Sports | Wednesday 7 June, 2017 4:38 am |

Day seven of the 2017 Sharjah Ramadan Football Championship (SRFC), currently underway at Sharjah Sports Club, saw four live-or-die matches last night (Monday) to determine the fate of eight teams as the competition enters its knockout stages.

 

An impressive number of spectators and fans have consistently attended the matches organised by Sharjah Sports Channel and on Monday they had the chance to see top Emirati football personalities, including: Hassan Ismail, former goalkeeper coach for the National Team and current UAE Olympic goalkeeper coach; Mohammed Abdul Basit, who plays for Al Wahda Club; and Captain Majid Hassan of the UAE national team and player at Al Ahli Club.

 

Rashed Al Obaid, Director of the Sharjah Sports TV and Director of SRFC 2017, explained the depth of dedication and commitment teams have showed for this year’s edition saying: “When we first conceptualized SRFC, we wanted to create a platform where the youth and football fanatics can express themselves and their talents in a leading environment for fair play and sportsmanship. As result, players across all 16 teams showed ultimate dedication and passion to the sport, and delivered audiences some of their greatest and best performances.”

He added: “We’re truly eager to witness results of the quarter final series and the remaining games leading to the finals, and we’re expecting some of the fiercest games will take place during this period.”

 

Royal progresses to quarterfinals after 4-1 win over Al Burkan

 

The first match on day seven of the tournament, which runs until June 12, saw the 2016 champions Royal face Al Burkan, who were bottom of the first group and desperately needed a win to keep alive any hopes of staying in the tournament. But it didn’t take long for Royal to spoil the party, with Brazilian Alex Diaz scoring two goals within the first three minutes. The Al Burkhan defence held out until the start of the second half, but despite the best efforts of goalkeeper Mohammed Hussein, Diaz completed his hat-trick, making him the top scorer in the competition so far with six goals.

By way of consolation, Nasser Sbeed put Al Burkan on the board, but Ahmed Yousef responded quickly with Royal’s fourth goal in the dying minutes of the game, securing a place in the quarterfinals.

 

Al Watania seals Al Bahri’s fate

 

In the second match of the evening, Group One leaders Al Watania were looking for a convincing win over opponents Al Bahri, ranked third in the group and within the opening minutes of the game, Brazilian Katella Camacho got them underway with the first goal and Omar Karmastaji followed up with a second, just three minutes later. Although the Al Bahri tried to reorganize, Ahmed Abdullah made it 3-0 just before half time.  

 

In a commendable second half for Al Bahri, the defence stood strong, but the damage had already been done and by the end of the match, the score stood at 3-0 to Al Wataniya.

 

Sport 4 All tops Group Two after a 3-0 victory over Al Alami

 

The third match of the evening was a clash between first and second in Group Two, with top of the table Al Alami facing Sport 4 All. It was a cagey start but Abdullah Al Ansari put Sport 4 All ahead in the seventh minute and despite some attacking play from both sides, they went into the break with the score still at 1-0.

 

The second half was much more frantic, but it took a full 10 minutes for Hesham Al Montaser to make the most of the pressure with a strike in the 10th minute for Sports 4 All and just minutes later, score his second to secure an emphatic 3-0 win and put his side top of Group Two.

 

La Magica dashes CR7 hopes

The final game of the evening saw La Magica face CR7. Following a high intensity opening quarter from both sides, Saeed Obeid opened the scoring for La Magica, and with the crowd practically still celebrating his first, he followed up with a second. In a superb individual display on the night, Obeid finished off his hat-trick before the whistle had blown for half-time.

After the break, La Magica continued the onslaught with Mohammed Hilal making it 4-0, and despite CR7’s consolation goal through Eisa Mohammed, Eisa Ghollam had the last word for La Magica, resulting in an emphatic 5-1 win.

 

Al Doukhi - Youngest player at the tournament

Although the final result may not have gone CR7’s way, it was a very special night for Hamdan Al Doukhi, who at just 12 years old is the youngest player in the tournament, a clear indication by the Sharjah Sports Channel of its ambition to adopt promising talents and give them the opportunities to realise their dreams of participation in various competitions.