Maccabi Tel Aviv will host Beitar Jerusalem in the ninth round of the National Cup
Two days after beating Maccabi Netanya in round eight of the National Cup, Maccabi Tel Aviv discovered this evening what their next mission will be on the way to the quarter finals. The draw for the last sixteen, held at the offices of the National Footbal Association, determined that Maccabi Tel Aviv will be hosting Beitar Jerusalem at Bloomfield. Jerusalem's own Avi Cohen, who won the cup with both Maccabi and Beitar, presided over the draw together with ex- Hapoel Kfar Saba player Eli Yani. The matches will be played on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings the 26th and 27th of February.
In a reaction to the draw, Maccabi head coach Oscar Garcia had this to say to the official Maccabi website: "We would have preferred a different opponent at this stage of the competition. But that's the luck of the draw."
Sixteen clubs participated in the draw, eight of them from the Israeli Premiere League, six from the Nationwide League and two "minnows" from League One, Hapoel Afula and Assi Gilboa. The last time Maccabi Tel Aviv met Beitar Jerusalem in the Cup Maccabi departed the competition in a penalty shoot-out after extra time saw both clubs at one goal apiece. That match though was played at Jerusalem's "Teddy" stadium, so there is some comfort in the home nature of the fixture this time around, with Beitar returning to Bloomfield for a league match just ten days later.
Matches to be played on February 26th and 27th.
Hapoel Ramat Gan v Hapoel Afula
Hapoel Kfar Sava v Hapoel Tel Aviv
Hapoel Bnei Lod v Bnei Sakhnin
Hapoel Rishon Lezion v Hapoel Ra'anana
Maccabi Haifa v Hapoel Haifa
Hapoel Asi Gilboa v Hapoel Ashkelon
Maccabi Tel Aviv v Beitar Jerusalem
Kiryat Shmona v Maccabi Yavne
