19 goals, just 1 red card, 1 missed penalty and a status-quo preserved at the top and at the bottom - this was the story of the last weekend. It was also a week of many beautiful goals, two magnificent keepers' saves and 2 people to give us the unforgettable performances - Yossi Abuksis and Akakiy Devadze.
Having some hard moments in its home game vs Beit-Shean, Beitar Jerusalem still managed to exploit fully its good ones and to crash the bottom rival, 5:2 in a very interesting game; in a totally opposite game of boredom and unspectacularity, Hapoel Tel-Aviv still managed to score an away winner, 1:0 over Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa. The same was the destiny of the game in Haifa, where the local Hapoel defeated Bnei-Yehuda Tel-Aviv; its city rival Maccabee managed to pass Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa in the table, after defeating Hapoel Rishon le-Zion away in an injury time, 2:1. A game of brilliant quality, with 2 goals in an injury time, a missed penalty and some brilliant saves by Akakiy Devadze, was registered in Kefar-Saba - 2:2 between the local Hapoel and Maccabee Ironi Ashdod. The game between Hapoel Ashkelon and Maccabee Herzliya didn't produce a single goal, and Hapoel Jerusalem managed to equalize in a tough game in Beer-Sheva - 1:1 vs the outsiders. And the dull game between Maccabee Tel-Aviv and Maccabee Petakh-Tikwa brought a surprising victory to the guys of Moshe Sinai - Idan Tal produced a superb shot that eventually became a winner and my "Goal Of The Week". Curious to know all the details?.. Let us proceed, then.
The game between Beitar Jerusalem and Hapoel Beit-Shean started with the immediate opener of the defending Champions - Yossi Abuksis performed a corner kick, and Istvan Pisont rushed inside the box to dive with a mighty and unstoppable header from 8 meters, 1:0. However, Beit-Shean surprisingly took the initiative later on. Moris Uzan (12) missed a brilliant chance to equalize, shooting high from 12 meters in one-to-one with Korenfein, but in another 16 minutes, Beit-Shean registered a superb combination to open its own score. Cobi Ganon centered the ball from the left wing, Hanokh Mararo threw it backwards with a chest, and the Croatian forward Zadko Adic sent a curved ball to the left low corner of diving Korenfein from 16 meters, 1:1.
Beit-Shean continued to attack, and it seemed like the surprise would come from nowhere else but Teddy. However, Beitar scored 2 goals, a minute before and a minute after the break. First, Pisont returned a favor to Abuksis after supplying him with a great ball, and the bright midfielder of Beitar shot it flatly from 18 meters past the stunned Meir Cohen, 2:1. And just after the break, a bounce of Eitan Mizrahi from the right wing saw Shai Holtzman just touching the ball with the failed flying header of his, but Istvan Hamar placed himself well to shoot it from the air diagonally from 7 meters; the ball hit the unconcentrated Meir Cohen and went in, 3:1.
Beit-Shean managed to reduce the score, through another great combination of Usmanovic - Melika - Adic (63), but then Beitar scored another brilliant goal that broke the stubborn guests. Pisont rolled a clever ball back to Abuksis, and the latter produced a terrific shot from 25 meters that hit the bar and went in (78), "The Goal Of The Week" as for "Ha'Daka Ha'91". In another 2 minutes, the perpetuum mobile of Beitar registered his 2nd goal pass, in addition to his 2 goals - this time his free kick found a precise header of Tomer Azulai, 5:2. Before the end, it was an incredible miss of Pisont - Abuksis gave him a wonderful ball at one-to-one with Meir Cohen, and Pisont shot from 12 meters without stopping, the ball beating the keeper but hitting his left post... Even playing without its key players, Beitar had a squad strong enough to register a real performance, and it seems nothing can stop them in their rush for the Championship, though the season is still young. And Beit-Shean, indeed, lost to Beitar which isn't a shame, but the team from the Valley should pull itself together before it is too late.
