group stage battles, the knockout round matchups were finalized with A1 facing off against E2 and B2 against F1, and so on. Karachi United hosted the knockout matches at their stadium. The R016 matches were as follows –
Round of 16
Credo College 6 – 0 The Lyceum
Bahria College NORE 0 – 4 Nixor College
Cedar College PECHS 0 – 1 Generation’s School
Karachi Public School 0 – 3 Karachi Grammar School
Sceptre College 5 – 2 The City School PAF
Bahria College Karsaz 3 – 2 Highbrow College
Eden College 0 – 4 Cedar College DHA
Alpha College 1 – 3 Whales College
The KOs started with one-sided score lines with Credo, Nixor, KGS, and Cedar College DHA sweeping past their opponents. Firstly, Yahya and Farju were instrumental for Credo whereas Mahad Salam put in a solid performance for Nixor. Moreover, Abdul Ghani, Yahya Kakar, and Jan Ansari were some of the top names for Cedar College DHA. Lastly, Hamza Ibrahim and Omer Mirza were outstanding for KGS. After a dominant opening day, Day 2 saw tighter encounters and dramatic moments. Sceptre College pulled a comeback and Highbrow coming almost within touching distance. Whales overpowered Alpha, who had kept clean sheets throughout the group stage. Generation’s School battled it out with Cedar College PECHS for a hard-fought 1-0 victory.
Bahria College Karsaz celebrating their 3rd goal as they edge past Highbrow College.
Quarterfinals
As the tournament entered the quarter-finals, the stage was set for blockbuster matchups.
Credo College 1(2) – 1(4) Nixor College
Generation’s School 1 – 0 Karachi Grammar School
Sceptre College 3 – 1 Bahria College Karsaz
Cedar College DHA 5 – 3 Whales College
Credo College 1(2) – 1(4) Nixor College
The most anticipated clash of the round was Credo and Nixor. Expected to go all the way, they were both favorites coming into the tournament. Furthermore, fans dubbed the quarterfinal clash between both teams as the final before the final. Nixor was in red-hot form coming into the quarters and kept clean sheets in all their previous matches. Additionally, Credo won all their matches but were still leaking goals. The game started with Nixor on the attack, and soon, and found the back of the net. Nixor went into the break with a 1-goal advantage. However, Credo came out strong in the 2nd half, and an error by Shan (Nixor GK) led to the equalizing goal. The match went to a penalty shoot-out with Hammas (Credo GK) missing the final penalty as Nixor marched into the semi-finals.
Shan e Shehbaz, Nixor GK, celebrating after winning the quarter final in the penalty shootout.
Generation’s School 1 – 0 Karachi Grammar School
Elsewhere in the quarterfinals, six-time champions KGS were up against tournament underdogs Generation’s School. In what was expected to be an easy win for KGS, they did not do themselves any favors with their performance as of late. Moreover, a sending-off for Saif Hussain (KGS GK) in the round of 16 match vs KPS was considered unnecessary as he was be suspended for the quarter-final.
Match
The game kicked off with Generation’s School on the attack and an error by Ammar Tapal (KGS GK) almost resulted in the opening goal. KGS could not find a way past the resilient defense of Generation’s, who themselves were looking dangerous courtesy of the performances by Usman Grami. Ammar Tapal made a string of good saves to keep KGS in the match. However, a counterattack in the 2nd half left KGS exposed. Mustafa’s failure to clear the ball, along with other defensive errors, led to the opening goal. KGS had their only chance at goal but Usman Ahmed, fluffed his lines and the chance went begging. Generation’s School had a couple of chances to put the game to bed, but Ammar Tapal denied them again. They held on for a historic win as KGS crashed out and their wait for a 7th title continued.
Generation’s School celebrating their historic win over 6-time champions KGS.
Sceptre College 3 – 1 Bahria College Karsaz
Both teams had their tests and this was what many expected to be an even tie. Despite Sceptre starting the match strongly and being a constant threat in attack, Karsaz opened the scoring. However, dividends soon paid off for Sceptre as their captain and talisman, Zaid Khan, led the team from the front and found the back of the net. Consequently, they turned the game around as they scored 3 goals and cruised into the semi-finals.
Zaid Khan of Sceptre College as he tries to dribble past the Bahria Karsaz defense.
Cedar College DHA 5 – 3 Whales College
Defending champions Cedar College DHA were up against high-flying Whales College. What followed was a thrilling back-and-forth encounter. Whales fell behind early, but came back. Later, Cedar also fell behind, yet they came back too. With the game evenly poised at 3-3, the match resumed where the defending champions came out with more determination and grit. They then found the back of the net twice to send Whales College packing from the tournament. Observers raised questions about both teams’ defensive performances. Despite the sub-par defensive performance of Cedar, their attack bailed them out.
Cedar captain Yahya as he battles for the ball with the Whales forward.
