Maccabi and Hapoel played to a 1-1 draw in an exciting Tel Aviv derby that saw end to end action and fantastic saves as the sides split the points. Hapoel drew first blood with an early goal via Osher Davida to give the Reds a 1-0 lead in the 9th minute.

However, Mohamed Traore was issued a second yellow card after accidentally kicking Maccabi midfielder Gaby Kanichowsky in the face reducing Nir Klinger’s squad to ten men for the final 30 minutes of the contest. With the extra man, Barak itzhaki’s squad found the equalizer as Brandley Kuwas banged home the tying goal off of a deflection from a corner kick in the 75th minute as the game ended in a 1-1 draw

“I’m satisfied with the result despite the situation,” Hapoel coach Nir Klinger said following the game. “The early goal we scored played a psychological trick on us as we started to go backwards a bit and let Maccabi attack. But once we had a player sent off we had to put the tactics aside and save the result.”

“This was a one-sided match that we controlled before they had a player sent off and after he was sent off but we couldn’t find a winner,” Maccabi interim coach Barak Itzhaki. “Hapoel keeper Ernestas Setkus was incredible and deserves a lot of credit. We are not playing well and we have to prepare ourselves from game to game and build up the confidence in the players.”

Maccabi Haifa blanked Kiryat Shemona 4-0 at Sammy Ofer Stadium to move to within 2-points of table leaders Hapoel Beer Sheva. Dean David scored from inclose in the 16th minute to give the Greens a 1-0 lead while Muhamed Abu Fani doubled the advantage 25 minutes later as he put home a nice ball from Omer Atzily to head into the break ahead 2-0.

Tjaron Chery gave Barak Bachar’s squad a 3-0 lead while Atlizy scored the final goal of the evening in the 90th minute thanks to an assist by youngster Roi Elimelech who was making his debut to run away with the 4-0 win.

“The players deserve to celebrate,” Bachar said. “We are just finishing a very busy period for us that had a lot of pressure. We knew we had to play well and we did just that. This was a very important win for us and we wanted to head into the break with a smile on our faces.”

Hapoel Jerusalem won this second game in a row thanks to a William Agada brace to down Maccabi Netanya 2-1 at Teddy Stadium. Netanya’s Parfait Guiagon sent a 25 meter scorcher into the Jerusalem goal to grab the lead in the 35th minute but Agada scored his first of two goals a minute into the second half to draw the hosts even at 1-1. However, that wasn’t enough for Ziv Arie’s team as Agada headed home a Guy Badash ball to take the victory and the three points.

“We were prepared tactically for this game but then we made a change because the players weren’t comfortable and we were shredded in the first half,” winning coach Ziv Arie explained after the match. “We switched things up and scored a quick goal in the second half which gave the players confidence and we held them to minimal chances the rest of the way.”

“I was still in the dressing room and all of a sudden it was 1-1,” Netanya coach Benny Lam said. “You can’t give up this type of goal in the Premier League as it brings down the confidence level while the second goal was a defensive error. I’m very disappointed with our second half. We now have the break to work on things and improve our play.”

Hapoel Beer Sheva needed a 90th minute goal by Nikita Rukavytsya to rescue a point against a game Ashdod as the sides played to a 1-1 draw at Turner Stadium. Nenad Cvetkovic scored off a corner kick in the 23rd minute to give Ran Ben Shimon’s squad a 1-0 lead, but Rukavytsya saved Roni Levy’s side by putting in a 90th minute strike to snatch a point.

“We didn’t start the game well and gave up a goal off a set piece,” Levy said following the game. “We chased after Ashdod all game long who are a quality team that knows how to hold onto the ball extremely well. But when they started to move back a bit we were able to get back into the match as we took chances with attacking players which finally paid off at the end.”

“There’s no question that all of the ingredients for an away win were here,” Ben Shimon explained. “We played an excellent defensive game and I am proud of the players. We had three good chances and a win would have really pushed us forward but I understand that things take time.”

Beitar Jerusalem overwhelmed Maccabi Petah Tikva 3-0 as Yarden Shua scored a brace to lead the visitors to the win. The capital city squad stunned the hosts just two minutes into the game as Shua finished off a beautiful team play to take a quick 1-0 lead. Shua then doubled the advantage when Orel Dagani sent the striker on his way with a tremendous through ball to go up 2-0. Marko Jankovic’s attempt went off of Or Blorian and into the back of the goal in the 59th minute to warp up a tidy 3-0 win.

“We were very effective and the team played well against a club that is very strong,” Beitar coach Erwin Koeman explained. “We played like a team and there was pressure on us after last game. I am very happy for the players and staff as we all worked hard to get back on track.”

“Every loss is painful and this was a game that we had to chase the entire 90 minutes,” Petah Tikva coach Guy Luzon said. “My players didn’t give up but we have to keep working and improve. The league is very close and we will have to learn from this and work harder.”

Hapoel Haifa and Bnei Sakhnin played to an entertaining 2-2 draw as Alon Turgeman scored a pair of goals for the visitors in the Galilee city. Turgeman opened the scoring in the 34th minute as the ball suited through Sakhin keeper Gadi Amos’s legs for the lead but the hosts came right back to draw even at 1-1 thanks to a Guy Melamed strike at the stroke of halftime. Turgeman helped Elisha Levy’s squad to retake the lead in the 49th minute via a header but Sharon Mimer’s side found the equalizer via Mufleh Shalata to split the points.

“Coaches are never happy when their team doesn’t win,” Levy said following the game. “The crowd enjoyed the show and we saw two teams that came to play. At every stage of the game both teams were attacking and anyone who enjoys Israeli soccer definitely enjoyed this contest.”

“It been a long time since we saw a game played at this pace,” Mimer said. “There were plenty of chances and so much offensive tactics that anyone who hadn’t watched soccer in a while would come running back to the sport. The players deserve a lot of credit for coming back from two deficits and if we continue this way we will reach our goals.”