It’s not every day you get to see a hat-trick in any sport and that’s especially true in the game of soccer.

So when a player on the pitch scores not one, not two but three goals, well you’ve got to take your hat off for him and that’s what the Beitar Jerusalem fans did for their captain Yarden Shua who recorded his first ever 3-goal game in what was a 5-0 win over Ironi Tiberias.

Beitar Jerusalem came into Green Stadium to face a tough as nails foe in Tiberias who have been known to cause chaos for many an opponent which is why the yellow-and-black were very tentative ahead of the matchup especially after having disposed of Maccabi Netanya 4-2 at their home Teddy Stadium just a few days ago.

There had been talk in the days leading up to the match against Tiberias that Shua would be out due to a knee issue and that the club would rest him with the Jerusalem Derby coming up, so it was surprise to all that when the lineups were revealed that he was in his usual starting spot instead of Timoti Muzi who has been rumored to replace him.

It was probably an even bigger surprise that after Adi Yona hit the crossbar in the opening minute of the game that Shua scored off a loose ball in the box in the 9th minute and followed that up with a goal straight off a corner kick while he then completed his hat trick after tipping in a Johnbosco Kalu header before the game was even twenty minutes old.

And his knee didn’t look that bad when he cartwheeled in celebration.

Beitar continued to pour on the offense with chance after chance as the second half saw one way traffic on the Nof Hagalil pitch. Dor Hugi came on for Shua and within a minute he slotted home the yellow-and-black’s fourth goal off a Timoti Muzi assist while Adi Yona scored on a penalty to wrap up a dominant display.

The win moved Beitar oh so close to the top of the table leaders in Hapoel Beer Sheva as they now sit just 3 points away with 26 points after 11 rounds of action which is good for third place just behind Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Next up for Barak Itzhaki’s crew is a Derby date against Hapoel Jerusalem which will be followed up by another home game versus their arch rivals Bnei Sakhnin in what is going to be a super busy month of December soccer.

“It was a good match,” Itzhaki declared following the victory. “It was under our control except for about ten minutes, actually right after we scored three goals. We needed to be smarter and move the ball more, but they had a two or three chances off of long balls and we didn’t know how to deal with them. But in the second half, it was a different story. We moved the ball much better, we controlled the ball even in the opponent’s half and we looked much better.

“We’re an attacking team, but on the other hand, we need to be very, very focused and not concede goals, even if it’s a match that ends in five minutes. It was very important in the last few minutes to keep a clean sheet and also not to let Ironi Tiberias to even try and create more chances and the way to do that was to have control of the ball and hold on to it more than our opponent. We managed to do that and I’m also happy we didn’t concede.”

Beitar’s attack is no doubt lethal and one that is very difficult to contain. Shua was a one-man wrecking crew and was not supposed to play with a knee issue as he carved up Tiberias for his first ever hat trick in style leaving the thoughts of a bum knee way, way behind.

“I’m very happy that I scored the first hat-trick of my career,” Shua exclaimed. “I’m happy first of all that the team won and we brought the points home and with God’s help we’ll continue like this. I’m not someone who likes to force things, let’s put it that way, but I got the chance to come more into my areas of preference on the pitch and I tried to score. As for the injury, people just like to talk and it’s a small world here but I feel completely fine, everything’s okay and we’ll keep moving forward.”

With Beitar just 3-points off of first place many fans feel that their club is just inches away from being a the champion and taking home the title. On one hand, Itzhaki has shied away from admitting his club is a true title contender threat but in the other he’s really thrilled to be in the place he is with his club and one that really can win the championship.

“Another 3-points. We’re still at the beginning of the season, we’ve only finished matchday 11, so we haven’t even finished one round. It’s still too early to look too far ahead. Yes, it’s fun to be there, fun to be 3-points from the top and we want to stay as close as possible. But it has to come with very, very hard work. A team that wants to be at the top, a team that wants to compete up there, cannot allow itself to concede goals like we did against Netanya. If on one hand we can improve those things and on the other hand add a few things offensively, then we’ll continue to play good football and win games.”

Shua also was content to be right there with the top teams, “Yes, we’re happy that we’re there and we’re not far. If we continue this way, I’m sure at the end of the day it’ll be good as well. To do that the simplest thing is to win, to work hard like we worked today where is everyone committed to the match because that’s really the only way that we’ll win. We understand that we’re actually a good team and one that can do some very good things in the league.”

As Beitar now readies for the Capital city Derby, this one can be a true firecracker of a game that can shake Israeli soccer to its core. Itzhaki is rightfully concerned for a true challenge that will threaten his team and it will be crucial to set up boundaries for his charges not to get pulled into a game that doesn’t fit their style of play.

“I’d be lying if I said I’m not enjoying myself, but my head is already looking ahead. Our lives are from match to match and we need to deal with many things that happen during the week. We don’t have that much time to prepare for the derby so I don’t have a lot of time to enjoy. I’ll go home to my wife and I already start watching the match and begin preparing for Hapoel Jerusalem which is the one I see as the toughest we’ve had so far is waiting for us on Monday against Hapoel Jerusalem.”