sports

Shortly ago there was the second leg of group league match between the men’s April 25 and Rimyongsu teams belonging to group D of the Hwaeppul Cup soccer tournament which started at Kim Il Sung Stadium on August 1.

The first leg of group league match between the Rimyongsu and Ryomyong teams ended with a 1-1 draw, but the April 25 team won a similar match by beating the opponent 3-2.

“Our team which has made careful preparations since last year will register good results in the current contest for the Hwaeppul Cup. In the first leg of the group league matches, our team ended in a draw the match with the Ryomyong team, winner of the 2023-2024 DPRK Premier League. I think it started well,” Pak Song Chol, head coach of the Rimyongsu team, said before the second leg.

Kim Yong Su, head coach of the April 25 team, said that though the stable staff of his team and the spirit of its players made him confident of victory, they should stay alert and do their best. They intend to lift the Hwaeppul Cup again after last year, he added.

The match between the two teams started with the Rimyongsu’s kick-off.

Experts and fans quite attentively watched the match as it was the one between local powers.

The match in which both teams played in a 4-4-2 formation was quite fierce from the beginning. The Rimyongsu was the first to threaten the goal of the opponent.

The first half ended in a goalless draw.

In the second half, the April 25 made fierce attacks, being the first to threaten the goal of the opponent, but in vain by the opponent’s resolute defence and sudden and continuous counterattacks.

Both teams played hard, without slowing down the pace to the end in order to score a goal, but the match ended in a 0-0 draw.

Experts said that although the game finished scoreless, it deeply impressed the spectators as both teams played well.

They added that in case the two teams compete in the final, they are eager to see how the match will end.