JEDDAH, 28 December 2002 — Al-Hilal took the top spot from Al-Ittihad in the King Fahd Cup soccer tournament with a 1-0 victory over Al-Ahli at the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium in Jeddah yesterday. In another match, Al-Ittifaq routed Al-Raid 4-0.
Hilal were made to sweat for victory by a determined Ahli side, which held the edge in the first half. But it was Hilal which had a clear superiority in the latter half. Despite their repeated attacks, Hilal had to wait for injury time for the winner. Hussein Ali was at hand to finish off a clinical pass from Mohammad Lutf. Hilal now have 23 points.
In the other match, Raid were given a drubbing at the Prince Mohammed ibn Fahd Stadium in Dammam. Mubarak Al-Khalifa (10th), Saleh Basheer (28th) and two goals from Abdul Rahman Al-Qahtani (14th and 44th) lifted Ittifaq to a thumping win. The victory puts Ittifaq in the ninth position with eight points while Raid has four points.
