Hapoel Tel Aviv downed Kiryat Shemona 2-1 as Daniel Dappa scored a pair of late goals to snatch the victory and send the reds into the Toto Cup finals where they will face their arch rivals Maccabi Tel Aviv. Adrián Ugarriza scored to give the northerners the first half lead in the 6th minute but Ofir Benbnisti was issued a pair of yellow cards and was sent off with a red leaving Shay Barda’s squad with just ten men 25 minutes later.

Hapoel pushed for the equalizer and continued to come up short, however, in the 85th minute Barda himself was sent off giving Elyaniv Barda’s team hope to break down Kiryat Shemona’s stingy defense which they finally did during second half injury time. Dappa scored his first of two in the 97th minute via a header and then nodded home a Douglas Owusu ball two minutes later to snatch the win from the jaws of defeat.

Hapoel Tel Aviv Head Coach Elyaniv Barda reflected on the win, “Apparently, we like the drama. At halftime, we talked about how we needed to be more precise in our actions and move the ball better. We did that excellently in the second half, but the ball simply refused to go in. We created a lot of chances and their players cleared the ball off the goal line, Kiryat Shemona’s defensive performance was excellent.”

Kiryat Shmona coach Shay Barda talked about the devastating defeat, “I was taught to look at things and choose the good. I salute my players. In the first 30 minutes, we controlled the game, scored and did what we needed to do. In the end, there was a lot of excitement, and it wasn’t coming from my players. In football, before the letter of the law, there is the law of common sense.”

The hero of the evening, Daniel Dappa shared his thoughts, “I’m sure I imagined moments like this when I signed with Hapoel Tel Aviv. It’s exciting to see the fans and this club celebrating like this. Last season was a season of learning, gaining experience and improving. As for the upcoming season? Only God knows what will happen. Whenever the team needs me, I’ll be there. There are a lot of experienced players here who help me and the coaching staff works with me.”