Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated Maccabi Petach Tikva 3-2 as the yellow-and-blue came back from 2-0 down thanks to a Dor Peretz brace to help the hosts to the 3-points and the win. Vitalie Damascan opened the scoring in the 4th minute from inside the box and added a second goal 25 minutes later to give the visitors a 2-0 lead. However, at the stroke of half-time, Peretz scored off a brilliant Gaby Kanichowsky cross to pull a goal back and cut the lead to 2-1. Weslley Patati curled in a perfect corner kick to draw Maccabi even in the 60th minute and three minutes later Peretz headed home the eventual winner off a Kanichowsky corner kick.

“It’s a great feeling,” Maccabi head coach Zarko Lazetic said. “We won and I am proud of the players for the victory. I was doubtful because in the first half they had two attempts and scored twice, those were mistakes but I can’t say anything about them other than that. We scored a goal before halftime and that helped us get back into the game. Petach Tikva played excellent, they have good players, it was very difficult to do anything against them and they play with a lot of courage. Mistakes happen, that is part of football, it is important that we continued to believe in ourselves.”

“I was asked before the game how I was planning to play and I said that i came here to take the points,” Petach Tikva coach Tamir Luzon began. “It’s true that this is Maccabi in Bloomfield stadium and they are a very high quality team, but we did our best to take points home and it just wasn’t enough. I am proud of the guys for their effort.”

Maccabi Haifa slipped by Maccabi Netanya 2-1 to stay in the hunt near the top of the table. Dean David opened the scoring in the 19th minute to give the Greens a 1-0 lead but less than 10 minutes later Igor Zlatanovic drew the diamond city side even from the penalty spot as the two teams headed into halftime all knotted up at 1-1. But Dia Saba broke the deadlock with a magnificent strike in the 50th minute to take the lead for good and pick up the 3-points.

“We are going through a difficult period, that’s not to say that we haven’t played well, but there is just a lot of things going on,” Haifa Head Coach Barak Bachar said. “At the end of the day as we win our ability on the pitch and our confidence will improve as well. We exposed ourselves and we didn’t play well enough and we didn’t control the pace of the game, but I’m glad that our substitutes came in and added a lot of energy.”

“On the one hand, there are some good things that we can take from this game but on the other hand it’s not great that we didn’t take a point,” Netanya bench boss Yossi Abuksis said. “You can be the better team and lose and vice versa, that’s the game and it’s all about taking advantage of situations. We achieved a lot and didn’t win so in that case we probably didn’t deserve to. I was surprised that we missed some easy chances which was disappointing.”

Bnei Sakhnin and Hapoel Beer Sheva played to a 0-0 draw in Akko as the teams each took a point for their efforts.

“I think we had enough chances to win the game,” Beer Sheva head coach Ron Kozuk said. “We played well and we had chances but sometimes there were days when the ball just doesn’t go in. We should have won and it’s a shame about the two points we lost, but we’re moving on.”

“I’m satisfied with the draw as we lacked discipline over course of the game and with that we’re moving on,” Bnei Sakhnin bench boss Slobodan Drapic said. “We had a few chances where we could have scored, but we also played against an excellent team that’s in first place.”

Beitar Jerusalem and Ironi Tiberias drew 1-1 as the two sides split the points at Teddy Stadium. Yonatan Tepper was issued a red card for a tackle from behind in the 42nd minute which left the visitors with 10 men for more than entire half of play but that didn’t stop Tiberias from taking a 1-0 lead via a Jordan Botaka penalty kick in the 57th minute. Beitar was able to find the equalizer in the 69th minute by Silva Kangani but that is as close as the yellow-and-black got from taking the all of the points as each team took one a piece for their efforts.

“I knew this was going to be a tough game,” Beitar Head Coach Barak Izthaki said. “We prepared for it, we just couldn’t find solutions despite some half-chances. It’s very difficult to play against such a packed in defense, especially after they had a player sent off and they dropped even further back and did what they thought was right. We had to move the ball, wait for the opportunity and we didn’t do it, we weren’t patient enough and we only came away with a point.”

“Throughout the game, Beitar didn’t have many chances,” Tiberias bench boss Eliran Hodeida began. “We conceded a soft goal but the players gave a tremendous effort for almost 100 minutes as they stood their ground, so I am very happy with this point. We did better against the bigger teams in the first round of games and we will have to learn how to take points against the teams that are similar to ours.”

Hapoel Haifa blanked Bnei Reineh 2-0 thanks to a Guy Melamed brace as the Carmel reds took home the 3-points and the victory. Melamed scored via a 21st minute header and then added his second with a sharp shot to the far corner of the goal from inside the area to help Roni Levy’s team to the win.

“Bnei Reineh is a very strong team and has a coach who has done a great job and has tuned them into a very strong team,” Haifa bench boss Roni Levy said. “Guy Melemed works very hard in training and you can see the results of that in the game. He’s serious and very well-liked in the locker room, he’s more than just a player who scores goals. We’re happy that he’s with us.”

“We are going through a tough stretch where things are just goofball the wrong way for us,” Reineh Head Coach Sharon Mimer explained. “We will get through this and be even stronger. We gave had crises over the past two seasons and we will get out of it.”

Hapoel Hadera and Hapoel Jerusalem drew 1-1 as the sides split the points. James Adenyi scored against his former club when he found the back of the goal in 7th minute as he slotted the ball home to give the hosts a 1-0 lead. But just minutes into the second half Ayano Preda scored the tying marker as the sides each took home a point for their efforts.

“We were ready for our opponent but as usual we gave up a foolish and early goal,” Jerusalem coach Ziv Arie said. “We became nervous but we began the second half well and we really wanted to win. We had some chances but we have to be satisfied what the draw and the point.”

“I think we had a decent first half and we created some good chances,” Hadera bench boss Asaf Nimni said. “We could have decided this game and come away with all the points so it’s disappointing. I really believe in these guys and they are working very hard.”

Kiryat Shemona got by Ashdod 3-2 in an entertaining matchup thanks to a trio of first half goals, two coming from Roie Zikri, to put the northerners in front as they took the 3-points and the win. Zikri put Shay Barda’s team on the scoresheet in the 5th minute when he pounded home a rebound right in front of the goal, but Stav Nachmani drew the port side even a quarter hour later at 1-1 from in close.

However, in the 24th minute Alfredo Stephens put the hosts who are playing at the Netanya Stadium ahead while Zikri doubled the advantage with his second of the game before halftime to send Kiryat Shemona into the break up 3-1. Ilay Tamam pulled a goal back deep into second half injury time but it was too little too late as the hosts took the points.

“At the end of the day we took the 3-points and I’m very happy about that,” Barda said following the game. “It’s not a matter of starting a new streak, but a matter of getting back to being a tough and good team. I’m happy about how we played in the first half, less so in the second. We collected another 3-points and now have a total of 23 on the season. For what this team has had to go through without being able to play at home this is above and beyond our wildest expectations.”

“I hope that the holiday gifts we gave out in the first half are for the entire season,” a disappointed Ashdod bench boss Eli Levy said. “Sometimes one would say that it’s better to concede three goals in one game than one goal in every game. In the first half, we were lax, we gave out so many presents and that’s what we’ve been doing, unfortunately, for a while. We can’t score two goals in every game and concede one goal more. We can’t start every game with a deficit.”