The winner of this game will go on to face Shukr (red) in game 1 of the semi-finals later tonight. Yaqeen won the season series 1-0-1 against Emaan. However, you could probably toss the first meeting between these teams out as it was back in Week 1 (Yaqeen thrash Emaan 6-0). Tonight’s contest will probably follow a long in a similar fashion to their most recent meeting where the game ended in a 2-2 draw. In fact, in that game, Emaan were moments away from emerging as 2-1 victors had it not been for Azhar Kalair saving his team with 12 seconds remaining. Yasir Hussain (goaltender for Yaqeen) was tested a lot during this game and did well, turning aside 21 of the 23 shots he faced that night. If Emaan is able to generate the same amount of shots one would have to assume at least one of the following names will factor in on the scoring play: Yousuf Soliman, Hany Soliman, Osama Soliman or Mohammed Hamoud. Assuming this is the case the pressure will fall on Yasir Hussain to produce a similar if not better performance in comparison to the last time these two teams met up.
9:00 PM-Ridha (blue) vs Haya (grey):
The winner of this game will go on to face Sabr (yellow) in game 1 of the semi-finals later tonight. Ridha won the season series 2-0 versus Haya, outscoring them 6-2 in the process. In both of those games Ibrahim Hindy was not in the lineup for Haya. No doubt he can make a difference but the question remains is he enough for Haya to get their first victory over Ridha? Personally, I do not think so. Look no further than the last time these two teams played. Ridha scored 4 goals in the first half and cruised to a 4-2 victory. What was impressive was they won without Shaukat Khan, Farrukh Khan, and Abdu Sharkawy. Logic says this is Ridha’s game to lose but I wouldn’t count Haya out yet. For Haya their playoffs started last week with a 4-3 win over Ihsan. A clutch performance resulting in four different goal scorers- Abdul-Wahab Mohammad, Farooq Sani, Arif Khan and Sahil Mohammad. Momentum is definitely on Haya’s side. If they are able to get the first goal and ride the high they are on from last week this would put Ridha in some serious hot water.
10:00 PM- Shukr (red) vs winner of Yaqeen/Emaan:
A fresh Shukr will take on a weary Yaqeen or Emaan team working on an hour rest. They won the season series versus Yaqeen 2-0 and against Emaan 1-0-1. For Shukr the major storyline is whether or not Maaz Haq and goaltender Fahad Mohammad can shake off last season’s playoff failure and breakthrough for the finals. It is now time to see if they can take the next step. This will be game one of the semi-finals with game two scheduled for April 20th.
11:00 PM- Sabr (yellow) vs winner of Ridha/Haya:
A well-rested Sabr will go up against a tired Ridha or Haya group. Both potential matches are intriguing- Sabr tied the season series with both teams. Against Haya, Sabr scored 3 goals and conceded 5 goals. Versus Ridha, Sabr scored 4 goals and gave up 6 goals against. Both Ridha and Haya were able to keep Sabr’s dynamic duo of Waqar Khan and Yousuf Sowdagar in addition to the rest of the high powered Sabr offense off the scoresheet. The big headline we will be following with Sabr is whether or not Waqar (Boom-Boom) Khan can make it back to back to back championships. For sure no easy task and for it to happen Khan will most likely need to take his game up to the next level… perhaps even capture Playoff MVP honours, something he did not accomplish the past two seasons.
A fresh Shukr will take on a weary Yaqeen or Emaan team working on an hour rest. They won the season series versus Yaqeen 2-0 and against Emaan 1-0-1. For Shukr the major storyline is whether or not Maaz Haq and goaltender Fahad Mohammad can shake off last season’s playoff failure and breakthrough for the finals. It is now time to see if they can take the next step. This will be game one of the semi-finals with game two scheduled for April 20th.
11:00 PM- Sabr (yellow) vs winner of Ridha/Haya:
A well-rested Sabr will go up against a tired Ridha or Haya group. Both potential matches are intriguing- Sabr tied the season series with both teams. Against Haya, Sabr scored 3 goals and conceded 5 goals. Versus Ridha, Sabr scored 4 goals and gave up 6 goals against. Both Ridha and Haya were able to keep Sabr’s dynamic duo of Waqar Khan and Yousuf Sowdagar in addition to the rest of the high powered Sabr offense off the scoresheet. The big headline we will be following with Sabr is whether or not Waqar (Boom-Boom) Khan can make it back to back to back championships. For sure no easy task and for it to happen Khan will most likely need to take his game up to the next level… perhaps even capture Playoff MVP honours, something he did not accomplish the past two seasons.
No comments:
Post a Comment