Gharafa lift QSL Cup with 3-2 victory over Al Rayyan

Formteam Al Gharafa edged out Al Rayyan 3-2 to become the first team to winthe QSL Cup a second time after a dramatic final match yesterday atSuhaim bin Hamad Stadium.Al Rayyan coach Michael Laudrup had made nosecret of his unease at the prospect of facing Al Gharafa in the final,referring to the two defeats his team suffered against them in theQatar Stars League last season.And although the Lions put up agallant show yesterday, scoring twice to storm back into contentionafter being down, they just couldn’t find that extra bit of resolve toput it across the Cheetahs.Al Rayyan’s woes were compounded by thefact that their star player Rodrigo Tabata missed a late penalty. Had AlGharafa goalkeeper Qasem Burhan not saved the shot, diving to hisright, the match would have probably gone into extra time with thescores tied 3-3, allowing Al Rayyan another crack at the title.Withyesterday’s win, the Cheetahs thus repeated history, having also won theinaugural edition of the tournament in 2009-10. Al Sadd, Al Wakrah,erstwhile El Jaish and Qatar SC, in that order, were the other championsbefore the tournament was revived this season after a space of threeseasons.Captain Luis Jimenez (third minute), Amro Seraj (36th) andAhmed Alaaeldin (64th) netted the Al Gharafa’s goals, while AbderrazaqHamdallah (12th) and Mohamed Kassola (70th) were on target for AlRayyan.Al Gharafa were quick off the blocks, raiding the rivalcitadel in the third minute and scoring through captain Jimenez, whoslammed the ball past goalkeeper Saoud al-Khater following an assistfrom Ahmed Alaaeldin.Al Rayyan then slowly took control of theproceedings and were soon on level terms when prolific scorer Hamdallahfound the target. The goal resulted from a free-kick taken by playmakerRodrigo Tabata that came off the defensive wall. Tabata himself chippedthe ball back for Hamdallah to score. Jimenez was again the star pasthalf hour as he essayed a pass to the left wing for Alaaeldin to crossand Seraj was bang on target to help Al Gharafa regain the lead.RefereeAbdulla Ali Athba had to flash a yellow card to Al Rayyan’s Ahmed AbdelMaqsoud for a lunging foul on Al Gharafa’s Diogo Amado in the 40th andHamdallah too got booked for questioning the decision.Al Rayyanstruggled when Tabata could not be his usual self and striker SebastianSoria failed to make inroads into the rival territory.On the otherhand, Al Gharafa came up with a far better display, with theenterprising Alaaeldin, who hogged the limelight along with Jimenez,taking a lot of initiatives. Their defenders also stood firm.Alaaeldinhimself got on the score sheet after an hour and the goal; a long-rangesolo effort, had brilliance written all over it.Al Rayyan coachMichael Laudrup, meanwhile, brought on Mohsine Moutaouali in place ofDaniel Goumou and Aldoukali al-Baoure for Soria.Kasola then reducedthe margin by heading in a Tabata corner kick from the right. The gamewitnessed some dramatic scenes when Al Rayyan earned a penalty in the79th after Seraj tripped Mohamed Alaaeldin inside the box. Tabata tookthe shot from the spot, but Qasim Burhan drew all his top-flightexperience to block it. Tempers flared and three Al Gharafa players werebooked as they continued their protests.Qatar Football AssociationVice-President Saoud Abdulaziz al-Mohannadi crowned the winners in thepresence of Qatar Stars League CEO Hani Taleb Ballan.