JEDDAH, 4 March 2006 — As many local soccer pundits predicted, the Riyadh derby last night ended in favor of Hilal 2-1 with three spectacular goals scored in the Saudi Soccer League match.
At the King Fahd International Stadium, Nasr failed to deliver on their promise to beat Hilal, disappointing the fans.
Despite the three win points, Hilal remain in second place with 41, three points adrift of league-leaders Al-Shabab with 44. Nasr are in eighth position with 19 points.
Nasr were first to score in the 20th minute from a fine header by Talal Al-Meshal who put the ball in the far upper left hand side of the goalie.
Nasr continued to launch attacks on Hilal territory and came very close to scoring the second goal from a penalty kick when Al-Meshal was tackled in the penalty box. Saad Al-Harthi failed to convert for Nasr.
The game was then transformed to a midfield battle.
The equalizer for Hilal came from striker Muhammad Al-Anbar who broke clear during a mad scramble inside the penalty to knock in his team’s first goal of the match in the 36th minute.
Early in the second half, striker Yasir Al-Qahtani received a nice pass and came face to face with the goalie. He managed to get around the goalie and put the ball in the back of the net in the 52nd minute.
Under increasing pressure, Nasr tried in vain to put parity back in the game as Hilal’s defense line proved tough to penetrate.
