Three cheers for Afreen!

Afreen with late dad Azim

RIDING on Afreen Peerbhoy's winner, Maharashtra defeated Kerala 1-0 in a crucial Group-II league match to register their third successive victory (in as many games) of the Hero 27th Senior Women's National Football Championship at the IGIS Complex, Haldwani, Uttarakhand, on Sunday. Afreen scored from a free-kick in the first minute of additional time of the first half.

Afreen, 23, who plays as the central defender, told www.mid-day.com that though the team need four points to qualify for the quarter-finals from the two remaining games (April 5 v Uttarakhand and v Chandigarh on April 8) in the league stage, the Sanaya Anklesaria-coached Maharashtra aim to win both ties. Hosts Uttarakhand are in fourth position with four points.

"I want to dedicate today's goal to my dad [Azim] who passed away two months ago. It has been tough on me. Football has kept me sane. Today's win was a team effort. I didn't expect that goal, but it turned out to be the decider. I feel amazing. We are aware that if we manage to get four points from the rest of the two games, we can qualify for the quarters. But our aim is to go all out and ensure we do not take Uttarakhand or Chandigarh lightly. Our aim is to get the six points instead of four as there will be other factors for qualifying which will come into play [like goal difference]," explained Nerul resident Afreen, who completed her Bachelor of Management Studies (BMS) in 2020.

Maharashtra central defender Afreen Peerbhoy

She said having Anklesaria as coach makes things very easy going for everyone in the team. "I have known Sanaya since 2017, but played with her at the senior national camp the next year. Having her as our coach makes things better for us as we can share everything with her. The three-week camp at Cooperage before the tournament did a world of good for us," said Afreen, who works as a coach at the Football School of India in Nerul. Talking about how she took up football, she thanked school coach Hemant Zende for introducing her to the sport while she was a track and field athlete (100m) at St Augustine School in Navi Mumbai.

Also read: Maharashtra all set for Senior Nationals

Meanwhile, it is her favourite footballer, PSG star Sergio Ramos, whose clips help her with her skill improvement. "I am a big fan of Ramos. I do not follow all the football matches, but I do watch a lot of clips of Ramos playing and they help me get better."