Abdul Gafur Baloch
 Baloch's retirement in 1987 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Abdul Gafur Baloch | ||
| Date of birth | 1936 | ||
| Place of birth |
British India )(present-day Pakistan | ||
| Date of death | (aged 61) | ||
| Place of death | Dhaka, Bangladesh | ||
| Position(s) |
Centre-back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1951– | Qadri Sports Club | ||
| –1958 | Karachi Kickers | ||
| 1959–1965 |
Dhaka Wanderers | ||
| 1966–1968 | EPIDC | ||
| 1969–1971 |
Dhaka Wanderers | ||
| 1972–1973 | BDIC | ||
| International career | |||
| 1961–1963 | Pakistan | ||
| 1960 | East Pakistan | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 1968 | EPIDC | ||
| 1972–1983 | Brothers Union | ||
| 1973 | BIDC | ||
| 1980–1981 | Bangladesh U19 | ||
| 1981 | Bangladesh B | ||
| 1982 | Bangladesh | ||
| 1984–1985 | Muktijoddha Sangsad | ||
| 1986 | Brothers Union | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Abdul Gafur Baloch (1936–25 June 1997) was a football player and coach. Born in Pakistan during the British regime, he was granted Bangladeshi citizenship due to his contribution to the country's football.
Early life
Born in Karachi, British India in 1936, Baloch was of Iranian origin on his mother's side.[1]
Playing career
In 1951, at the age of 15, he began playing in the Karachi First Division Football League with Qadri Sports Club. In 1958, Baloch won the Aga Khan Gold Cup in Dhaka with Karachi Kickers in what was the tournament's first edition.[1][2]
Baloch represented the Pakistan national team from 1961 to 1963. He made his debut during three exhibition games against Burma in Karachi. He was also part of the runners-up team in the 1962 Merdeka Cup. In 1963, Baloch played a series of friendly games against China, marking his final appearances for Pakistan.[3]
Baloch began his
In 1960, Baloch won the National Football Championship while representing East Pakistan. His team defeated Karachi White 1–0 in the final held on November 27 in his place of birth, Karachi.[3]
Coaching career
Baloch won the
In 1973 and 1974, he coached the Oranges to victory in the Dhaka Third Division Football League and Dhaka Second Division Football League, respectively. During both title triumphs, Brothers remained unbeaten and comprised entirely of Under-18 players scouted from Gopibagh by Baloch himself. Notable players in the team were Hasanuzzaman Khan Bablu and Mohammed Mohsin, the latter winning the top scorer award during both title triumphs. During those two years, Baloch's all-out attacking tactic saw Brothers not fail to score fewer than six goals in each game and also record a victory with a nineteen-goal margin while in the Third Division.[6][5]
In 1975, Brothers entered the First Division, the
In December 1980, Baloch took charge of the
In March 1981, Baloch was appointed as the head coach of the Bangladesh B national team for the inaugural Bangladesh President's Gold Cup held in Dhaka. The team, mainly referred to as 'Bangladesh Red', comprised players who had participated in the AFC Youth Championship under Baloch the previous month. Notable faces included Ashish Bhadra, Sheikh Mohammad Aslam, Hasanuzzaman Khan Bablu, and Lal Mohammad. The team finished the group stages with 1–0 victories over both Oman XI and Thailand XI, while also securing a 1–1 draw with South Korea XI. In the semi-finals, the team defeated North Korea XI on penalties after a 1–1 draw. In the final held on 1 March, the Red team was defeated 2–0 by South Korea. Nonetheless, Baloch's Red team outshone Bangladesh's senior national team during the tournament, for which he was honored with the head coach duty for the Bangladesh national team in 1982.[11]
In February 1982, Baloch traveled back to his country of birth,
In 1984, Baloch joined the newly promoted Dhaka League outfit, Muktijoddha Sangsad KC, marking an end to his decade-long stint as Brothers Union coach. At Muktijoddha, Baloch nurtured the likes of Monem Munna and Shahinur Kabir Shimul, as the Freedom Fighters finished seventh and eighth, respectively, during his two seasons in charge. In 1986, he returned to Brothers where he ended his coaching career with a third-place finish. On 23 June 1987, a charity match was held between Abahani and Brothers Union on the occasion of his official retirement. The game ended in a 1–1 draw, with Abahani taking the lead through PremLal in the 24th minute before Mamun Babu equalized towards the game's conclusion. Baloch was also rewarded with Tk 2 lakh 50 thousand raised from the encounter, with which he would live out the rest of his life.[1]
Personal life
Following the Independence of Bangladesh, Baloch opted not to return to Pakistan. He was eventually granted Bangladeshi citizenship in 1982. Despite being a child of a noble family from Karachi, he embraced a life of poverty, living the rest of his life in Gopibagh, Bangladesh.[1]
In 1971, his nephew and former Pakistan national team captain, Qayyum Changezi, came to Dhaka to take him back; however, Baloch refused. It was also reported that one of his brothers, a general of the Pakistan Army, suffered the same fate while trying to get Baloch to return to Pakistan, with Baloch declaring "Ainda kabhi na aou, hum Pakistan nahi jainge" (lit. 'Don't come back again, I will not go to Pakistan.').[1]
Baloch was also credited to have assisted the Mukti Bahini during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. Using his status as a former Pakistan national team player, Baloch saved the lives of many Bengalis in Gopibagh. He also stored weapons used by the resistance in his own house in Gopibagh.[4]
An army officer used to play with me. Always doubted me. He used to come to me and say, I have sheltered the freedom fighters. He would sneak into the room, but never check strictly.
