League

Sharjah Stadium
Spectators: 9371 (Terracing: 7030, Seating: 2155, VIP seats: 186) MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s Marciano Macon started the match with a crisp pass. The crowd had been anticipating this game for weeks and the excitement in the stadium was easily visible. If Hao Jian had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 3rd minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 5th minute, Spiros Nikolakopoulos hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. After having played for 6 minutes, Wasel Al Bahar managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Sharjah FC's supporters crossed their fingers, but Wasel Al Bahar was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. In the 8th minute, Ebrahem Al Sayer hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Joop Minnen showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Marciano Macon in the 9th minute of the match. Wasel Al Bahar who was well placed in front of the goal fired away a dangerous shot that in the 11thth minute tested the skills of Roger Hermes when he managed to save the team from getting behind. When Yazeed Dehrab came up free with the goalie in the 12th minute, the Sharjah FC fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Yazeed Dehrab couldn't finish the play. The supporters of Sharjah FC booed when MCFC ᴳ⁸³ was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 16 match minutes in a wonderful position. Roger Pullen didn't get a good kick on the ball. After some fancy dribbling in the 22nd minute, Wasel Al Bahar managed to get in a good position for a shot. Sharjah FC's supporters rose to their feet, but Wasel Al Bahar was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Roger Hermes breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. 27 minutes into the game, Vasile Baniciu was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Sharjah FC the free kick. Sharjah FC's Wasel Al Bahar got a good chance for a goal in the 28th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Roger Hermes was out of position in the 29 minute of play, and Yazeed Dehrab capitalized on the mistake with a soft shot into the goal. Yazeed Dehrab really showed his touch with that goal: 1-0. Roger Hermes made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Yazeed Dehrab in the 32nd minute of play. If Ayman Jiragh had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 34th minute. The ball went over the crossbar instead. In the 36th minute of the match, Wasel Al Bahar got a very nice opportunity to score, but Roger Hermes was well-placed and pushed the ball away from the goal at the left post. Roger Hermes showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Meshal Al Herz, who was totally free with the ball in the 38th minute. An unexpectedly hard shot by Yousef Sarkhoh in the 40th minute of play forced MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s goalkeeper Roger Hermes to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Godfredo Corderun struck a weak shot in the 43rd minute. Joop Minnen didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for MCFC ᴳ⁸³. Joop Minnen made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Marciano Macon in the 45th minute of play. The away team players looked dejected as the walked off the pitch at half time. They had fought hard, but were still losing 1-0.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Wasel Al Bahar to make the kick off. Sharjah FC's Joop Minnen played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Hao Jian in the 52nd minute of play. After a defensive mix-up in Sharjah FC's zone, Marciano Macon stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Joop Minnen came out of the goal and Marciano Macon tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Roger Pullen was astounded when the referee showed him the red card after a seemingly innocent challenge, 56 minutes into the match. The supporters of Sharjah FC booed when MCFC ᴳ⁸³ was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 56 match minutes in a wonderful position. Roger Pullen didn't get a good kick on the ball. In the 58th minute, Wasel Al Bahar left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Sharjah FC fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 2-0. In the 61st minute, Meshal Al Herz ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Roger Hermes was frozen by the shot and now it was 3-0. Erik Palotás kicked well hit freekick during the 64th minute of the match. Ayman Jiragh took a chance and fired a shot far from the goal in the 65th minute, but it turned out to be a dangerous situation for Roger Hermes. MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s goalkeeper really had to stretch himself to stop the ball from crossing the goal line. Joop Minnen took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Marciano Macon, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s attacker deliberately struck the ball against an opponent to win a corner for his team. The corner was taken by Seraj Bo Resley in the 68th minute. The corner led MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s Seraj Bo Resley to fire away a dangerous shot which Joop Minnen despite some difficulties managed to get hold on the ball. An unexpectedly hard shot by Marciano Macon in the 69th minute of play forced Sharjah FC's goalkeeper Joop Minnen to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. 72 minutes into the game, Meshal Al Herz cracked a shot to the right of the goalkeeper, 4-0. Roger Hermes was not in position, and could only watch the ball fly in. An unexpectedly hard shot by Hao Jian in the 77th minute of play forced Sharjah FC's goalkeeper Joop Minnen to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. After some careless play in the MCFC ᴳ⁸³ defense, Meshal Al Herz kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Roger Hermes. The MCFC ᴳ⁸³ fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Roger Hermes should have stopped the shot. Roger Hermes took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Meshal Al Herz, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. After having played for 85 minutes, Hao Jian managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s supporters crossed their fingers, but Hao Jian was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. 87 minutes into the match, Wasel Al Bahar notched a goal, 6-0, to the right of MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s Roger Hermes. Roger Hermes was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. 95 minutes into the match, Sharjah FC's goalkeeper Joop Minnen had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Marciano Macon. MCFC ᴳ⁸³'s players left the field with heads hung low after losing a match that had been finely balanced throughout.