If the above-mentioned game was a real pleasure to see, the top game between Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa and Hapoel Tel-Aviv was a real nightmare, with just several moments worth any mentioning. The only dangerous shot of the hosts was of their new foreigner, the Armenian forward Armen Shakhagladian, but it missed the frame a bit (51); as for the guests, Shalom Tikwa's and Israel Cohen's shots were cleared off the line by Petakh-Tikwa's defence. Patience was the name of the game; Nir Levin was the first coach to lose the patience and to substitute the midfielder Idan Shum with the forward Yaniv Offri (75), and his team was punished after another 5 minutes - a goal pass of Shalom Tikwa cut the hosts' outnumbered defence and overcame the failed offside trap, and Kefir Udi overplayed Shai Hess inside the box. The 2nd consecutive loss of Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa, and another very important victory of Hapoel Tel-Aviv.
Hapoel Haifa failed to give as bright a performance as it had given a week ago in the derby, but succeeded in collecting all the points at home, vs Bnei-Yehuda Tel-Aviv. Haifa's keeper Dudu Awwat touched just the balls passed to him by his defence, but Haifa failed to score because of the National keeper Rafi Cohen in Bnei-Yehuda's net, and despite its advantage of 16:0 in the corner kicks! All the draught, however, ended 8 minutes from time; Dmitriy Ulyanov sent a long ball into the box, and the captain Ran Ben-Shimon, joining the attacking line of his team, exploited the hesitance of Rafi Cohen in getting out and headed a clever ball from 10 meters to the left corner.
Maccabee Haifa, led by Sergei Kandaurov in his great season, started to press from the very first minutes on Hapoel Rishon le-Zion away, and after just 7 minutes the score was opened - Jiri Weora centered the ball from the right wing, Moshe Sebeg tried to clear it away, the ball hit Haim Silbas and misled Sagi Strauss, 1:0. However, Haifa stopped the pressure just after the goal, and Rishon was better throughout the 1st half and even managed to equalize - just before the break, Meir Azran slightly touched the ball to start a free kick performance, and Dani Albert shot a curved bomb that deflected from the wall and misled Nir Davidovich, 1:1. In an injury time of the 1st half, Haifa's keeper managed to parry a threatening header of Nir Shikwa.
The Champions' League game between Juventus and Manchester United some days ago had produced a great moment which was repeated yesterday as a mirror image - Arik Benado, playing the role of Zinedine Zidane, turned around and shot a threatening ball at half a height from 17 meters, and Sagi Strauss, in the huge gloves of Peter Schmeichel, threw himself into a great flight to reach the ball with his fingertips, my "Save Of The Week" (68). 10 minutes from time, Nir Davidovich passed the ball to Rafi Cohen in an awful mistake of his, but the forward seemed to be surprised, and Davidovich managed to fix his own harm. And then came another controversial 90th minute - the referee Eitan Tavrizi, overlooking the clear penalty foul on Alon Mizrahi (5) and not booking some Rishon's players for their rude fouls over Kandaurov and Doro, added 4 minutes of an injury time without any real justification. That proved to be in Haifa's favor - Kandaurov raised a corner kick from his left, and Alon Mizrahi caught up with Pisont in "The Best Scorers List", heading the ball in. Haifa still stayed in the view of the top, and Rishon felt another ominous influence of the last minute, after missing a victory over Hapoel Tel-Aviv in its previous home game. The scandal after the game didn't change the result.
Talking about the referees, the performance of Alon Yaffet in Ashkelon should be mentioned - for the first time since I remember myself in Israel, both coaches, Shiya Feigenbaum of Maccabee Herzliya and Ronnie Dora of Hapoel Ashkelon (in his first game in the team after Menashe Nuriel had been fired), used the following words during their press-conference after the game: "The referee was excellent, he led the game as a true professional, and we wish lots of referees like him were engaged in our games". Dora even added: "Despite the red card shown to our player, I have no complaints towards the referee, but just the compliments. The red card was justified, and every decision of the referee was right". Unfortunately, the same high words couldn't be said about the game which was dull and eventless - Shuli Gilardi denied 2 certain goals of Ashkelon, Georgi Anchavadze (51) found Gilardi's bar with a threatening free kick, and Ashkelon's defender Nir Shitrit was sent off (77) with a 2nd booking after a brutal foul on Oleg Naduda. 0:0, and Herzliya was disappointing after the series of its last successes.
