I was fortunate to volunteer at the Play4Burma Tournament which was organised by Human Relief Foundation to raise awareness and much needed funds to support the atrocities committed upon the Rohingya people in Burma. The Rohingya are recognised by the UN as one of the most persecuted minorities on the planet.
The tournament draw had been made by Councillor Harun Miah on 16th November 2012.
The venue was the Berner Estate Pitch, a stones throw from the old sand pitch that all us local lads played on, cherished and still pine for. Many happy memories resurfaced and were discussed and reminisced over with great fondness.
We were very fortunate that the rain stopped before kickoff at 9.30 am on the 17th and stayed that way for the rest of the day. There was even a burst of sunlight late in the afternoon. The day was managed like clockwork by tournament Co-ordinators and HRF staff Khoyrul Shaheed & Muhammad Haque. They were ably supported by our volunteer crew comprising of but not limited to: Zoinul Abidin, Shah Mahmud, Abdul Hamid, Lokuj Jaman, Ibrahim Faruqi and yours truly.
There was a tense shootout in the semis as London Tigers were seen off by the Brick Lane Gutt Boyz, who then defeated my very own Rakhine Rangers 2-0 in the final.
A great day with much fanfare and good spirit. I’m just happy we had lots of fun, made new friends, caught up with old ones and were able to raise some funds and awareness about what’s happening in Burma.
Pictured above are the Finalists and match officials prior to kick off.
Finalists:
Rakhine Rangers
Azmal Hussain
Abdul Bari
Abdur Rahim
Abul Hasan
Abdul Hadi
Abdul Hamid
Abdul Mannan
Iftekhar Ahmed
Shah Mashud
Omar Sami Farooque
Emdad Rahman
Gutt Boyz
Abdul Hasnath
Iqbal Hussain
Abdul kapsar
Mohammed Shipu
Shakil Rahman
Shiblu Rahman
Khairul Alam
Kamrul Islam
Bolly
Abdul Hannan
Final result: Rakhine Rangers 0-2 Gutt Boyz.
Venue: Berner Estate pitch, Christian Street.
Man of the tournament: Shakil Rahman (Gutt Boyz)
Referee: Emdad Rahman
