The 2017 Afghan Premier League (APL) central zone regional tournament (Road to 2017 APL) for selecting the top 21 players of Oqaban Hindukosh took place from 16 July to 20 July, 2017 in Panjshir’s Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim Stadium. Kapisa, Bamyan, Parwan, Daikondi, Panjshir, and Jawanan-e-Panjshir were the six participating teams in this tournament.

FIFA and AFC-licensed coaches of AFF supervised the games and performance of each player to select the brilliant and talented faces for Oqaban. The 21 selectees will play in the APL main event later in Kabul.

After an exciting 4-day round of games among the six teams, Jawanan-e-Panjshir triumphed over Parwan in the penalty shootouts and claimed the championship of the central zone regional tournament. Zainudin Sharifi won the Best Player Award of the tournament; Zubair, Jawanan-e-Panjshir goalie, received the Best Goalkeeper Award; and the Fair Play Award was presented to Kapisa.

Oqaban represents Panjshir, Parwan, Kapisa, Bamyan, and Daikondi provinces of the central region of Afghanistan. Despite of struggles and changes made to the team in the fifth season, Oqaban was not able to manage any remarkable accomplishment and came sixth in 2016 APL. With new and motivated players this year, the team plan to make a strong comeback.

 
Watch the central zone regional tournament’s final match and the top 21 selectees for Oqaban Hindukosh on APL YouTube page (www.youtube.com/afghanpremierleague). Like APL Instagram (Afghanpremierleague.official) for more updated photos of Oqaban and APL teams. Read more about the coming events on (www.afghanpremierleague.com).