Al-Ahram Weekly | Sports

		26 Sept. - 2 October 2002 Issue No. 605 Sports	Current issue Previous issue Site map
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875		Recommend this page

SUPER SECOND

Zamalek won their second football Super Cup in succession -- and for the second consecutive time played a team they were not supposed to meet.
Zamalek defeated the Arab Contractors 1-0 in extra time with substitute Osama Nabih scoring the winner in the 103rd minute from a header. Nabih was marking his return to his old club following a one-year stint with Mehalla.
The win gave Zamalek the cup and made the club LE150,000 richer. The Contractors received LE100,000. Much of the money for both clubs was provided by Ismaili which was fined LE250,000 after the club refused to play against Zamalek.
Ismaili complained that the match should have been played in Ismaili, not in Cairo Stadium. The club claimed that in every Super Cup match played abroad, the game is played in the stadium belonging to the league champions. Ismaili finished atop the league table last season while Zamalek lifted the cup. The Contractors, in turn, ended their season in fifth place. Ismaili also pointed to the large number of their players -- 14 -- currently playing in Egypt's various national teams, claiming that was making it impossible for new coach Farouk Gaafar to get to know his new team.
Following Ismaili's withdrawal, the federation asked Ahli and Mehalla to play in the super; both turned the request down. Last year, the super's first year, Zamalek was forced to play Mehalla instead of Ahli which withdrew, citing lack of preparation. Zamalek won 1-0.
Zamalek striker Abdel-Halim Ali, centre, takes a tumble

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