Community » Hattrick Press

Matchday 12 – A review of the league matches

Written by Schumi-

The Amiri League already has its champion, as Azad has taken a huge gap to the followers, but apart from that, everything else remains possible. Decisions about relegation get further and further delayed, and excitement rises because of that. How different is that in the Division II… In each of the last 2 weeks, we could already congratulate a new champion, and this week the third champion of the Divisions II is known. Only 1 yet to go, and it is most likely that this champion will be known after the coming matches. Even though the titles are given easily away in Division II, the direct promotion spots are not that easy to get. That fight will continue for quite a few more weeks.

We start with Champion Azad in the Amiri League:

#1 Azad - #2 Desert Wolves F.C

A match of the number 1 versus the number 2 usually means lots of excitement, but since Azad had already secured the championship, this match was not that interesting anymore. Azad would try to end the league with an undefeated status, while runner-up Desert Wolves F.C could use the points in the battle for second place. However, as in most Azad-matches, there was no real moment on which Azad was threatened. Ismail Diwanji already scored the first goal 5 minutes into the match, and after the 2 – 0 score during the break, the final score of 4 – 0 displays the huge advantage Azad has over its rivals. They will be difficult to beat in the next seasons again. Desert Wolves F.C gets an expected, but nevertheless somewhat disappointing loss here, giving opportunity to their rivals to gain places.

#5 NoTax United - #3 Kojak United

Last season the battle between both United’s gave the most striking results of the season, which the result being no display of the strength of both teams. This time, it was different, because the winner of this match actually deserved the win. NoTax United opted for counter-attacks in this match, whereas the midfield usually is their main strength. If we then also see it was a home match for them, it was an unexpected move. That is not always a bad thing, but Kojak United was too strong over all positions to be threatened. During the break Kojak United already had an 0 – 3 gap, and the second half changed that to 1 – 4. An important away win for Kojak United has put them back into second place again. The gaps for second place remain small, but it would be a boost for Kojak United to get back to the upper spots.

#7 Dubai Heroes - #3 Warrawong Grasshoppers

Dubai Heroes, who initially seemed sure to relegate, has been improving lately, and at home they are now a threat too quite a few teams. Nevertheless, it was expected that the Grasshoppers would have no major problems in this match. What a wrong expectation that was! After a 4 – 4 away draw versus Abu Dhabi Humidity, Dubai Heroes would give us a match that was at least as interesting to watch. The match was a case of pure perseverance. Qasem Jaber opened the score for the Grasshoppers, but Duabi Heroes equalized early in the first half. Jaber took the lead a second time, but Dubai Heroes equalized once more. Then Jaber scored his third goal, but Dubai Heroes kept coming back: 3 – 3. Qasem Jaber seemed to close the match with 2 more goals late in the second half, but Dubai heroes got one back, so that it was a thriller until the last second. The final score of 4 – 5 does not give Dubai Heroes a reward for their great attitude. Nevertheless, Dubai heroes is still not fully knocked out for sixth… Warrawong Grasshoppers catches third place after their narrow loss, dropping Desert Wolves F.C from second to fourth.

#8 AL-Saidi - #6 Abu Dhabi Humidity

After a disappointing home draw against Dubai Heroes last week, Abu Dhabi Humidity got a new chance to secure their sixth place. But their season continues to be a sequence of disappointments. AL-Saidi, who can hardly avoid relegation at this point, took their last tiny chance with two hands. As usual, Abu Dhabi Humidity gave themselves a penalty by playing counter-attacks while they had more possession. AL-Saidi made good use of that penalty, and after an hour of playing, the 4 – 0 advantage for AL-Saidi already showed that they were pretty sure of getting their second win of the season. Abu Dhabi Humidity got one back, but the final score of 4 – 1 was a disgrace for the history that Abu Dhabi Humidity has. They fail to extend the gap to Dubai Heroes, and as AL-Saidi catches up, their situation gets worse and worse. To make matters even more extreme, Abu Dhabi Humidity is next to visit the Bilocate of Azad. And to give them an indication of what they can expect: The last time that Azad was defeated by a team from UAE in their stadium was more than a full year ago, on the 8th of March, 2009 against Total Tykes.

