The 1987 Dhaka First Division League, also known as the Senior Division National Bank Football League for sponsorship reasons, was the 15th season of the top-tier football league in Bangladesh and the 38th overall season of the First Division following the partition of India. A total of 16 teams participated in the league, which began on 13 May. The round-robin stage ended on 10 September, with the initial championship play-off held on 9 September and replayed on 26 October 1987. The league champions Mohammedan qualified for the 1988–89 Asian Club Championship.
The two-point system was reinstated, under which teams received 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss. Additionally, from this season onwards, the hat-trick rule was changed from requiring three consecutive goals to requiring three goals in a single game, in accordance with FIFA rules. League games were played over 80 minutes, with two 40-minute halves separated by a five-minute half-time interval.
Venue The Dhaka Stadium in Dhaka was the main venue for the league. Dhaka Dhaka Stadium Capacity: 36,000
League table
Championship play-off Despite Dhaka Abahani's superior goal difference, the BFF organised a championship play-off between Abahani and Mohammedan on 9 September to determine the league winner. The play-off was required after Mohammedan defeated Abahani 3–2 in the final league match on 6 September, leaving both teams level on points. Abahani's Samir Shaker was unavailable for the play-off after receiving a suspension for spitting at the fourth official during the match, while Mohammedan's Emeka Ezeugo was also ruled out after accumulating three yellow cards during the league campaign.
GK Mohamed Mohsin RB Monem Munna LB Imtiaz Sultan JohnnyCB Pakir Ali CB Abu Yusuf MF Mostafa Kamal MF Satyajit Das Rupu MF Ashish Bhadra LW Karim Allawi RW Ratnayaka Premalal CF Sheikh Mohammad Aslam (c)Substitutions:MF Fakrul Kamal Head coach: Kazi Salahuddin GK Sayeed Hassan Kanan RB Ahsanullah Montu LB Abul Hossain CB Kaiser Hamid CB Ranjit Saha (c)MF Khurshid Alam Babul MF Reza Naalchegar MF Elias Hossain RW Samrat Hossain Emily CF Morteza YekkehLW Gholamreza Borhanzadeh Substitutions:MF Rumman Bin Wali Sabbir MF Kazi Kamal Manager: Nasser Hejazi
Source:
Replay The initial championship play-off, held on 9 September, ended in controversy after both clubs refused to play extra time and declared themselves joint champions. The BFF and the league committee (DMFLC) rejected the decision, annulled the match, and ordered a replay to be held behind closed doors due to concerns over crowd violence. The captains of both teams, Ranjit Saha of Mohammedan and Sheikh Mohammad Aslam of Dhaka Abahani, were suspended for one year (later reduced), while Abahani's Mohammad Mohsin and Mostafa Kamal and Mohammedan's Abul Hossain and Elias Hossain each received three-month suspensions.
The replay was delayed for more than a month due to the disciplinary actions. Abahani initially refused to participate, while several foreign players from both clubs departed after believing that the league would not resume. Mohammedan later accepted the decision to replay the match, despite objections to the suspensions, while Abahani eventually agreed to take part. The replay was held on 26 October behind closed doors at the Ershad Army Stadium due to concerns over potential fan altercations and violence, which had been a recurring issue during matches between the two clubs in the Dhaka derby.
GK Mahmud Hossain Curzon RB Monem MunnaLB Imtiaz Sultan JohnnyCB Pakir Ali (c)CB Abu Yusuf MF Satyajit Das Rupu MF Ashish Bhadra MF Nabib LF Fakrul Kamal RF Ratnayaka Premalal CF Mobinul Islam Khasru Substitutions:MF Mossey MF Ashrafuddin Chunnu Head coach: Kazi Salahuddin GK Sayeed Hassan Kanan RB Shafiqul Islam Manik LB Kazi Kamal CB Kaiser Hamid (c)CB Ahsanullah Montu MF Khurshid Alam Babul MF Emeka Ezeugo MF Badal Roy RW Rumman Bin Wali Sabbir CF Samrat Hossain Emily LW Jasimuddin Ahmed Joshi Substitutions:MF Gyasuddin Ahmed MF Monir Hossain Manu Manager: Nasser Hejazi
Source:
Final table
Season statistics
Top goalscorers Rank Player Club Goals1 Sheikh Mohammad AslamDhaka Abahani142 Karim AllawiDhaka Abahani113 Emeka EzeugoMohammedan94 Ratnayaka PremalalDhaka Abahani85 Mahmudul Haque LitonBrothers Union5 Arif Abdul KhalekMuktijoddha5
Hat-tricks Player For Against Result Date Sheikh Mohammad AslamDhaka Abahani PWD 5–2 29 June 1987
See also 1987 Federation Cup
References
External links Dhaka First Division League 1987 at RSSSF