Oman emerge stronger after second win in AHF Cup

MUSCAT, DEC 9 - Oman consolidated their lead on top of Pool B with a comprehensive 4-1 victory over Singapore in their second match of the AHF Junior Cup at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat late on Sunday. With two wins from two matches, the Sultanate are on top with six points with a better goal difference than Chinese Taipei who also have six points. Chinese Taipei earned their second win with a 4-0 thrashing of Hong Kong on Saturday night.

Akram Bait Shamia netted a brace, while Elyas al Noufali and Rashad al Fazari scored one each. Alton Chua found a consolation goal for Singapore.

Akram put the hosts ahead in the 10th minute through a penalty stroke. He increased the lead in the 28th minute after striking from a penalty corner as Oman led Singapore 2-0 at the break. The hosts, who had drubbed Hong Kong 7-0 in their opening match, returned with same confidence in the third quarter.

Elyas al Noufali found the target through a field goal in the 43rd minute and star player Rashad al Fazari made it 4-0 for Oman two minutes later from a penalty corner. Singapore, who had lost to Chinese Taipei 2-1 in the first match, pushed their efforts to score in the final quarter. Alton Chua hit the target from a penalty corner with four minutes to go for the final whistle.

UZBEKISTAN EXTEND LEAD

In the earlier match of the day, Uzbekistan blanked Iran 2-0 to extend lead on top of Pool A with seven points. With their second win, the Uzbeks have seven points. Dilshodbek Solijonov scored the first goal for Uzbekistan in the fourth minute while Mukhammadkarim Aslanov added another in the last minute of the match. China, who thrashed Sri Lanka 5-1 on Saturday, are second with six points. Thailand, Sri Lanka and Iran have one point each in Pool A. In Pool B, Singapore and Hong Kong are yet to open their account after two defeats from two matches. Oman will meet Chinese Taipei in their last group match on Tuesday at 8 pm. The top four teams from this tournament will qualify for the Men’s Junior Asia Cup 2020.