JSC-Young Soccer League (YSL) Football Tournament got off to an exciting start at Dunk Floodlit Stadium here Thursday. JSC Juniors, led by Mishal Mohammed Ali, and Al-Wurood International Juniors, led by Rohit Pillai, played out a 1-1 draw in the opening match of the tournament. The first half saw end-to-end actions and no side could find the target. In a keenly-fought second session, Al-Wurood took the lead through Ibrahim but Aasim equalized for host JSC. Faiz Ismail, who strongly defended JSC, was adjudged the Man of the Match. In the second match, Al-Wurood Seniors dominated Novel International School Seniors and recorded a comfortable 3-1 victory. Al-Wurood captain and its star player Sultan Sakhi registered the tournament's first hat trick and won the Man-of-the-Match award. Novel Seniors, led by goalkeeper Abdullah Arif, tried their best to come back into the game but the rivals were stamping their superiority as the match wore on. Farhan scored the sole goal for Novel. In the thrilling final encounter of the day, International Indian School Jeddah (IISJ) Seniors and Eritrean International School Seniors shared honors. Displaying a fast game the teams put up a treat to the spectators, watching the game at mid-night. Both teams maintained the tempo till the last minute. While Nihal put IISJ into the lead, Filman Sereke levelled for Eritrea and earned the Man-of-the-Match plum. Al-Ahli Soccer Academy head coach Fabian Duyck and his colleague Gikiala were the guests of honor on the opening day. The boys were keen to do well in front of the legends. Fabiano and Gikala inspired the players with their brief tips. — SG
