Here's the latest from the Olim League in Israel.
MS BAMBI 4 JERUSALEM 2
Two goals from Bar Blumberg kept MS Bambi top of the Olim League following a 4-2 victory over Jerusalem.
The game started at a good pace and it was Jerusalem who forged ahead in the first half when a long ball was converted by their striker.
The goal sparked Bambi into life and they began to press Jerusalem back, with Bar Blumberg and Aviv Zemer putting them 2-1 up.
Bambi began to dominate - they missed several chances, while Jerusalem threatened only on hte counter-attack.
Jerusalem equalised against the run of play early in the second half with a beautiful shot outside the box. Bambi responded well and further strikes from Blumberg and Gil sealed a deserved victory.
Delighted Bambi boss Yoni Sarig commented: "It was a very competitive match and there were plenty of chances created by both teams. We now go into our second week at the top of the table and as I have said before, we plan on staying there!"
--------------------------
ATHLETICO 4 JAFFA 6
Jaffa’s terrible start to the season ended with a pulsating 6-4 win over revamped Athletico Jerusalem.
The game started at a furious pace and within 11 minutes Jaffa were ahead. A clever through ball from Rani Madmon saw Liverpool-born Josh Silverberg score his first goal for Jaffa.
A few minutes later, Silverberg scored again, nodding a Nir Ha’Cohen corner in. Jaffa were looking to kill the game when a hotly-disputed penalty was buried by Athletico’s Carlos Mazzini and they were level minutes later when Yonatan Journo fired home.
With Jaffa deflated, Athletico pushed on, but a superb individual run by Ha’Cohen was finished off by Sam Silverberg, giving Jaffa a 3-2 lead at half time.
It was 4-2 within 30 seconds of the restart as another Ha’Cohen pass found Madmon one-on-one with the keeper. The striker left Daniel Boestra with no chance, and gave Jaffa a two-goal cushion.
Athletico responded within a minute through Netanel Fattal, and six minutes later an unstoppable shot from Inon Nissim levelled the scores at 4-4.
Both teams continued to push forward looking for a winner in this exciting affair. Josh Silverberg settled the game with a smart finish from a corner to complete his hat-trick, and the two-goal cushion was restored by a smart Madmon finish from a Sam Silverberg pass.
At the final whistle, Jaffa had won 6-4, leaving both teams with a 1-0-3 record.
Athletico assistant-manager David Bernstein said: "It was 4-4 with 20 minutes to go and we threw it away by being not good enough - both mentally and physically.
"The league is very competitive this year and I expect a much more focused approach when we face our local rivals Real Jerusalem next Saturday night."
--------------------------
Elsewhere, Modiin continued its fine form with a 5-2 Mauling of Ashdod. Real Jerusalem added to England's woes beating them 5-2 to leave the league holders at the bottom of the table with almost a quarter of the season played. Raanana and Aviv played out a fiercely contested 3-3 draw that saw Aviad Ben Meir score another hat-trick.
------------------------
RESULTS:
MS Bambi 4 Jerusalem 2
Athletico 4 Jaffa 6
Modiin 5 Ashdod 2
Real Jerusalem 5 England 2
Raanana 3 Aviv 3
------------------------
HAT-TRICK HERO
Aviad Ben Meir (Raanana)
------------------------
Olim League Team Of The Week
GK: Eden Sharma (Real)
D: Daan Baker (Aviv)
D: Lanre (Modiin)
D: Asaf M (Jaffa)
D: Akiva Ben Yehuda (Real)
M: Aviv Zemer (MS Bambi)
M: Josh Silverberg
M: Bar Blumberg (MS Bambi)
F: Aviad Ben Meir (Raanana)
F: Peter Emola (Aviv)
F: Nati Hasson (Real)
Manager: Fran Salgado (Real)
