League Play-Off

Van Buren
Spectators: 34 (Terracing: 26, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) The field was rather wet after several days of rain when Nouredine Zouba took the kick off in the first half of the match. Daho Zafour's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Hamid Karim Belkassem read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 4th minute of play. After 10 played minutes Saco FC got a freekick which was hit by Hakim Méniri. Daho Zafour succeeded in the game's 20th minute to shoot an unreachable shot under the crossbar and scored - 0-1. An unexpectedly hard shot by Daho Zafour in the 23rd minute of play forced Van Buren's goalkeeper Hamid Karim Belkassem to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. When Nouredine Zouba, who was free, got the in front of the goal in the 27 minute he wasn't focused and tipped the ball just over the goal. The Hamid Karim Belkassem was delighted since the ball would have got in if it had gone under the crossbar. In the 29th minute, Daho Zafour got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. In the 33rd match minute, Saco FC was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Hakim Méniri to maneuver through the defense. 36 minutes into the match, Saco FC's goalkeeper Ahmed Amara had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Zīn ud-Dīn Merzekane. In the 37th minute, Van Buren's Rachid Harkouk dribbled the ball into the box and hit a shot with the outside of his foot, sending the keeper the wrong way. 1-1. When Zīn ud-Dīn Merzekane came up free with the goalie in the 42nd minute, the Van Buren 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 Zīn ud-Dīn Merzekane couldn't finish the play. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Abdelhamid Méniri during the 46th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. An unexpectedly hard shot by Daho Zafour in the 47th minute of play forced Van Buren's goalkeeper Hamid Karim Belkassem to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Rachid Harkouk to make the kick off. Zīn ud-Dīn Merzekane kicked well hit freekick during the 51st minute of the match. Ahmed Amara showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Zīn ud-Dīn Merzekane in the 58th minute of the match. Daho Zafours short, quick shot in the 62ndth minute got Hamid Karim Belkassem to make great effort and bar the ball away from getting in. If Daho Zafour had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 66th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Hamid Karim Belkassem showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Nouredine Zouba, who was totally free with the ball in the 68th minute. Daho Zafour's shot straight on target was not completely harmless. The ball had pretty good speed, but Hamid Karim Belkassem firmly grabbed it by the left post. Ahmed Amara made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Rachid Harkouk in the 72nd minute of play. Ahmed Amara showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Rachid Harkouk in the 74th minute of the match. In the 75th minute Zīn ud-Dīn Merzekane shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Ahmed Amara saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. The audience was convinced that Rachid Harkouk's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Ahmed Amara was relentless in the 77th minute of the game. After some fancy dribbling in the 81st minute, Nouredine Zouba managed to get in a good position for a shot. Saco FC's supporters rose to their feet, but Nouredine Zouba was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Hamid Karim Belkassem breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. 94 minutes into the match, Rachid Harkouk notched a goal, 2-1, to the right of Saco FC's Ahmed Amara. Ahmed Amara was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. For all the effort they put into the match, the Saco FC players left disappointed. They had fought hard, but couldn't break down the home team's defense. The match ended in a win for Van Buren.