Maccabi Tel Aviv 1:0 Bnei Sakhnin

It wasn’t easy but the Yellow-and-Blue found a way to pull off the late victory as the Captain, Eran Zahavi scored in the 80th minute to help his side collect 3-points and the win. After 80 minutes of defensive football by Yossi Abuksis and his Sakhnin side a perfect give and go between Zahavi and striker Orlando Sa saw number 7 come to the rescue once again as the captain picked up his 28th goal of the campaign.

The victory coupled with Beer Sheva’s goalless draw at home against Hapoel Raanana mean that next week’s 1 vs 2 showdown at Turner Stadium could see Maccabi Tel Aviv move into first place since the fall.

Hapoel Beer Sheva 0:0 Hapoel Raanana

Disappointment in the southern capital as Raanana came on a drew 0:0 with first place side Hapoel Beer Sheva. Haim Silvas and his club came in to play as Beer Sheva keeper Dudu Goresh had to make a number of fabulous saves. On the other end Raanana’s shot stopper Omri Glazer was an absolute fortress in goal as he also stopped a Maor Bozaglo penalty chance in the first half. The draw allows Maccabi to pull within a single point off first place as next week’s top of the table clash could see a new leader.

Beitar Jerusalem 3:2 Maccabi Haifa

Beitar scored two quick goals in the first half, saw their lead disappear by halftime and promptly came out of the break to score the winner. Dan Einbinder opens the scoring for the hosts wheel Nikita Rukavytsya scored his 6th goal in 6 games to set a new Beitar record to take a 2:0 lead by the 7th minute of the match. However, Yossi Benayoun and Dekel Keinan drew Haifa even before the half with goals of their own. But a questionable red card call on Neta Lavie left the Greens with only 10-men for the balance of the match.

Beitar coach Slobodan Drapic inserted Dutchman Arsenio Valpoort to begin the second half for Lidor Cohen and the substitute paid off dividends almost immediately as number 19 scored his first goal for the Jerusalem side. The marker would prove to be the winner as Beitar picked up the win and three points solidifying their stranglehold on third place.