Although the first half was uneventful, with the Red Devils lacking in concentration and enthusiasm, the second half saw a total eclipse as Ahli scored twice through Amr Gamal and Mohamed Nagy “Geddo,” giving the Red Devils their first three points in Group B of the second-tier continental club competition. Even though Gamal entered as a substitute in the second half, he was able to score only 50 seconds after coming in. “I am delighted that I was able to take part in making my team's success. It is not important that you score goals, it is more important to work as a team and do your own part well,” commented Gamal after the match. Ahli's newly appointed football head coach, Fathy Mabrouk, said he was pleased with his team's performance. “They did well, although the first half was not up to standard. We have to exert more effort to be up to our coming contender, Etoile du Sahel, in Tunisia,” he said. Nkana coach, Masauso Mwale, expressed his satisfaction with his team's performance to cafonline, despite the loss. Quoting him, “Ahli is a great team and their players are hugely experienced. We missed some chances in the first half that could have changed the game's result. Lack of concentration cost us much today, but we still have a good chance to qualify. Now we shift our attention towards our next game against Ivorian side, Sewe Sport.” On the other hand, Zamalek lost 1-2 to Congo's Vita Club in Congo after a very tense match. Zamalek players faced Vita Club in Kinshasa's Tata Raphael Stadium, which witnessed the tragic stampede where 15 people were killed and many more injured during the league match between AS Vita Club and their arch rivals TP Mazembe. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) had refused Zamalek's petition prior to the match to shift the contender to any other place, assuring instead that a maximum of 5,000 supporters will be allowed into the stadium. Meanwhile, Malian side AS Real rallied back to hold visiting ASEC Mimosas of Cote d'Ivoire to a 1-1 draw in their Group A encounter in Bamako. Ball-playing on the beach: The Egyptian beach football team was able to win the 3rd Arab Beach Football Championship Cup at an event held in Sharm El-Sheikh and attended by Minister of Youth and Sports Khaled Abdel-Aziz. The Egyptian team was able to snatch first place after overcoming Lebanon 6-5 in the final match. The final match was a difficult one for both teams as they drew all through the three halves and resorted to a three-minute fourth half that ended in favour of the young pharaohs as they were the first to score. The pharaohs were able to qualify to the final match after beating United Arab Emirates 8-7 in the extra time after the normal match ended 4-4. Oman secured third place after beating United Arab Emirates 7-3. The Egyptian Football Federation has decided to hold a national league for beach throughout the year to choose the best players to participate in the international beach football tournament in Sharm El-Sheikh annually.
