Al Nasr edge Dhofar in derby as Al Shabab keep pace in JL

MUSCAT, MARCH 8

Al Nasr claimed a valuable 1-0 victory over Dhofar in the Dhofar Governorate derby, played at Al Saada Sports Complex Stadium in Round 16 of the Jindal Oman Football League.

The match began at a lively pace, but Al Nasr needed only one minute to make the breakthrough as Awad al Shehri converted a pass from Mohammed Abdulhakim inside the penalty area to score what proved to be the winning goal. Dhofar then pushed for a response through a series of attacking moves, with Abdullah Zahir going closest in the 14th and 20th minutes. Goalkeeper Ibrahim al Rajhi, however, stood firm to preserve his side’s lead. Al Nasr also threatened to add a second in the 26th minute through Hussein al Shehri, but Dhofar’s defence recovered in time.

The score remained unchanged through the second half despite chances at both ends, with Dhofar unable to find an equaliser and substitute Mutasim al Noobi missing a late chance to seal the result for Al Nasr. The win lifted Al Nasr to 35 points in third place, while Dhofar stayed 10th on 14 points.

Al Nasr and Dhofar produced a derby full of passion, pressure and intensity.

AL SHABAB KEEP TITLE PRESSURE ALIVE

In another encounter, Al Shabab continued their pursuit of leaders Al Seeb with an emphatic 4-1 win over Oman Club at Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Bausher.

Ahmed al Riyami opened the scoring in the 23rd minute with a header from Yousuf al Malki’s corner, before Hatem al Roshdi made it 2-0 five minutes later. Oman Club reduced the deficit in the 36th minute through a powerful strike from Bassam al Sheen, but Al Shabab responded strongly as Maliko Kinyan scored the third in the 42nd minute and added a fourth from the penalty spot in first-half stoppage time. Oman Club attempted to fight their way back after the break, but Al Shabab remained organised at the back and saw out the match comfortably. The win took Al Shabab to 38 points in second place, while Oman Club stayed seventh on 21.

BAHLA AND SAHAM COLLECT IMPORTANT WIN

Elsewhere, Bahla defeated Al Rustaq 3-1 at Nizwa Sports Complex, with Abdulsalam al Shukaili scoring a hat-trick. Bahla moved to 28 points in sixth place, while Al Rustaq remained bottom on five points.

In the final match of the round, Saham beat Al Nahda 1-0 at Sohar Sports Complex through Abdullah Al Marikhi’s winner, moving up to eighth on 19 points, while Al Nahda stayed fifth on 28