Kitchee win dramatic Hong Kong Senior Shield final featuring three red cards, penalties, loss leaves Eastern heartbroken
- Ruslan Mingazov netted winner after Charlie Scott’s penalty cancelled out Leung Kwun-chung’s opener from spot
- Teams were contesting final for record fifth time, only Yuen Long have broken stranglehold on trophy over past eight editions
Kitchee retained their Senior Shield title with a 2-1 extra-time victory over Eastern on Sunday, but the bare details do no justice to what winning head coach Kim Dong-jin called a “roller coaster” final at Mong Kok Stadium.
The dramatic affair featured three red cards, two retaken penalties, after the original kicks were saved and the rebounds converted, a stoppage-time Kitchee equaliser, and a 119th-minute Ruslan Mingazov winner.
Eastern were the brighter, more purposeful team in regulation time, and looked bound for victory when they had a man advantage, after Helio Goncavles’ 75th minute dismissal, and Leung Kwun-chung scored from the spot with six minutes remaining.
Leung took over penalty duties from Marcos Gondra, after Paulo Cesar saved the Spaniard’s original kick. Tamirlan Kozubaev smacked home the loose ball, but a retake was ordered.
In keeping with a leaden display, Kitchee pushed to draw level without creating any clear openings but, deep into seven added minutes, Mingazov screamed for handball as he tried to force his way through a congested penalty box.
Play was eventually brought back, and after consulting his pitchside monitor referee Tam Ping-win pointed to the spot, and sent off Kozubaev, who had been upended by Roberto Affonso Junior to win Eastern’s penalty, for a second bookable offence.