JEDDAH, 3 April 2006 — Al-Hilal secured second place at the end of the Saudi Soccer League regular season on Saturday with a 1-0 victory over Al-Shabab.
Hilal and No. 1 Shabab were joined in the Golden Four by Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli, who finished third and fourth respectively.
The stepladder final will start on April 14 in Jeddah with Ittihad and Ahli to battle in the first match. The winner advances to the second match on April 17 against Hilal in Riyadh to determine the opponent of waiting finalist Shabab in a winner-take-all game on April 21.
A powerful shot that found the net by Mohammed Shalhoub in the 7th minute was all Hilal needed to book their place in the final four.
Ittihad sent Abha to the first division Saturday by winning their match 3-1, while Ahli beat Al-Ansar 4-0 in the other match played in Jeddah.
Left-wing Saad Al-Ubod put Ittihad ahead with a strike in the 39th minute. Mohammed Kallon scored the second goal after he was awarded a penalty kick in the 70th minute when he was brought down in the box by goalkeeper Salem Al-Assiri. In the 85th minute Abha managed to pull in a goal through forward striker Idress Kwalabali. But Kallon delivered again in 95th minute with a superior goal in extra time.
