Bottom-placed side Al Sailiya on Thursday held former champions Al Rayyan 1-1 in the QNB Stars League Round 18 match at Al Ahli Stadium. Carlos Strandberg’s 70th minute strike put the Sami Trabelsi-coached Al Sailiya ahead before Ivorian Yohan Boli’s 76th minute equaliser for Al Rayyan, who have won the Falcon Shield honours on eight previous occasions.
The draw, Al Sailiya’s fifth of the season, raised their points tally to 8 while struggling Al Rayyan made it 18 points. Al Sailiya have won only one game this season’s QSL and have lost 12 matches while Al Rayyan hover at in the ninth position, having won four matches, losing seven while sharing points on six occasions.
Al Rayyan have a game in hand as their Week 14 match against reigning champions Al Sadd was postponed. Both Al Sailiya and Al Rayyan were both coming off defeats and desperate for points, the former to avoid relegation and the latter to improve their position.
Al Rayyan could have won the game had it not been for the alertness of the Al Sailiya defenders and goalkeeper Claude Amine. Al Sailiya were forced to retreat and rely on counter-attacks. And one such quick move earned them the lead, with new recruit Strandberg finding the mark.
Al Rayyan pressed almost all of their players into attack and soon equalised through Boli. The game’s last minutes witnessed hectic action, with both teams seeking a breakthrough, but for another goal.
The day’s only win was recorded by Al Ahli who staged a brilliant comeback to overcome Al Arabi 3-2 at Hamad Bin Khalifa Stadium. With three valuable points, Ahli raised their tally to 23 points as Arabi’s balance remained at 26 points. Al Arabi took an early lead through goals from Tunisian star Youssef Msakni (4’) and a spot kick from Aaron Boupendza (15’) before Al Ahly’s Yazan al-Naimat (24’), Sofiane Bouftini (33’) and Jose Pozo (79’) guided their side to victory.
Elsewhere, at Al Khor Stadium, the hosts and Al Gharafa also shared points after scoring one goal each. Following a goalless first half, Al Gharafa took the lead in the 52nd minute through Algerian Sofiane Hani. Al Naji al-Sadiq scored the equaliser for Al Khor in the 72nd minute. The draw took Al Gharafa points tally to 27 while Al Khor reached 12 points.
On Thursday, Defending champions Al Sadd had continued their unbeaten run as they blanked Umm Salal 2-0 on their home turf to consolidate their top spot at the QNB Stars League.
Sadd are cruising towards retaining the title with 46 points from 16 matches and an unbeaten record – which stretched to 43. Spaniard Javi Gracia’s wards have two matches in hand – against Qatar SC and Al Rayyan – which were postponed.