Maccabee Ironi Ashdod indeed registered its 3rd consecutive draw, but unlike the 2 previous nil boredoms, this time it was the game of quality to be remembered for long. Hapoel Kefar-Saba was better, but the miraculous show of Akakiy Devadze in Ashdod's net prevented it from winning the game; on the other hand, Ashdod registered 2 deadly counterattacks and led twice, once in an injury time! Overall, the result is justified, and the pleasure of the fans, especially the neutral ones, was tremendous.
12 minutes in the game, Laszlo Komodi sent a threatening free kick from 18 meters and saw Devadze in his first save, from under the bar. The opportunity of Washington was blocked by Devadze again (25), and then the keeper parried superbly the no less beautiful scissors kick of Bakhva Ambidze (28). The 1st Israeli to register his name in the list of chances was Tomer Shem-Tov who entered the box and shot from 8 meters (40) - another dive of Devadze sent the ball to a corner. And in between, it was another "foreign" player, Alon "an Englishman in Ashdod" Hazan, with a surprising development (35) - Gadi Hazut rolled the ball to Hazan, 22 meters from the net, and the National Israeli midfielder shot without stopping a tremendous curved ball under the right crossbar of a surprised Eran Scheinsinger, 1:0 to Ashdod.
Kefar-Saba continued threatening the guests in the 2nd half, but managed to equalize just 20 minutes from the end, after the foul of Victor Genish on Tomer Shem-Tov inside the box. Yaniv Avvargeal shot a bad penalty, and Devadze managed to parry the ball, Laszlo Komodi was on the rebound, which Devadze reached as well, but none of the defenders helped him, and Niv Tal finally beat the lying keeper, 1:1. Kefar-Saba had a rare opportunity to reach the advantage several minutes later on - Niv Tal tried to center the ball into the box from the left wing, Devadze moved forward in order to intercept the launch, the ball suddenly hit Victor Genish and changed the direction, but the keeper made 3 instantaneous giant steps backwards and threw himself to deflect the ball over the crossbar! The spectators couldn't help applauding the save, no matter which camp they belonged to.
But the true drama started in an injury time, added rightly by the referee Avi Prince in a very good performance. Paying for his 2 mistakes in the defensive line of Ashdod, Victor Genish joined the attacking line and was at the right place at the right time to finish the pass of Gadi Hazut, 2:1 to Ashdod! But it wasn't the end. In another 2 minutes, Niv Tal got a ball from Tamir Ben-Haim, cut to the left, waited for the defender to approach him, and then sent a precise ball between him and Devadze towards Laszlo Komodi who rolled the ball into an empty net. 2:2!
Hapoel Beer-Sheva seemed to be a much better team at home, vs Hapoel Jerusalem, but managed to score only once during the 1st half - Liran Strauber parried the corner kick of Dudu Heffer, but Amir Avigdor was the first on the rebound to put it in (26). However, in the 2nd half the game was much more equal, and 20 minutes after the break, Hapoel Jerusalem managed to equalize. Assaf Tubi was knocked down by Ehud Kahila near the box, and Laszlo Czeh curved a charming ball over the wall, under the left crossbar of the desperately flying Shaul Smadja. Beer-Sheva's new coach Eliyahu Offer is still unbeaten, with 2 draws in 2 games; on the other hand, the club registered yesterday a sad record of 13 consecutive games without a single victory.
