Top three Super League sides strike late for points
THE top three teams in the Aksa Super League all left their fans on edge as they scored late goals in the latest round of matches.
Leaders and defending champions Mağusa Türk Gücü (MTG) had to wait until the 81st minute to score away to Küçük Kaymaklı during a 10 win last Saturday.
The goal came courtesy of a free kick by Mehmet Erol, which secured the victory and moved his side up to 16 points.
MTG are ahead of Miracle Değirmenlik on goal difference, who also won 1-0, away to struggling Çetinkaya. The game’s only goal was scored by Hüseyin Deynekli in the 72nd minute.
Third-placed Yenicami avoided what would have been their first defeat of the season as they scored deep into stoppage time to salvage a 1-1 draw away to Yonpaş Dumlupınar at the Gazimağusa Dr Fazıl Küçük Stadium last Sunday.
Jonathan Weston had given the hosts the lead in the 83rd minute when he latched on to a long ball from Mehmet Altın to shoot past Yenicami goalkeeper Ercan Samancıoğlu from within the penalty area.
Yenicami pressed for an equaliser and were rewarded in the 97th minute when Alı Bayır slotted into the net after the Yonpaş Dumlupınar defence failed to clear a corner.
The goal lead to protestations from the Yonpaş Dumlupınar team, who claimed that referee Hüseyin Eyüpler should have blown the fulltime whistle two minutes earlier.
The result meant that Yenicami slipped from second to third in the standings, while Yonpaş Dumlupınar dropped from fourth to sixth.
Cihangir and Mesarya moved up to fourth and fifth respectively following home victories last Sunday. Cihangir were 3-0 winners over Merit Alsancak Yeşilova, who played most of the match with 10 men following the sending off of Ömer Gül in the 35th minute. Mesarya beat Hamitköy 2-0, with both goals coming late in the second half. Hamitköy’s loss left them rooted to the bottom of the table and still in search of their first win.
Lefke are up to seventh following their first home win of the season, 2-0 against Türk Ocağı Limasol.
The weekend’s biggest winners were Doğan Türk Birliği, who thrashed Göçmenköy 7-1 at the Girne 20 Temmuz Mete Adanır Stadium last Saturday for their third win in a row after starting the season with three straight defeats.
Billy Michael scored a hat-trick in the rout, while Tansel Ekingen bagged a brace with the other goals coming from Halil Turan and Kenan Oshan. Gönyeli lost for the fourth time in a row, 3-0 away to China Bazaar Gençlik Gücü.
Türk Ocağı Limasol were last night due to host Cihangir for the start of the seventh week of Super League matches.