Surprising home defeat for Bourj FC, 1-2 against Homenetmen in the third round of the Lebanese Second Division

On Saturday, 29 September, Bourj FC suffered a surprising and even shocking home defeat against Homenetmen Beirut in the third round of the Lebanese Second Division. The match was played at Bhamdoun Stadium in Aley instead of the usual home ground for Bourj, Safa Stadium in Beirut.

 Bourj FC before the start of the game against La Sagesse. Source: Bourj FC Official Facebook page

The visitors took the lead in the 29th minute by Sami Biaye and extended it to 2-0 right before half time, when Bourj FC goalkeeper Karim Abdul Saleh saved a penalty but the ball went back to David Ghandilyan, who scored.

The home side only succeeded to come back to one goal difference, by Wassem Abdulhady in the 50th minute, also by penalty, but they were unable to equalize for the rest of the second half, when Homenetmen were very well organized in the defense.

The result is surprising because Bourj FC underwent a series of supposedly positive changes during spring and summer, including a change in the management of the club and of the head coach. The game against Homenetmen provided the opportunity to meet the former head coach of Bourj FC, Hassan Mashor Meqdad, better known as Mido, now head coach of Homenetmen. Under his management in the previous years, Bourj FC promoted to the Third Division (2015) and to the Second Division (2017) and almost to the Premier League at the end of the 2017-2018 season. Some of the supporters blamed him for the last result in the league, 1-1 to Mabarrah, when a win would have brought the much desired promotion to the Premier League. Perhaps now the same supporters regret him as a head coach, who had important results with less investments and not the same financial support as now.

Despite the changes, the team of the present head coach Mohamad Dakka did not start as expected, as Bourj FC only have 1 win, 1 draw and 1 loss after a mere 3 rounds, gathering 4 points. It is quite obvious that some things are not working right. The two foreign players, Papys Boubacar and Abdoullah Kanoute, did not score a single goal in any of the three matches, although this is the reason they have been brought. More than half of the team has been changed but the new players seem to need more time to adapt and to adjust. Many experienced players have arrived but the fighting spirit is not the same as last year.

The supporters' dream, to have a team that wins every match in the Second Division, from the beginning until the end, has vanished rather early. It is now time to reflect and analyze what is good and what went wrong, and to correct the mistakes for better results in the future games.
Highlights of the match are available on Bourj Fans Tube Facebook page.

In the next round, Bourj FC will play away at Ahly Sidon on Friday, the 5th of October.

Round 3 (28-30 September 2018)

Mabarrah – Shabab El Bourj 0-0

Shabab Al Arabi – Nahda Barelias 1-0

Bourj – Homenetmen 1-2

Ahly Sidon – Hikma / La Sagesse 1-1

Egtmaaey Tripoli – Al Islah Al Bourj Al Shimaly 5-1

Naser Barelias – Ahly Nabatieh 2-3

                                Table

1	Shabab Al Arabi	3	2	0	1	3-1	6
2	Al Islah Al Bourj Al Sh.	3	2	0	1	3-5	6
3	Ahly Sidon	3	1	1	1	6-4	4
3	Egtmaaey Tripoli	3	1	1	1	6-4	4
5	Bourj	3	1	1	1	3-2	4
6	Homenetmen	3	1	1	1	5-5	4
7	Nahda Barelias	3	1	1	1	4-4	4
8	Mabarrah	3	1	1	1	2-2	4
9	Shabab El Bourj	3	1	1	1	1-1	4
10	Ahly Nabatieh	3	1	1	1	4-6	4
11	Naser Barelias	3	1	0	2	3-4	3
12	Hikma / La Sagesse	3	0	2	1	2-4	2

Round 4 (5-7 October 2018)

Ahly Sidon – Bourj

Egtmaaey Tripoli – Mabarrah

Hikma / La Sagesse – Naser Barelias

Homenetmen – Shabab Al Arabi

Ahly Nabatieh – Shabab El Bourj

Nahda Barelias – Al Islah Al Bourj Al Shimaly