And as for Maccabee Tel-Aviv's loss, I'd like to start with a little poetry of Soccer. Haim Revivo's tremendous volley shot into the net of Bilbao yesterday will be remembered for long all over Spain, and I recall his brilliant volley goal 3 years ago vs Maccabee Tel-Aviv. Avraham Grant stated yesterday that "around 70% of the goals Maccabee Tel-Aviv concedes, can be the competitors for 'The Goal Of The Season' award", and though this number is definitely exaggerated, such a tendency exists. Yesterday, Maccabee Tel-Aviv saw 2 good saves of Golan Malul (Maccabee Petakh-Tikwa), achieved 12 corners compared to none of Petakh-Tikwa, and at least wanted to win in a very dull game; on the other hand, Petakh-Tikwa produced just one decent attack and managed to collect all the points therefore. Offer Cohen rolled the ball to Idan Tal, and the young midfielder sent a tremendous bomb from 25 meters into the right high corner of the helplessly flying Alexander Uvarov (80), my "Goal Of The Week". The remaining question is whether Avraham Grant, the most successful Israeli coach of 1990-ies, should leave the team or stay in order to save it, but one thing is sure - the players have to do their job on a much better side, regardless who is or will be their coach.
NEXT ROUND (in a week): Maccabee Haifa (4) hosts Hapoel Beer-Sheva (16), and Hapoel Haifa (3) goes to Beit-Shean to meet there a local Hapoel (15); the 2 bottom teams desperately need points to survive, while the rivals from the World-Wide Bahai Religion Center city need points to scratch the top. Maccabee Petakh-Tikwa (10) hosts Beitar Jerusalem (1). The following round will be the last of Round 1, and the League will return to its regular pace by the end of January, after a winter recess.
BEITAR JERUSALEM - Hapoel Beit-Shean 5:2 (2:1).
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Hosts: Istvan Pisont (3), Yossi Abuksis (44, 78), Istvan Hamar (46),
Tomer Azulai (80).
Guests: Zadko Adic (28, 63).
THE BEST: Yossi Abuksis, midfielder, Beitar Jerusalem.
Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa - HAPOEL TEL-AVIV 0:1 (0:0).
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Hosts: -.
Guests: Kefir Udi (80).
THE BEST: Demian Geiser, midfielder, Hapoel Tel-Aviv.
HAPOEL HAIFA - Bnei-Yehuda Tel-Aviv 1:0 (0:0).
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Hosts: Ran Ben-Shimon (82).
Guests: -.
THE BEST: Ran Ben-Shimon, defender, Hapoel Haifa.
Hapoel Rishon le-Zion - MACCABEE HAIFA 1:2 (1:1).
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Hosts: Dani Albert (44).
Guests: Haim Silbas (7), Alon Mizrahi (90).
THE BEST: Sergei Kandaurov, midfielder, Maccabee Haifa.
Hapoel Kefar-Saba - Maccabee Ironi Ashdod 2:2 (0:1).
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Hosts: Niv Tal (70), Laszlo Komodi (90).
Guests: Alon Hazan (35), Victor Genish (88).
THE BEST: Akakiy Devadze, keeper, Maccabee Ironi Ashdod.
On the 70th minute Yaniv Avvargeal (Hapoel Kefar-Saba) missed a penalty
kick - Akakiy Devadze saved. Niv Tal was to score from the rebound.
Hapoel Beer-Sheva - Hapoel Jerusalem 1:1 (1:0).
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Hosts: Amir Avigdor (26).
Guests: Laszlo Czeh (65).
THE BEST: David Perets, defender, Hapoel Beer-Sheva.
Hapoel Ashkelon - Maccabee Herzliya 0:0.
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Hosts: -.
Guests: -.
RED: Nir Shitrit, defender, Hapoel Ashkelon, 77.
THE BEST: Sagi Eini, defender, Hapoel Ashkelon.
Maccabee Tel-Aviv - MACCABEE PETAKH-TIKWA 0:1 (0:0).
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Hosts: -.
Guests: Idan Tal (80).
THE BEST: Idan Tal, midfielder, Maccabee Petakh-Tikwa.
THE WEEK'S TEAM:
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Akakiy Devadze
(Maccabee Ironi Ashdod)
Guy Sharabi David Perets Ran Ben-Shimon Amir Avigdor
(Mcb. Ironi Ashdod) (Hapoel Beer-Sheva) (Hapoel Haifa) (Hapoel Beer-Sheva)
Demian Geiser Istvan Pisont Idan Tal Yossi Abuksis
(Hapoel Tel-Aviv) (Beitar Jerusalem) (Mcb. Petakh-Tikwa) (Beitar Jerusalem)
Assaf Tubi Nir Sevilla
(Hapoel Jerusalem) (Beitar Jerusalem)
Beitar Jerusalem - 3.
