Maccabi TA draws Maccabi Netanya, still yet to concede
Beitar Jerusalem rallies for 2-2 result in Ashdod • Hapoel Haifa blanks Bnei Yehuda • Hap TA victorious
By JOSHUA HALICKMANBEITAR JERUSALEM got an 89th-minute equalizer from Levi Garcia (14) on Sunday night to earn a point with a 2-2 away draw at Ashdod SC in Premier League action.(photo credit: DANNY MARON)
Maccabi Tel Aviv and Maccabi Netanya played to a goalless draw at Bloomfield Stadium over the weekend in Round 13 action of the Israeli Premier League.The yellow-and-blue dominated play, but had four goals called off by the referee and via the VAR (Virtual Assistant Referee) which led to a disappointing result for Vladimir Ivic’s side.Omer Atzili looked to have given Maccabi Tel Aviv a 1-0 lead in the 17th minute, but the goal was ruled to be offside. Eight minutes later, an active Atzili went into the box with the ball as youngster Eylon Almog scored, but Itay Shechter was called for a foul on Netanya ’keeper Dani Amos. In the 37th minute, Almog once again found the back of the goal but saw his marker called off as he committed a foul, and in the 52nd minute the fourth goal was called off when Aztili brought the ball down with his hand and then beat Amos to no avail.“This was a good game with many quality chances, but you will have to ask [referee] Ziv Adler about the goals that were called off,” said a frustrated Ivic following the game. “I believe that we deserved more from this game. We pressed the whole length of the field and we scored goals that were disallowed plus we missed some good chances as well. That’s soccer, you have to score to win.”Maccabi’s players were also frustrated with the officiating.“This is the first time I’ve been a part of game that saw four goals called off,” said defender Ofir Davidzada. “We aren’t going to concern ourselves with the referee’s decisions and we will continue forward. We feel like we missed an opportunity as we had some very good chances in both halves.”Even with the draw, Maccabi Tel Aviv has yet to concede a goal in league play this season.Meanwhile, Beitar Jerusalem and Ashdod SC played to an entertaining 2-2 draw in driving rain at the port city.Dean David stunned the visitors with a first-minute goal, putting a rebound behind black-and-yellow ’keeper Itamar Nitzan for a quick 1-0 lead. Freddy Plumain had a chance to draw Roni Levey’s side even with a 29th-minute penalty kick after Gadi Kinda had been pulled down in the box, but his poor shot was taken care of by Ashdod netminder Roie Mishpati.However, just before halftime Plumain made up for his miscue when he took care of a Kinda assist to level the score at 1-1 after 45 minutes.Sagiv Yehezkel put Ashdod in front in the 60th minute taking care of a magnificent through-ball to give the hosts a 2-1 advantage, but just before second half injury time Levi Garcia ripped by the Ashdod defense to put the ball behind Mishpati to split the points.“Of course we want to win, but the game got away from us twice and we had to come back each time,” said Levy. “On the other hand, we could have won had we not hit the crossbar, but we are now looking ahead.”Beitar’s Gadi Kinda was disappointed with the result.“I believe that we deserved to win. After we gave up the goals we attacked to get back into the game. We took a point and we’re disappointed that we didn’t take all three.”Elsewhere, Hapoel Haifa drubbed Bnei Yehuda 3-0 at Sammy Ofer Stadium as Haim Silva’s squad moved into sixth place.Niso Capiloto headed home the Carmel Reds first goal off a Gigi Kanuk cross at the stroke of halftime to take a 1-0 lead. Haifa continued with its momentum at the start of the second half and extended the lead via Eden Ben Basat, who pounded home a rebound, while Gal Arel finished off the symphony with a 74th-minute penalty.“There were many battles in the first half,” said Silvas of his side’s victory. “Other than taking the three points, we are a club that wants to fight to be at the top. We learned a hard lesson last week when we fell to Maccabi Netanya.”Also, Hapoel Ra’anana and Hapoel Kfar Saba drew 1-1 at the Moshava Stadium as Menachem Koretzky’s Ra’anana squad moved beneath the red line and into the relegation zone.Kayes Ganem broke the scoreless deadlock in the 35th minute as the ball just crossed the goalline, but Omer Fadida put home a Benjamin Kuku cross to split the points in the second half.“I was very disappointed and the players know that,” said Koretzky. “Usually I am one that supports them, but this time I’m just very, very disappointed.”Hapoel Tel Aviv got by Hapoel Hadera 1-0 as Omri Altman scored in the 23rd minute to give Nir Klinger’s side the win. Altman took advantage of an Orel Degani assist to for the lone marker of the clash as VAR was needed to confirm the strike as the Reds took all three points.Kiryat Shmona slipped by Ness Ziona 1-0 on an 87th-minute goal by James Adeniyi to take all three points up north. The win moved Kobi Refuah’s side out of the league’s basement and into 11th place.Second-place Maccabi Haifa visited third-place Hapoel Beersheva on Monday night to close out the slate in a match that finished after press time.
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