JAKARTA: Saudi Arabia’s Young Falcons pulled off a remarkable win against South Korea in the Asian Cup final on Sunday, with talisman Turki Al-Ammar leading the line to land the Kingdom its third title at U-19 level and their first since 1992.
It caps a wonderful week for Saudi Arabia as their semifinal win over Japan saw them qualify for next year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland, where they will be joined by their beaten opponents Korea.
It took the Saudis just two minutes to go ahead, with Al-Ammar finishing on the rebound after Abdulmohsen Al-Qahtani’s initial shot had been saved.
Twenty minutes later, they had a second goal. Khalid Al-Ghannam struck a scintillating drive over Lee Gwang-yeon in the Korean goal from distance to send the Saudi supporters in the Bogor’s Pakansari Stadium into raptures.
Korea pressed harder in the second half in a bid to rescue the game, and they reduced the deficit midway through the half, as Cho Young-wook calmly despatching a penalty, which had been given after Jeon Se-jin was upended in the area by Muhannad Al-Shanqiti.
Ten minutes after that, Jeon should have dragged his team level, but he steered his attempt wide at the far post from a pinpoint cross from Um Won-Sang.
But the Young Falcons showed the defensive resolve that had got them to the final and held on to claim the title and spark wild celebrations.
Saudi Arabia’s U-19 team clinch remarkable Asian Cup with victory over Korea
Saudi Arabia’s U-19 team clinch remarkable Asian Cup with victory over Korea
- Caps a wonderful week for Saudi Arabia as their semifinal win over Japan saw them qualify for next year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup
- Young Falcons showed the defensive resolve that had got them to the final and held on to claim the title
Dubai Basketball marks Ramadan opener with win and 3,055 eels donated to UAE Food Bank
- The ‘Basket for Basket’ initiative took place during the team’s 96-85 EuroLeague victory over LDLC ASVEL
DUBAI: Dubai Basketball won their EuroLeague round 29 game against LDLC ASVEL here on Thursday and celebrated by pledging 3,055 meals to families in need across the UAE.
The 96-85 win marked the club’s first game of Ramadan. Through the “Basket for Basket” initiative, every point scored by Dubai Basketball counted as a meal donated, with every ticket purchased adding to the total.
By the final buzzer, 3,055 meals had been secured in partnership with the UAE Food Bank to be distributed throughout the month of Ramadan.
Dubai Basketball Head Coach Jurica Golemac said after the game: “Thank you to the fans. It wasn’t an easy game to play, but we approached it with the right level of seriousness.
“We stayed disciplined, extended our lead step by step, defended well, and maintained our focus. I’m also very happy to say that during the holy month of Ramadan, we were able to donate more than 3,000 meals tonight.”
Co-CEO Dejan Kamenjasevic said: “To open this month with a win is special, but to do it while supporting thousands of families across the UAE is what truly matters.
“Basketball brought everyone together tonight, our players, our fans, our partners, together we created something meaningful.
“This is exactly what Dubai Basketball stands for: competing at the highest level, proudly representing this city while never losing sight of our responsibility to the community.”
The team delivered a strong collective performance at home. Mfiondu Kabengele set the tone early with a dominant scoring display, while Dwayne Bacon and McKinley Wright provided balance and control to secure the result.