—Kazi Salahuddin, former Bangladesh captain, quoting Baloch from 1973.[12]
Even after retirement as a coach, Baloch lived the rest of his life as a bachelor, during an interview by sports magazine Krira Jagat he stated, "Kya hoga shaadi banake, akeli hu, achii toh hu. Yes, football is my sansar-mokam bibi baccha" (lit. 'What will happen if i get married, I am happy being alone. Yes, football is my family (my) wife and child.'). He also financially helped numerous residents of Gopibagh, and lived out his retirement life in a two-room house provided by a family in the area.[1]
On 25 June 1997, at 11:30 pm, aged 61, Baloch died while undergoing treatment at the
Legacy
On 3 September 2008, the Bangladesh Football Federation inaugurated the Abdur Rahim-Gafoor Baloch Memorial Futsal competition in memory of Baloch and fellow national coach Abdur Rahim.[13][14]
Honours
Player
Karachi Kickers
- Aga Khan Gold Cup: 1958
Dhaka Wanderers
- Dhaka League: 1960
East Pakistan
Pakistan
- Merdeka Tournament runner-up: 1962
Manager
BIDC
- Dhaka League: 1968, 1973
Brothers Union
- Dhaka Third Division League: 1973
- Dhaka Second Division League: 1974
- Federation Cup: 1980
- Aga Khan Gold Cup: 1981–82
Bangladesh B/Red
- President's Gold Cup runner-up: 1981
See also
Bibliography
- Dulal, Mahmud (2014). পাকিস্তান জাতীয় দল বাঙালি খেলোয়াড় (transl. Bengali players in the Pakistan national team) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon.
- Dulal, Mahmud (2020). খেলার মাঠে মুক্তিযুদ্ধ (transl. Liberation war in the playground) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon. ISBN 978-984-8218-31-0.
- Alam, Masud (2017). ফুটবলের গল্প ফুটবলারদের গল্প (transl. The story of football the story of footballers) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon. ISBN 9789849134688.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Islam, Rashedul (December 16, 2021). "মুক্তিযুদ্ধে বাংলাদেশের পক্ষে থাকা এক পাকিস্তানির গল্প". Prothomalo (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ Ahsan, Ali (23 December 2010). "A history of football in Pakistan – Part II". Dawn. Archived from the original on 17 February 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
- ^ a b Dulal, Mahmud (2014). পাকিস্তান জাতীয় দল বাঙালি খেলোয়াড় (transl. Bengali players in the Pakistan national team) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon.
- ^ a b c d e "মুক্তিযুদ্ধে যে পাকিস্তানির অবদান ভুলবে না বাংলাদেশ". Prothomalo (in Bengali). December 18, 2019. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ a b "স্বপ্নও হারিয়ে গেছে গোপীবাগে". Prothomalo (in Bengali). September 13, 2017. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "'ব্রাদার্সের সব অহংকার শেষ হয়ে গেল'". Prothomalo (in Bengali). August 18, 2021. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "প্রিমিয়ার ফুটবল লীগ হতে ৪৬ বছর পর ঐতিহ্যবাহী ব্রাদার্স ইউনিয়নের অবনমন - খেলাধূলা". Premier News 24 (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 11 March 2024.
- ^ "মুক্তিযুদ্ধে যে পাকিস্তানি রক্ষা করেছিলেন গোপীবাগবাসীকে". Sonali News (in Bengali). 17 December 2021. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Bangladesh football, the glorious days of Brothers Union". Weekly Blitz. August 21, 2021. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Asian U-19 Championship 1980". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ a b "মুক্তিযোদ্ধাদের সহযোগিতা করেছিলেন যে পাকিস্তানি". Jugantor (in Bengali). December 17, 2021. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ Barman, Marc (December 16, 2021). "The story of a Pakistani who was on the side of Bangladesh in the war of liberation". Daily Hover. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Futsal ready to roll". The Daily Star. September 3, 2008. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "First futsal title MSC veterans'". The Daily Star. September 4, 2008. Archived from the original on 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
External links
- The story of a Pakistani who sided with Bangladesh in the Liberation War at Shikkhak Batayan