Maccabi Haifa got by Maccabi Petach Tikva 2-1 as a pair of second half header goals off of corner kicks by Eitan Azoulay and Noam Sztejfman canceled out Eyal Einbrom’s early strike from inside of the box to take the points and the win which moves the Greens into first place.

Maccabi Haifa coach Barak Bachar said after the match, “We’ve come from behind and won three consecutive games, which shows a lot of character and greater confidence. It wasn’t a great performance, there was a little luck involved and we came under pressure in the final minutes. It was a difficult game against a team that sat deep, on a challenging pitch and I’m happy we secured an important win in a tough match.”

Petach Tikva Head Coach Ziv Arie summed up the match from his point of view, “The whole story was set pieces. Just before that corner, we had a chance in front of an open goal. Maccabi Haifa had no ideas and didn’t create many chances. To lose to them because of set pieces, when that’s all they had to offer, is frustrating. In the final 15 minutes, Maccabi Haifa barely left its own penalty area and we created five chances.”

Noam Sztejfman added, “Scoring a winning goal for Maccabi Haifa is a dream come true. It was a goal that we had worked on in training. We work on these situations; we don’t just head the ball and hope for the best. We practiced it and it paid off, i’s an incredible feeling. As someone who used to sit in the stands, I can tell you that the fans’ support is like having an extra player on the pitch.”

Maccabi Netanya slipped by Kiryat Shemona 1-0 as Matheus Davo scored a second half penalty after a Niv Gabbay handball in the box as the diamond city squad picked up the 3-points and the win.

Netanya coach Roni Levy summed up the match, “We understood how important this game was for both us and our opponents. We started very well and created several clear-cut chances but failed to score. The opposition stayed in the game and it became difficult. I told the players it would remain that way until the end. We needed to find a way to win games like these through sheer determination and I’m proud of the players for doing that so well.”

The northern squad’s Head Coach Shai Barda addressed the refereeing after the match, “I don’t think we can criticize the players today. We played very well and missed a lot of chances. We’re going through a period when everything seems to go against us, and we need to find a way to stop it.”

Up by the Carmel Mountain, Hapoel Ramat Gan blanked Hapoel Haifa 2-0 as the visitors scored a pair of second half goals to to take the win and the points. Following a goalless first half, Cheikh Keita committed a reckless foul and was sent off with a red card as Haifa was reduced to ten men in the 57th minute. Ramat Gan quickly took advantage of the situation as David Asanka scored his first league goal just two minutes later while Luan pounded home the second marker in the 69th minute to wrap up the victory.

Ramat Gan Head Coach Messay Dego spoke about the win, “We worked very hard this past week after the loss to Beitar Jerusalem and we had to make sure that we would come into this game ready to go. That’s what we did.”

Haifa bench boss Haim Silvas shared his thoughts, “We needed to find solutions after we went down to ten men and we just couldn’t. I’m disappointed that we were unable to get more out of this game and now we just have to move on.”

In the Galilee, Bnei Sakhnin defeated Hapoel Petach Tikva 2-0 as Ahmed Salman scored in the first half while Mathew Cudjoe did the same in the second half to take the win.

Sakhnin Head Coach Yossi Abukasis was pleased with his team’s performance, “I said at the start of the season that the poor results were because we weren’t ready. The improvement in our performances is first and foremost down to the fact that we were missing players. We’ve filled some of the gaps in positions where we needed reinforcements and of course, the team has started to gel and gain confidence.”

Petach Tikva Head Coach Omer Peretz said, “Statistically, we were in control of the game for the majority time but neither side created too many chances. Sakhnin punished us with the opportunities they had and their first goal really hurt our confidence. The squad is certainly capable of doing much more, there’s no doubt about that. We need to learn from these defeats and move forward.”