No home comforts for under-fire Nasr

DUBAI // Al Nasr's woes at home show no sign of abating. They failed once again to break their jinx at the Al Maktoum this season, settling for a point against Al Dhafra in last night's 1-1 draw. Mohammed Abdulqader took advantage of a napping Nasr defence and a generous goal- keeper to put Dhafra ahead in the seventh minute, but Mahmoud Hassan Darwish salvaged a point with his equaliser in the 51st minute.

Nasr have yet to taste victory in their own den this season and this was their fourth draw in seven games at home. They deserved no better for a mediocre performance, especially in the first-half. The lone bright spark for the hosts in the first-half came in the third minute. Darwish, making a superb solo run down the right, crossed the ball and Musallam Ahmed Ghloum had just to tap it in to put Nasr ahead.

Instead, he took a wild heave and sent the ball into orbit from just a yard out. Following Ghloum's lead, the Nasr keeper Abdulla Moosa Ali added to the home supporters' woes with a howler in the seventh minute. Abdulqader broke the offside trap and took a shot more in hope than conviction, but, to his delight, the ball slipped through Abdulla's fingers and trickled into the net. Urged on by their fans, Nasr stepped on the gas after the break and Darwish restored parity six minutes after the restart.

He was in the perfect position to meet Mohammed Ibrahim's through ball, he placed a right-footer to the left of the Dhafra keeper Abdulbasit Mohammed. Nasr should have been pressing for the win, but instead they slipped back into mediocrity until Younis Ahmed tested Abdulbasit with a stinging volley in injury time. The Dhafra keeper punched the ball away to ensure his side finished with a well-deserved point while the Nasr fans went home seething.

arizvi@thenational.ae