Al Nasr coach Mohammed al Batrani said the objective of the team was very clear and that was to go all the way in the HM Cup and win the title.
After accomplishing the task by beating a record chasing Ahli Sidab 2-1 in a rain-affected final at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Al Batrani reveled in clinching the club’s eighth HM Cup title.
“We began the HM Cup matches with full focus and the objective was clear to clinch the title. We managed to keep the team swept clean without suffering any losses. All the players delivered top performances and took the team to the eighth title of the coveted cup in the history,” he added.
After claiming the third spot at the HM Cup for youth on Wednesday, Salalah giants Al Nasr added another accomplishment to their treasure as they lifted the HM Cup hockey title beating Ahli Sidab 2-1. Al Nasr’s last HM Cup triumph had come in 2017.
Hamed Razi and Mohammed Ameen’s goals in the first half were enough for Al Nasr to clinch the title. Jandan Singh’s consolation goal for Ahli Sidab and his team-mate’s efforts in the rest of the match were thwarted with a strong defense by Al Nasr and added with another tight wall through the goalkeeper Fahd al Noufli.
At the individual player awards, Mohammed al Noufli from Al Salam club received the best player in the championship. His teammate, Ibrahim al Farsi, claimed the best goalkeeper award while Mohammed Hassan al Lawati from Seeb club got the top scorer award as he scored ten goals in the championship.
Commenting on the decision of positioning the final match, Al Batrani said: “Postponing of the final clash was positive for us as the team had increased the technical preparation for the match. We sent a message to all the teams that Al Nasr team have the strong players who can show their best in all tournaments,” coach concluded.
KK Poonacha, head coach of Ahli Sidab, said the team unfortunately missed many penalty corners and scoring chances. “Due to the rain condition during the match, the ball was not moving properly and players struggled a lot during the match. Also, besides that the luck was in absence with the team,” the coach explained.
“Postponing the matches affected negatively in the team’s performance as the match played after 25 days from the decision. The fitness level of the players was impacted negatively. However, Ahli Sidab have good talented players and many young stars who have bright future,” he concluded.
The chairman of Al Nasr team, Shaikh Amer al Shanfari, affirmed this accomplishment is another success for the team in hockey field. “ It was a very tough match especially Ahli Sidab was the title holder. Moreover, the opponent club featured many top players but our team managed to score two goals in the first half which put the team in a better situation,” he added.
On a query of the rain’s consequences in the match, he said: “Many players are used to play in such conditions but in overall it was difficult for both the teams. A dedicated thanks for the players and the technical staff as they managed to keep heading in the result until the end of the match,” Al Nasr team’s chief ended.
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