The Egyptian Cup got underway in earnest and will finish in a hurry. Ahmed Morsy reports The team that reaches the Egyptian Cup final would have played five games in three weeks. The teams are trying to finish the already delayed tournament before the World Cup begins on 11 June. In the round of 32, Ahli eased to a 3-0 victory over second- division side Nabaroh on Saturday. The league champions, who are aiming to complete the double after winning a sixth consecutive league title, found no difficulty in brushing aside their inexperienced opponents. Playmaker Mohamed Abu Treika, who is struggling to regain top form after recovering from a serious foot injury in February, wasted an early chance to put Ahli in front but striker Mohamed Fadl made amends on 30 minutes. Attacking midfielder Ahmed Hassan intercepted a poor pass from Nabaroh defender Mahmoud Bakr and crossed to the unmarked Fadl inside the area to send a low right-footed shot into the bottom corner to give his side the lead. Mohamed Barakat, who scored Ahli's last-gasp equaliser in the 3-3 Cairo derby draw with Zamalek last month, limped off injured in the second half, making way for youngster Ahmed Shoukri, who established himself as a key Ahli player after being promoted to the first team by coach Hossam El-Badri this season. Nine minutes after the restart, Fadl doubled Ahli's advantage with a superb volley after capitalising on a poor defensive clearance. In the 74th minute, Shoukri completed the rout with a simple header after the Nabaroh keeper failed to handle a tame cross from Ahli right-back Ahmed Ali. Zamalek registered a narrow 1-0 victory over second- division side Fayoum also on Saturday. Zamalek, who finished runners up to title champions Ahli, tried their best to avoid last season's cup nightmare when they bowed out at the first hurdle after losing 1-0 to third-tier Beni Obeid. In the first half against Fayoum, Zamalek struggled to threaten with their forwards but Ahmed Gaafar and attacking midfielders Alaa Ali, Shikabala and Ivorian Remi Adiko could not carve out space for themselves against a resilient Fayoum side who wasted a golden opportunity to stun the visitors. In the second half, coach Hossam Hassan made the difference after introducing winger Hussein Yasser after Zamalek continued to pass the ball aimlessly in the early minutes of the second half. Eight minutes past the hour mark, it was a neat move from Yasser which helped Gaafar break the deadlock. He evaded a defender on the right and whipped in a pinpoint cross for the towering 24-year-old Gaafar, who was Zamalek's top scorer in the Egyptian league with nine goals, to head home. Fayoum could have scored a shock equaliser deep in stoppage time but goalie Abdel Wahed El-Sayed came to their rescue. He fully stretched to block Mohamed Hassan's low shot from the edge of the area. Zamalek coach Hassan launched a fresh verbal attack on Ahli fans, whom he accused of hurling a barrage of insults at him and his twin brother Ibrahim, Zamalek's football director, during the game. "The fans insulted me, my mother and my brother Ibrahim Hassan, and all of them were waving the flags of Ahli although they were supposed to be supporting Fayoum," he told reporters after the match. "I will be waiting to see what action the Egyptian FA will take," he added sarcastically. Elsewhere, Egyptian Cup title holders Haras Al-Hedoud reached the last 16 after claiming a narrow and hard-fought 1- 0 victory at Sinbalawein, who were relegated to the third division, on Friday. They struggled to break down a resilient Sinbalawein side until striker Ahmed Abdel-Ghani, their top scorer in the league with nine goals, spared Al-Hedoud's blushes on the stroke of half-time. He converted a penalty after being tripped by Sinbalawein defender Mohamed Reda. The hosts could have grabbed the equaliser on several occasions in the second half but wasted some clear-cut opportunities. Raga', who are based in the Mersa Matrouh governorate, caused a huge upset after eliminating Police Union who finished fifth in the Premier League this season. Normal and extra time ended goalless as Raga' beat Police 5-3 on penalties. Mansoura, who played in the top flight this season but were relegated at the end, also bowed out after losing to Tanta on penalties. Ismaili, third in the league, eased into the second round with a 3-0 home victory over Aluminium. Winger Ahmed Samir Farag opened the scoring after eight minutes when he capitalised on a miss-timed jump by the keeper to head home after a corner. Striker Ahmed Ali doubled their lead on 57 minutes with a powerful low shot and talented midfielder Mohab Said completed the rout two minutes from time. Spinning Mehalla sought consolation in the Egyptian Cup after being relegated to the second division but could not achieve their target as they bowed out of the competition on Saturday, losing to second-division side Canal Mooring & Lights 4-3 on penalties after a 2-2 draw to suffer a first-round exit from Egypt's oldest competition. Petrojet, who finished fourth in the league, crushed Qanah 3-0. Assiout Petroleum needed four goals from Wa'el Farrag to claim a 5-3 victory over Alexandria-based club Koroum in a thriller. Gouna, who survived relegation on the final day of the season, went through after defeating Dakhlia 4-3 on penalties. Zamalek and Ahli were scheduled to meet 26 May in the Egyptian Cup round of 16 at Cairo Stadium, their third derby clash this season. Their first league encounter ended in a goalless stalemate but the second was a much more interesting affair. Zamalek took the lead three times but Ahli eventually managed to secure a share of the spoils after Mohamed Barakat struck home in stoppage time to give the league champions a 3-3 draw. Ahli have won the cup a record 35 times. The winner of yesterday's game will be favourite to win the cup this season. Full coverage of the 26 May Ahli-Zamalek cup clash will be published in Thursday's online edition of the Weekly