II.1:

Indian Vikings becomes the third champion of Division II as they get a 5 – 1 home win against 300 warriors. The Vikings keep the 9 points gap stable to runner-up Los Blancos F.C., who got an easy 0 – 8 win against Sand Foxes, the bot-team that is on the bottom of the table. The other bot team, AL Fujairah, stay in fifth place, despite losing 0 – 7 to LaMTaRa, who are in sixth place after a good streak of 3 wins in a row. Invinsibles drop to seventh, as they did not manage to get points against Al Barhsa in a home match: 1 – 2. That wins give Al Barsha the third place at the cost of 300 warriors, who drop into fourth.

II.2:

The II.2 is now the only Division II without a champion yet. Nevertheless, Inter AD put a major step towards that title, as they took an easy 6 – 0 win against Reza, who will relegate to Division III. The gap that Inter AD has to the number 2, Ottoman Empire FC, got enlarged to 6 points, as Ottoman Empire FC could get nothing more than a 1 – 1 draw at home versus The Dubai Desert Devils. Despite that good result, The Dubai Desert Devils drop from third into fourth, as Al-Qurri continues their predicted comeback with a 6 – 0 win against number 6 Juve Juniors. Dubai Rockets are in fifth place, and a 2 – 5 win against AC Falcons, who will relegate together with Reza, has brought Dubai Rockets closer to the fourth place.

With a gap of 6 points between the numbers 1 and 2, a draw for Inter AD at home against the legendary Juve Juniors is sufficient to secure their championship.

II.3:

Champion IFK CastECastle continues their excellent season with an easy 6 – 1 win against number 8 The Winning 11. Numbers 2 and 3 stay unchanged, as both Heart United and Ibsen Glory take a home win. Number 6, AL-MaMari, was the victim of Heart United with a 3 – 1 result, while Ibsen Glory took their three points after a 2 – 0 win against Bianconeri 4ever, who drop into fifth after that loss. Awesometropolis is the team that takes that fourth place, after taking a solid 3 – 0 win against number 7 -fc Aslansar-. With just 7 goals in the first 11 matches for Awesometropolis, their 3 goals in one match were an extremely good result.

Finally, there seem to come some gaps in this league. Heart United, Ibsen Glory and Awesometropolis all have 19 or 18 points, so they are favorites for the second spot. Then follow Bianconeri 4ever and AL-MaMari with 15 points, while –fc Aslansar- gets into further trouble with just 12 points. Number 1, IFK CastECastle, and number 8, The Winning 11, are not involved in that fight. They know their place already.

II.4:

Total Tykes continue their winning streak, as they take their 12th win in the league in 12 matches. Number 8 Alexa was the victim after a big 6 – 0 loss. Runner-up Wild Boys U.A.E. now focuses on getting the second place, and they take a solid 4 – 0 win against number 5 Emirate 2008. They increase the gap to third place to third points, as Dubai Gunners takes a 0 – 0 draw against number 4 Al Taliaa. For number 6, Kolonija FC, it has been ages ago that they took a win, but Azzuri FC is a bot team and therefore no difficult opponent: 5 – 1 was the result, so that Kolonija FC is sure of ending in the Top 6 now.

Promotion matches – Division II – Al Amiri League

- In the Amiri League, NoTax United is 99.9% sure to end fifth or sixth, and will therefore play a Qualifier match against relegation.
- Abu Dhabi Humidity is in sixth now, but with Dubai heroes closing down, and also AL-Saidi still having their chances, it is not really sure yet who will end up sixth.

As all leaders of the Divisions II won their matches, nothing changes there. Total Tykes leads the fight with 36 points, over Indian Vikings and IFK CastECastle with 34 points. Inter AD is last on that list with 33 points, and they therefore depend on the results of the other Champion of the Divisions II.