COLOMBO, 1 April 2004 — A 53rd-minute strike by forward Ibrahim Al-Suwaid handed Saudi Arabia a narrow 1-0 win against minnows Sri Lanka in a 2006 World Cup Asian Zone Group Eight qualifying match here yesterday.
The Sri Lankans played a defensive game to restrict the goal margin but the match failed to see any great moments despite the presence of five players who were in Saudi Arabia’s last World Cup side.
Apart from the tight defense, Sri Lanka were also served well by goalkeeper Dammika Thilakaratne, who made some fine saves.
It was the second consecutive win for Saudi Arabia, who had beaten Indonesia 3-0 earlier in the four-team section.
Sri Lanka fell to their second successive loss after a 2-0 defeat against Turkmenistan.
Saudi Arabia take on Turkmenistan and Sri Lanka play Indonesia in the next round of matches on June 9.
In another Group Eight match, Vladimir Bayramov struck twice as Turkmenistan beat Indonesia 3-1 to make it two wins out of two and climb above Saudi Arabia on goals scored.
In Tokyo, South Korea were held to a humiliating 0-0 away draw by the Maldives in a shock Asian World Cup qualifying result.
Honors were also shared between Palestine and Iraq, who drew 1-1 in a politically charged Group Two encounter played in neutral Doha because of the violence in the Middle East.
South Korea, World Cup semifinalists two years ago and one of the heavyweights of the region, dominated in sweltering Male but failed to land the killer blow, leaving the Indian Ocean islanders celebrating the most famous result in their history.
Anderlecht striker Seol Ki-hyeon and Japan-based forward Ahn Jung-hwan both had goals disallowed for South Korea, who left the pitch shell-shocked after failing to beat a team crushed 17-0 by Iran in a World Cup qualifier in 1997 and currently ranked 142nd in the world.
South Korea still top Group Seven with four points from two games but the knives will be sharpened for their return to Seoul.
In the other Group Seven game, Vietnam made a losing start under new Brazilian coach Edson Tavares as they were beaten 2-0 at home by Lebanon.
Roda Antar scored from close range in the 83rd minute and Khaled Hamiyye added a second for Lebanon three minutes later in rainswept Nam Dinh.
Elsewhere, Japan flirted with disaster until substitute Toshiya Fujita fired an 82nd-minute winner to them a 2-1 win in Singapore.
The result gives Japan six points from two games in Group Three but captain Hidetoshi Nakata launched a stinging attack on the team’s performance, which came after a fortuitous 1-0 win over Oman last month.
Oman bounced back from their defeat by Japan with a 5-1 demolition of India, Ahmed Mubarak and Mohammed Mubarak both scoring twice in Kochin.
There was little to choose between Palestine and Iraq — two teams surviving on a shoestring budget amid political turmoil at home.
Ex-pat Chilean Roberto Beshe scored a 71st-minute equalizer with a well-taken free kick for Palestine, who lead Group Two on goal difference following their 8-0 win over Taiwan last month. Uzbekistan also have four points after beating Taiwan 1-0 in Taipei. Iraq are third after two draws.
In Group Four, talisman Hao Haidong headed in a corner from skipper Li Weifeng 20 minutes from time as China edged neighbors Hong Kong 1-0 to preserve their 100 percent record.
Kuwait beat Malaysia 2-0 in Kuantan to join Hong Kong on three points.
Iran were the biggest winners of the day, hammering Laos 7-0 away to seize pole position in Group One above Jordan on goal difference.
Former Asian player of the year Ali Daei and Reza Enayati both scored two first-half goals to spark Iran in the Lao capital Vientiane. Jordan scraped past Qatar 1-0 at home to join Iran on six points.
The United Arab Emirates held on to top spot in Group Five with a 0-0 draw against North Korea in Pyongyang. Thailand earned their first points with a 3-0 victory in Yemen.
In Group Six, joint leaders Tajikistan and Bahrain finished goalless while Syria salvaged a late 1-1 draw away to Kyrgyzstan.
The next round of Asian qualifiers for the 2006 World Cup in Germany takes place on June 9.
