Wednesday Sep 17, 2025
Wednesday Sep 17, 2025
Wednesday, 10 September 2025 02:53 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Althaf Nawaz
The Maldivian National Football team clinched the inaugural South Asian Super Cup by defeating Sri Lanka on a higher goal aggregate 4-1 after the game ended in a 1-all draw in their soccer encounter played under lights at Race Course Stadium yesterday.
After trailing 0-1 until extra time, hosts managed to slot in a goal in the dying stages to force a draw, yet failed to halt the winners from carrying away the much coveted trophy amidst a decent crowd.
It was team Maldives which put up a belligerent performance to outsmart the much fancied Lankan outfit, which was eventually hoodwinked in all departments in both games. They annihilated the hosts in the curtain raiser by 3-0 which gave them the much needed impetus for this game.
Maldives football which was also under turbulence for quite some time never played second fiddle as they showcased a scintillating team effort to prove their critics wrong and that they are still a major force to be reckoned with in this region.
After a scoreless first half, Maldives broke the deadlock in the 66th minute through Naiz Hassan who scored off a rebound ball to lead 1-0. Both teams played the game at a great pace after this goal and there were several close calls for both sides. After some anxious moments, heading towards extra time, hosts equalised through the boot of Oliver Kelaart and this score line stood until full time where Sri Lanka added another draw to their statistics.
