Afghanistan captain Qader Karimi hoists the trophy after his team won the Shepparton Nations Cup over Nepal on Saturday night.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Brazil in 1994, Italy in 2006, Argentina in 2022 and now Afghanistan in 2025?
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
While the first three countries prevailed on penalties in the corresponding FIFA World Cup finals, for a few hours on a balmy Saturday night in Shepparton, a band of local Afghani representatives felt that same degree of patriotic ecstasy.
The scene was set: Shepparton Nations Cup grand final, a shootout to decide.
Evenly keeled after the first few kicks, it took an ice-veined moment from Afghanistan goalkeeper Imran Mohammadi to score then save consecutive strikes to allow Zulfiqar Alizada to blast the winning shot home in a 5-4 classic.
An army of fans lining the pitch’s perimeter, held to the security guard’s call in spartan-like formation, swarmed the victors in jubilation as the trill of the referee’s whistle sounded and put to an end a fabulous fortnight of football.
Nepal's Kiran Lama scans up the line before booming it long.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 2 of 16
Afghanistan's Noor Baqiri spots a free man in space ahead.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 3 of 16
Nepal's Suman Lama was tied for most goals in the competition with seven.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 4 of 16
Nepal's Aashish Lama keeps the ball away from Afghanistan's Reza Baqiri.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 5 of 16
Nepal's Sanjay Khatri battles against Afghanistan's Ali Jafari.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 6 of 16
Nepal's Suman Lama receives the ball on the front foot.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 7 of 16
Afghanistan's Ali Naveed calls for an option from a throw in.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 8 of 16
Nepal's Bibek Panta marshals his defence while setting up for a dead ball situation.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 9 of 16
Nepal's Alan Neupane clears while under pressure from Afghanistan's Reza Baqiri.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 10 of 16
Afghanistan's Ali Sina Alizada gets on the run with the ball under his spell.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 11 of 16
Afghanistan's Qader Karimi, Murtaza Gulzari and Noor Baqiri set up in a wall.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 12 of 16
Afghanistan's Shah Sharifi gives chase to Nepal's Rakam Limbu.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 13 of 16
Afghanistan's Ezat Alizada takes a second to relax on the ball.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 14 of 16
Nepal was well supported in the stands on Saturday night.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 15 of 16
Afghanistan supporters flooded the pitch after the winning penalty hit the back of the net.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Image 16 of 16
Organiser Abbas Alnajar hands the Nations Cup trophy to Afghanistan captain Qader Karimi.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Admittedly, not many would’ve tipped Afghanistan pre-tournament.
Even less had Nepal placed in the final.
Yet, as the national anthems of both proud countries rang out to some 1300 supporters packing the McEwen Reserve stands, something just seemed right.
Afghanistan broke the deadlock within minutes of the game kicking off as Ali Sina Alizada pounced on Nepal’s defensive faux pas and slid the ball into the bottom-left corner for a 1-0 lead.
The arm wrestle between both sides swayed until half-time, but midway through the second period, Nepal’s persistence finally paid off.
Suman Lama, a current player for the Nepal international team, whipped in a free kick that was eventually bundled home to restore parity.
Game on.
Nepal kept on threatening to smash Afghanistan’s door down, but custodian Mohammadi kept plucking out save after save to deny the side in blue.
The final whistle arrived and extra time ensued, though neither outfit could produce the decisive moment to prevent penalties.
It was only once Alizada’s deciding kick nestled in the top corner and, later, captain Qader Karimi hoisted the cup, that a nation’s passion spread like fire on the green on McEwen Reserve.
Traditional Afghani dance broke out to a backdrop of flags flittering in the breeze, chanting rang out into the night and vindicated that this tournament had something for everyone.
The curtain fell on the 2025 Shepparton Nations Cup in fitting fashion on Saturday night, but one thing is for sure — people will be back for more in 2026.
