Al-Ahly remained on the top of the Egyptian Premier League after beating Enppi 2-1 Thursday night in Cairo. Mohamed Abou Treika scored twice after his second-half introduction to help Al-Ahly win. The inspirational playmaker started on the bench once again as he is still short of match fitness after recovering from a serious foot injury last month. Al-Ahly fell behind to a goal from Osama Ragab in the 12th minute after the restart, but Abou Treika, who replaced Ahmed Hassan at halftime, scored his first goal in the 70th minute since October to level the score. It was a re-taken penalty that gifted Ahly the equaliser after Abou Treika's initial effort was saved by Enppi keeper Amer Mohamed, but his apparent encroachment prompted the referee to replay it. The Egyptian international made no mistake on the second attempt before heading home with 10 minutes remaining to give the Red Devils a precious victory. Tempers went high at the end, with Enppi skipper Amr Fahim engaging in a quarrel with several Ahly players. League leaders Al-Ahly, who still have a game in hand, are six points ahead of second-placed and arch-rivals Zamalek as they chase a sixth consecutive title. Enppi lie in the 11th place 28 points. Off-form striker Emad Meteb, who partnered Liberian Francis Doe up front, wasted two early chances for Al-Ahly, who struggled without the presence of a natural playmaker in the first half. He latched onto a through pass from defensive midfielder Ahmed Fathi, who played on the left side of a four-man midfield, to go clear of defence, but his tame shot was blocked by Mohamed. He was found unmarked by a neat cross few minutes later, but his free header missed the target. Enppi then took control as Al-Ahly duo Hossam Ashour and Ahmed Hassan, who played in the heart of the team's midfield, failed to accomplish their defensive duties. Egypt skipper Hassan looked out of sorts after recovering from a hamstring injury. Enppi had a goal through striker Ahmed Abdul-Zaher wrongfully ruled out for offside in the 23rd minute. They were unlucky not to score six minutes later when Al-Ahly's left-back Sayyed Moawad, one of the Egyptian internationals, who helped the Pharaohs win the Nations Cup in January, but hardly played well since then, cleared a shot off the line. Enppi's pressure paid off when a free kick found Ragab unmarked at the far post in the 57th minute to side-foot the ball home after capitalising on keeper Ahmed Adel's hesitation to come out. Abou-Treika, although he is yet to rediscover his best form, made the difference afterwards with his killer instinct. Some defensive lapses could have helped Enppi regain their lead, with their best opportunity falling to Ivorian striker Vincent Die Foneye, who skied his shot high over with the goal gaping after escaping the attention of Al-Ahly defenders. Abou Treika handed Al-Ahly all three points when he rose unmarked to head home a pinpoint cross from Fathi in the 80th minute. Meanwhile, Ismaili and Petrojet lost ground on Zamalek in the second place battle after suffering stunning defeats by Gouna and Harras Hodoud respectively in the same competition Thursday night. Both sides were looking to keep pace with Zamalek, who defeated Military Production 2-0 Wednesday night, but were punished for their lackluster displays. Ismaili lost 2-1 at home in Ismailia to 10-man Gouna, while Petrojet were handed an embarrassing 4-1 defeat by Harras Hodoud in Suez. Zamalek, who played a game more than their challengers, have 43 points, five ahead of third-placed Petrojet and six clear of fourth-placed Ismaili. The team, who finish second, will play in next season's African Champions League. Misfiring Ismaili once again struggled for creativity due to the absence of injured attacking midfielders Abdullah Saeed and Omar Gamal. Their defensive fragilities also cost them to help Gouna open the scoring midway through the first half. Ismaili's defenders could not deal with a long throw in to allow Gouna midfielder Nour el-Sayyed to fire a powerful drive from the edge of the area that left stand-in keeper Mohamed Sobhi in the 24th minute. The visitors had defender Ahmed Aboul-Fotouh dismissed 10 minutes after the restart for a last-man foul on Ismaili skipper Mohamed Hommos inside the area as the referee pointed to the spot. Gouna's Husein Ali added the second in the 28th minute. The ball flew into the path of midfielder Saad Hosni, who slotted into an empty net to give third-bottom Gouna a precious win that kept alive their hopes of surviving relegation. Stuttering side Hodoud, who failed to replicate the form that saw them win the Egyptian Cup last season, routed Petrojet in Suez. Goals from Abdul-Rahman Mohie, Mohamed Hamed, Egyptian international Ahmed Eid and Ahmed Hassan Mekki downed Petrojet, in the 55th, 64th, 85th and 87th minutes respectively, while Petrojet scored a late consolation through Ghanaian forward Cofie Bekoe in the 92nd minute. Gouna lie in the 14th place with 24 points, while Al-Hodoud have 29 points.
