The Israel State Cup is back! The annual competition sees the top-flight first-division teams looking for soccer glory, while the lower-level clubs try their luck in what is an opportunity of a lifetime by upsetting one of the Premier League teams, as every single squad in the country has a chance to hoist the trophy at the end of the tournament.
Many of the smaller teams, the so-called minnows, already played prior to the round-of-32, which included the 14 first-division teams and 18 more from the various other leagues in Israel.
Beitar Jerusalem just slipped by Kiryat Yam 2-2 (5-4 on penalties) as the yellow-and-black were almost knocked out of the tournament, but were saved by a late second-half injury-time goal by Mayron George to knot the game up and send it to overtime. After no goals were scored in the extra session, Yarden Shua scored the decisive penalty to send Beitar to the round of 16.
Adi Yona gave Barak Itzhaki’s team a 1-0 lead in the 39th minute, but a pair of late second-half goals by Moshe Golan and Gil Hadad gave Maor Siso’s team the shocking 2-1 lead. However, George came up big in injury time to draw Beitar even and save the top-division team from being upset early on in the competition.
“I’m not someone who is lacking gray hair,” Beitar coach Barak Itzhaki said. “But before we begin, I want to say how well Kiryat Yam played – they played a great game here. We knew it would be difficult; we sent our staff to film them ahead of this game and followed them really closely. They play great football, and they usually control their games in league play, which they did against us. Kudos to them.”
Maor Siso, Kiryat Yam’s head coach, also spoke about his team’s play.
“I didn’t expect the guys to look like this. They prepared for Beitar at the highest level possible, and the guys gave a tremendous show and thrilled the entire team and our fans, who have huge hopes for them. There are people behind the scenes here at the level of the Premier League with amazing conditions, whether it’s nutritionists, food supplements, and more. This club’s ambition is to advance as high as possible. We’ve seen Bnei Reineh and Ness Ziona do it, and I hope we’ll see this club do the same.”
Maccabi Haifa crushed Ironi Ashkelon 8-0 as Gadi Kinda scored a goal and added three assists, while Omer Dahan added a brace. Matias Nahuel, Eitan Azoulay, and Iyad Khalaili also scored in the victory.
“I have to commend Ashkelon for coming to play and enjoying the experience,” Greens head coach Barak Bachar said. “We saw a team from a lower league come and try to break us down and compete, and they didn’t lose pace for 90 minutes.”
At Bloomfield Stadium, Maccabi Tel Aviv eased past Hapoel Jerusalem 3-0 on second-half goals by Eran Zahavi, Elad Madmon, and Osher Davida to cruise into the round of 16.
“It was a tough game, as we expected, against a tough opponent who was aggressive,” the yellow-and-blue bench boss Zarko Lazetic said. “In this game, unlike other teams in the league who defend against us, Jerusalem pressured us, and that was surprising. This is a very important victory ahead of our upcoming games. Many players got into the rhythm; I expected better ability in the second half, and they brought it, and I am pleased with that.”
Meanwhile, Ashdod SC just got by Hapoel Afula 4-3 in overtime as Muhammed Knaan, who scored a pair of goals, along with Stav Nachmani, found the back of the net in the extra session to send Eli Levy’s side into the next round.
Elsewhere, Hapoel Hadera downed Hapoel Beit Shean 2-1 as Omer Senior’s 62nd-minute goal handed Asaf Nimni’s side the win to advance.
Also, Hapoel Tel Aviv knocked off Premier League side Ironi Tiberias 2-0 as the Leumit Reds moved into the round of 16 thanks to goals by Stav Turiel and Milan Makaric for Elyaniv Barda’s squad.
“We had a lot of good minutes and we did things that worked well,” Barda said. “Our team doesn’t fall behind many teams in the Premier League. This game was very important so that we understand how much more we can get out of this squad.”
In other games, Hapoel Beersheba cruised past Dimona 4-0 in a one-sided affair that saw Zahi Ahmad open the scoring for Ron Kozuk’s team, while Antonio Sefer added a brace and an assist on Alon Turgeman’s goal to record the win.
Bnei Sakhnin just got by Ironi Modiin 3-3 (4-2 on penalties), as Slobodan Drapic’s team almost fell to the League Alef South table leader.
Ahmad Salman and Alexandre Ramalingom gave Sakhnin a 2-0 lead, but Yarin Machluf and Almog Pinto drew Modiin even in the 90th minute. Salman gave the hosts the lead once again in the overtime period, but Eli Elbaz knotted the match up at 3-3 to send it to penalty kicks. Modiin missed a pair from the spot, and Omer Abuhav slotted home the winner to send Sakhnin into the round of 16.
Hapoel Haifa just got by Hapoel Petah Tikva 1-1 (5-3 on penalties) in an entertaining game at Sammy Ofer Stadium.
Chipyoka Songa gave the Leumit team a 1-0 lead, but super-striker Guy Melamed scored a 67th-minute penalty to draw the Carmel Reds even at 1-1. In the penalty shootout, Ben Zubel missed his attempt while Oren Bitton scored on his to hand the win to Roni Levy’s team.
Bnei Reineh blanked Hapoel Kfar Shalem 3-0 as Sayed Abu Farhi, Muhammed Shaker, and Saar Fadida all scored to send Sharon Mimer’s team into the next round.
Maccabi Netanya took care of Hapoel Um El Fahm 2-0 on second-half goals by Rotem Keller and a penalty by Maor Levi to move on in the competition.
Maccabi Petah Tikva defeated Ironi Kiryat Shmona 2-0 in an all-Premier League clash as Vitalie Damascan and Niv Yehoshua found the back of the net to take the victory.
Hapoel Ramat Gan dropped Bnei Yehuda 2-2 (6-5 on penalties) as ’keeper Itamar Israeli stopped Yuval Fiben to send the hosts into the next round.
Other action included Ironi Ramat Hasharon slipping by Maccabi Herzliya 1-0 on Uri Azzo’s goal, Beitar Nordia Jerusalem getting by Hapoel Raanana 4-2, and Hapoel Acre beating Tzieri Um El Fahm 2-0.
The round-of-16 matches will feature: Hapoel Haifa vs Hapoel Tel Aviv; Hapoel Beersheba vs Hapoel Hadera; Hapoel Acre vs Beitar Jerusalem; Maccabi Haifa vs Maccabi Netanya; Beitar Nordia vs Ashdod SC; Maccabi Petah Tikva vs Bnei Sakhnin; Maccabi Tel Aviv vs Bnei Reineh; and Hapoel Ramat Gan vs Ironi Ramat Hasharon.