Two extra-time goals secure MTA's U16s a 3-1 win over Beitar Tubruk and the U16 State Cup trophy
This afternoon the national stadium in Ramat Gan was the venue for two youth State Cup finals, the first of which saw Maccabi Tel Aviv's Under-16s face Beitar Tubruk. Already proudly leading the nationwide Under-16 League South by six points with four matches left, head coach Erez Belfer's squad were keen to include this prestigious trophy as further evidence of an exceptionally successful season. Their road in State Cup qualification has been almost effortless, conceding just one goal in matches against opponents that included both the Hapoel and Maccabi teams of Haifa and, in the semi-finals held earlier this month, Hapoel Beer Sheva.
Maccabi Tel Aviv "Eli Fuchs" opened the match in attacking mode, and the pressure bore fruit with just over ten minutes gone as star striker Omer Lakou scored his 35th goal of the season in all competitions. Keeper Omer Katz guarded that one goal advantage with a number of excellent saves but just after the hour mark his luck ran out and Tubruk equalised. After an additional twenty minutes during which neither side succeeded in producing a winner, the contest entered two ten minute periods of time added on. "Fuchs" exploited the opportunity to go back into attack and put pressure on the Tubruk goal and at the beginning of the second period that pressure paid off as Omer Lakou scored his second goal of the afternoon, putting his side ahead once more. And as the match entered its final moments, fellow striker Ittamar Shaviro put the contest to bed by adding a third to crown Maccabi's 3-1 victory and mark the start of celebrations for a well-earned State Cup trophy.
