Doha: Al Sadd talisman Akram Afif was named the Best Player while Al Gharafa tactician Pedro Martins was picked as the Best Coach at the Qatar Football Association – QFA Awards for the 2023-2024 Season yesterday. Minister of Sports and Youth H E Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Thani, a former QFA President, also received the Order of Achievement award from QFA President Jassim bin Rashid Al Buenain during the prestigious ceremony that took place at the Qatar National Convention Center. Late national coach Captain Saeed Al Misnad was also declared the winner of the Order of Achievement award for his remarkable feats and services towards the success of local clubs and the national teams. Also yesterday, Al Arabi’s Jassim Jaber clinched the Best U-23 Player award for his fine performance in the recently-concluded season. The winners were selected based on their performance in the top flight Qatar Stars League which was held as the Expo Stars League (ESL) in the last edition with Al Sadd winning the title. Afif’s performance made the difference for Al Sadd in their title triumph as he finished as the top scorer in the League with 26 goals besides 11 assists. Al Gharafa captain Yacine Brahimi and Al Rayyan forward Roger Guedes were the other nominees for the coveted accolade. The 27-year-old, who also took the ‘Mansour Muftah Award’ handed to League’s leading scorer, was delighted saying his teammates equally deserve the credit for his highly successful season. Qatar international Jaber was influential in Al Arabi’s campaign as they finished among the top five teams in the ESL. He outnumbered Al Sadd’s Mostafa Meshal and Al Shamal player Mahdi Salem in the voting process, involving football officials, coaches and media representatives, to pick the Best U-23 Player award. Meanwhile, Taleb Salem, Salman Falahi, Saoud Ahmed and Khamis Al Marri won the Best Referees accolades for the season. During the ceremony, the Qatar national team players were also honoured by a number of companies and supporters including QIIB, Qatar Airways, Ooredoo and Qatar National Bank.