Rashid Chunna

Rashid Chunna

Rashid in 1953
Personal information
Full name	Syed Abdur Rashid
Place of birth	Kolkata, British India
Date of death	1985
Place of death	Kuwait
Position(s)	Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
	Kolkata Mohammedan
	Mohun Bagan
	Aryan
	Bhawanipore Club
1951	Fire Service SC
1952	EPG Press
	Dhaka Wanderers
	Dhaka Mohammedan
	East Pakistan
	Dacca Division
International career
1952–1954	Pakistan
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Syed Abdur Rashid (died 1985), commonly known as Rashid Chunna, was a Pakistani football player who played as a forward, and manager. He represented the Pakistan national football team between 1952 and 1954.

Early life

Rashid was born in Calcutta in Bengal, British India. ^{[1] [2]}

Club career

Rashid played in the Calcutta League for Kolkata Mohammedan, Mohun Bagan and Aryan and Bhawanipore Club. He also played for the IFA XI against foreign teams from China, Burma, and Sweden. He played for the Bengal team in the Santosh Trophy. ^{[1] [2]}

Rashid sitting far right in middle, with the East Pakistan White team in 1957

After playing for Aryan in 1950, he moved to the Dhaka First Division League in East Pakistan. ^{[1] [3]} In 1951, he started playing for Fire Service SC. In 1952, he joined EPG Press, winning the First Division title, and finishing as the highest scorer in the league. ^[1] In 1952, he played for East Pakistan Governor's XI against the Indian national team which toured Dhaka before playing in the 1952 Summer Olympics, where Rashid scored the lone goal of the match. ^[1] Apart from EPG Press, he also played for Dhaka Wanderers at the Aga Khan Gold Cup, and Dhaka Mohammedan in 1958. He also played in the IFA Shield in Kolkata in 1958. ^[1]

At the National Football Championship, Rashid represented and captained the East Pakistan team. In the 1957 edition, he played for the eventual runners-up East Pakistan White team. ^{[1] [4]} In 1963, he represented Dhaka Division. ^[1]

International career

In 1952, Rashid was selected by the Pakistan national football team to play at the 1952 Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament in Colombo, Ceylon. ^{[1] [2]} He made two appearances, against Ceylon, ^[5] and in the last match against India, which ended in a goalless draw and both teams emerged as joint winners of the tournament after finishing with the same points in the table. ^[6]

He was later part of the international squad at the 1954 Asian Games. ^{[1] [2] [7]}

Coaching career

Rashid served as a coach of the EPG Press team. ^[1] In 1965, he was appointed as one of the coaches of the Pakistan Sports Board. ^{[1] [2]} He developed several players who later played at international level, such as Golam Sarwar Tipu and Kazi Salahuddin. Rashid also served as a referee in several domestic matches. ^[1]

Personal life and death

Rashid, who was a native Urdu speaker, moved to Karachi after the independence of Bangladesh. After a few years of his stay there, he moved to Kuwait where he died in 1985. ^[1]

Honours

EPG Press

• Dhaka First Division Football League: 1951

Pakistan

• Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament: 1952

References

1. Mahmud, Dulal (2014). পাকিস্তান জাতীয় দল বাঙালি খেলোয়াড় (transl. Bengali players in the Pakistan national team) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon.
2. "Pakistan Observer 1965.03.26 — South Asian Newspapers". gpa.eastview.com. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
3. "Football and footballing in Bangladesh". today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
4. "Football Under Spotlight | Organisers wake up". The Daily Star .
5. "Times of Ceylon 1952.03.19 — South Asian Newspapers". gpa.eastview.com. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
6. "Times of Ceylon 1952.03.24 — South Asian Newspapers". gpa.eastview.com. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
7. "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Sunday 18 April 1954". British Newspaper Archive .