Semifinals
3 of the 4 teams in the semi-finals had at least 1 KUSC championship, the exception being Generation’s School. The semi-finals were as follows –
Nixor College 4 – 0 Generation’s School
Sceptre College 2(3) – 2(2) Cedar College DHA
Nixor College 4 – 0 Generation’s School
In the first semi-final, tournament favorites Nixor College squared off against underdog Generation’s School. Both teams had contrasting playing styles; Nixor was known for their flamboyant attack and Generation’s for the sturdy defense. Nixor started the match strongly and Ashar Rashid won and converted a penalty to put Generation’s on the back foot. Ashar scored a hat-trick, and Abdullah Lohya buried a spectacular free kick in the top corner. With this, the fairy tale for Generation’s School was over as they had to settle for the 3rd place playoff.
After scoring his hat-trick, Ashar Rashid bags the player of the match award.
Sceptre College 2(3) – 2(2) Cedar College DHA
The second semi-final brought together two former champions in a high-stakes showdown. Cedar College DHA started the match on the front foot and scored early on. However, Sceptre who were in a similar situation turned the game around through a spectacular free kick by Abbas and a goal by Zaid. The referee sent off Yahya Kakar, already on a booking, for a deliberate handball. Reduced to 10 men, Cedar came out with a changed mindset in the 2nd half with Jan Ansari capitalizing on an error between Kumayl (Sceptre GK) and Aqdas (Sceptre DF) to equalize. The game moved into extra time after Sceptre failed to capitalize on the man advantage. With penalties looming, Coach Shakir Taj of Cedar made a tactical substitution by bringing on Shuraim (backup GK) who saved a penalty. However, captain Yahya Awan and Hadi saw their spot-kicks saved and missed respectively as they crashed out.
Jan Ansari converts his penalty during the shootout.
3rd Place Playoff
Generation’s School 1 – 5 Cedar College DHA
With the bronze medal on the line, both Cedar College DHA and Generation’s School looked to salvage something from the tournament. As the match kicked off, Cedar raced into an early lead and was on the front foot throughout the game finding the back of the net multiple times. Afterwards, a brawl erupted in the second half, which resulted in a total of 5 players being sent off (3 Cedar, and 2 Generation’s) before a consolation penalty goal had the score line reading 5-1.
Usman Grami, the Emerging Player of the Tournament, as Generation’s take on Cedar College DHA.
Final
Nixor College 3 – 2 Sceptre College
The stage was set for both institutions to add to their tally. Nixor looked to win a record-equaling sixth title and Sceptre to add a second title. Nixor were back with their striker Abdul Kakezai from injury but winger Mahad Salam was not declared fit to start. Sceptre College, on the other hand, had all players available for the match.
The captains before the match with the referees for the 20th KUSC final.
Match
Normal Time
First Half
From the onset, Nixor on the attack who scored an early goal through Ashar Rashid. Sceptre, being down in the earlier matches as well, showed resilience to bounce back as they won a penalty. Zaid Khan equalized before halftime. However, Nixor had to substitute Abdul Kakezai during the half.
Zaid Khan of Sceptre College in action.
Second Half
Sceptre started the 2nd half strongly and took the lead through Zaid Khan as the defense could not stop his run and shot. Things got worse for Nixor as Ashar Rashid was sent for a 2nd bookable offense, leaving them down to 10 men for the final. Zahid Taj tweaked his formation, with Zohair Khan leading the line. In an already nail-biting match, Nixor found the breakthrough pass as Zohair Khan raced forward with 8 Sceptre players chasing after him as he slotted the ball in the bottom corner on the far side. Consequently, Nixor was the rejuvenated side and Sceptre like the semi-final match failed to capitalize on the man advantage. Furthermore, Zahid Taj brought on winger Mahad Salam as the last roll of the dice from his end to win the game. The score after 90 minutes was tied at 2-2.
After scoring the equalizing goal, Nixor players storm around Zohair Khan.
Extra Time
With the score tied at the end of regular time, the final headed into extra time, thus setting up a tense climax. Although the match went into extra time and was end-to-end, the deadlock remained. In the second half, a run by Salahuddin down the wing resulted in a corner. Taking the corner himself, he swung in the corner, finding Mahad Salam whose pass found Bilal Mazahir, captain of Nixor, who turned the ball into the back of the net as Nixor completed the turnaround with a man less to go 3-2 up. However, Sceptre looked to rally back as they almost found the back of the net but a goal-line clearance by Bilal Mazahir kept them at bay. With history on the line, Nixor held on as they won their 6th title and tied with KGS for the most successful team in the senior boy’s category.
Nixor Captain Bilal Mazahir after scoring the winner in extra time.
Awards
After the dust settled on an unforgettable tournament, individual and team excellence was recognized with the following awards.
Team Awards
Winners – Nixor College
Runners-up – Sceptre College
3rd Place – Cedar College DHA
Fair Play Award – Nixor College
Individual Awards
MVP – Zohair Khan (Nixor College)
Golden Boot – Mohsin Haider (Credo College)
Golden Glove – Shan e Shehbaz (Nixor College)
Emerging Player – Usman Grami (Generation’s School)
Best Coach – Zahid Taj (Nixor College)
People’s Choice Award – Mahad Wajahat (Cedar College DHA)
(021) 35140679
digital@karachiunited.com