Maccabee Ironi Ashdod, Hapoel Beer-Sheva - 2.
Hapoel Tel-Aviv, Hapoel Haifa, Hapoel Jerusalem, Maccabee Petakh-Tikwa - 1.
THE BEST GOAL:
91: Yossi Abuksis (the 2nd).
ALSO - Laszlo Czeh, Alon Hazan, Idan Tal, Ran Ben-Shimon.
MO: Idan Tal.
ALSO - Zadko Adic (the 1st), Alon Hazan, Laszlo Czeh,
Yossi Abuksis (the 2nd), Ran Ben-Shimon.
THE BEST SAVE:
MO: Sagi Strauss, from Arik Benado, 68.
ALSO - Akakiy Devadze, from Niv Tal, 77.
PLACE TEAM G W T L Goals Points
1 (1) Beitar Jerusalem 14 8 6 0 35-16 30
2 (2) Hapoel Tel-Aviv 14 8 5 1 14- 6 29
3 (3) Hapoel Haifa 14 8 4 2 25-14 28
4 (5) Maccabee Haifa 14 7 3 4 25-17 24
5 (4) Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa 14 7 3 4 22-17 24
6 (6) Maccabee Ironi Ashdod 14 5 7 2 20-17 22
7 (7) Hapoel Jerusalem 14 5 6 3 18-18 21
8 (8) Hapoel Kefar-Saba 14 6 2 6 18-19 20
9 (9) Maccabee Herzliya 14 4 5 5 19-18 17
10 (12) Maccabee Petakh-Tikwa 14 3 7 4 10-13 16
11 (10) Hapoel Rishon le-Zion 14 3 5 6 17-22 14
12 (11) Maccabee Tel-Aviv 14 3 4 7 14-18 13
13 (14) Hapoel Ashkelon 14 3 3 8 13-23 12
14 (13) Bnei-Yehuda Tel-Aviv 14 2 5 7 12-19 11
15 (15) Hapoel Beit-Shean 14 2 4 8 12-23 10
16 (16) Hapoel Beer-Sheva 14 1 5 8 15-29 8
IN BRACKETS - the places of the teams after the last week.
BEST PLAYER: Yossi Abuksis, midfielder, Beitar Jerusalem.
TOP SCORERS: Istvan Pisont (Beitar Jerusalem) 9(0) 1
Alon Mizrahi (Maccabee Haifa) 9(1) 1
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Liron Basis (Hapoel Haifa) 7(0)
Eli Driks (Maccabee Tel-Aviv) 7(0)
Moti Kakun (Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa) 7(4)
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Nir Sevilla (Beitar Jerusalem) 6(0)
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Laszlo Czeh (Hapoel Jerusalem) 5(0) 1
Igal Zrihen (Maccabee Ironi Ashdod) 5(0)
Assaf Tubi (Hapoel Jerusalem) 5(1)
Evgeniy Kashentsev (Hapoel Rishon le-Zion) 5(1)
Istvan Salloi (Beitar Jerusalem) 5(1)
NOTE - the penalties scored are put in brackets. The last
column means the number of goals scored this week.
THE NEXT ROUND (in a week):
| Hosts | Guests |
| Maccabee Petakh-Tikwa (10) | Beitar Jerusalem (1) |
| Hapoel Tel-Aviv (2) | Hapoel Ashkelon (13) |
| Hapoel Beit-Shean (15) | Hapoel Haifa (3) |
| Maccabee Haifa (4) | Hapoel Beer-Sheva (16) |
| Hapoel Jerusalem (7) | Hapoel Petakh-Tikwa (5) |
| Maccabee Ironi Ashdod (6) | Maccabee Tel-Aviv (12) |
| Maccabee Herzliya (9) | Hapoel Kefar-Saba (8) |
| Bnei-Yehuda Tel-Aviv (14) | Hapoel Rishon le-Zion (11) |
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