Butler slams Pokhara pitch despite 12-0 win

Bangladesh coach Peter Butler delivered a scathing assessment of the pitch at the Pokhara Rangasala Stadium after his side began their SAFF U-19 Women’s Championship title defence with a crushing 12-0 win over Bhutan on Saturday.

Despite the emphatic scoreline in the tournament opener at a venue hosting a SAFF-level competition for the first time, Butler said the playing surface was “not fit to play good football on” and questioned the fairness of staging a developmental tournament on such a pitch.

“Considering the circumstances, that pitch is not fit to play good football on,” Butler said at the post-match press conference. “It has been sprayed green to make it look like there is grass, which, in my opinion, is totally unfair to ask of two teams that are trying to develop players and play the game the right way.”

On the field, however, defending champions Bangladesh showed no mercy. Munki Akter struck four goals while Trishna Rani Sarkar and Alpi Akter netted a hattrick each as the girls in red and green completely dominated a one-sided contest, adapting far better to the difficult conditions than their opponents.

Butler stopped short of praising the performance in footballing terms, insisting the surface prevented his team from playing their natural game. “I would not describe our performance as ‘great’ football because you cannot play good football on a surface like that,” he said. “However, I believe we adapted to the conditions much better than the opposition. I am very pleased with the attitude, commitment and organisation of the group.”

With a packed schedule ahead, the English coach said player welfare was his overriding concern and that he used the match to rotate his squad as much as possible. “I tried to make as many substitutions as we possibly could. It was very important that we finished the game unscathed, with the least amount of injuries possible,” Butler noted, adding that rest and recovery would now be prioritised.

Bangladesh will next face India on Monday, after India edged hosts Nepal 1-0 in the day’s other match.