MTG six points ahead of Super League pack
TWO first half goals at home against Lefke saw Mağusa Türk Gücü (MTG) extend their lead at the top of the Aksa Super League to six points last Saturday.
Arif Uysal opened the scoring at the Dr Fazıl Küçük Stadium after 25 minutes with a spectacular overhead kick, with Mickael Pote doubling the score 10 minutes later, heading in a cross from captain Uğur Naci Gök, with the game ending 2-0.
Second-placed Doğan Türk Birliği (DTB) once again lost ground in the title race, needing a late goal to rescue a point against Yonpaş Dumlupınar at home last Saturday in a 2-2 draw. Ahmet Sönmez opened the scoring for DTB, but they were pegged back on the stroke of half time by a Jonathan Weston goal.
Eray Vudalı then put Yonpaş Dumlupınar ahead on the hour mark, but Ali Akbulut struck with just three minutes remaining to rescue a point for DTB.
Merit Alsancak Yeşilova moved up to third place in the league on Sunday, despite faltering to a 1-1 draw away at lowly Binatlı. Mehmet Tekin looked to have done enough for the high-flying visitors, scoring after 51 minutes, but a last-minute Fikri Arslan goal saw Binatlı take a point – only their second in eight games.
A bad weekend for most of the top sides was rounded off on Sunday by Gönyeli slipping to a 2-0 defeat at home against Göçmenköy. Arda Sözcü scored both goals for the visitors, the first an acrobatic overhead kick just before half time.
Shortly after half time, Gönyeli striker Sampson Agoha was sent off after hitting out at Göçmenköy defender Hüseyin Taşçı off the ball. Göçmenköy goalkeeper Ali Duvarcı was also sent off in amusing fashion, picking the ball up off the ground while stood outside the penalty area.
Losing their goalkeeper did not appear to hinder Göçmenköy, however, as Sözcü scored his second 10 minutes from time to move them up to sixth in the league.
Türk Ocağı won 1-0 in a tight encounter away at Küçük Kaymaklı on Sunday, with a Mehmet Uçar penalty on 16 minutes the difference between the sides.
Mesarya won a bad-tempered game 2-1 away at Yenicami at the Lefkoşa Atatürk Stadium on Saturday. Yusuf Altıner opened the scoring on 11 minutes for Mesarya, who led for an hour before Hasan Kırmaz equalised from the penalty spot.
A flurry of cards, both yellow and red, were then shown to the Mesarya coaching staff before Mehmet Göktaş of Yenicami was sent off for a second bookable offence in the dying minutes. In the aftermath of that red card, his team mate Hascan Kırmaz said something not to the referee’s liking, and followed Göktaş down the tunnel after being sent off himself.
When the free kick from Göktaş’s foul was eventually taken, Ertaç Taşkıran buried it into the bottom right corner
of the net, and Mesarya took all three points.
Cihangir and Hamitköy shared the spoils as a sixgoal thriller ended in a 3-3 draw on Saturday, with five of the goals taking place in a 15-minute spell.
After a goalless first half, Rifat Hacıarifoğlu opened the scoring for Hamitköy on 50 minutes. Cihangir equalised
22 minutes later through Ali Öztürk, but were level for just seconds, as a long-range strike from Toykan Hacet arrowed into the top corner straight from the restart. Cihangir were behind for just five minutes on this occasion, with Muhittin Tümbül heading them level for the second time on 78 minutes. They led a minute later, with Tacettin
Köse heading the ball into an empty net after a mix-up in the Hamitköy defence left goalkeeper Tolga Nergiz flapping at thin air.
Rifat Hacıarifoğlu was on hand to secure a point for Hamitköy with five minutes to go, however, heading home from a corner at the back post.
Baf Ülkü Yurdu (BÜY) left it late to beat Girne Halk Evi (GHE) 2-1 at the Mete Adanır 20 July Stadium in Girne, and move up to 14th place in the league. GHE led after half an hour when a Samet Akrep shot slipped through the hands of BÜY goalkeeper Erdoğan Nay and trickled into the net. They looked to have done enough to claim only their second win of the season when on 87 minutes Onur Konuğuş beautifully headed the ball into the path of İbrahim Cağoğlu, who smashed the ball home on the volley. Hüseyin Hürben then scored a free kick with the last kick of the game to send the BÜY fans into raptures, and secure all three points for his side.