JEDDAH, 25 September — In the Group B contests of the Prince Faisal ibn Fahd Cup soccer tournament, leaders Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli stayed level on points with victories on Monday.
Ittihad, who top the group on goal difference after being level at 19 points with Ahli, left it till late to snatch full points. And it needed super sub Bassem Al-Amri’s injury time strike to seal their 2-1 victory over Al-Najmah in Jeddah.
Ali Al-Matrud had opened the account for Ittihad, but Najmah pulled back the edge with Mishaan Al-Mutairi being on target in the 15th minute. With the rival defense standing strong, it looked like Ittihad would be dropping a point to Najmah, till Al-Amri settled the issue.
Ahli proved too strong for Al-Raed in Buraidah with a four-goal burst in 18 minutes, which eventually saw them run out 4-0 victors. Ali Dhawi notched a hat trick after triggering the goal splurge at the stroke of the interval. He added the second in the 46th and rounded off the tally in the 63rd after Khawaji had scored Ahli’s third in the 49th minute.
In the third encounter, Al-Ta’ie came away with a 3-1 victory over Al-Sho’ala in Al-Kharj.
