Ahli play Shabab Urdun in JFA Shield

AMMAN — Week 3 of the Jordan Football Association (JFA) Shield kicks off on Friday after a week of surprises that changed standings especially in Group A.

Sahab moved atop Group A after a 5-1 win over Baqa’a while Faisali went down to second after they were held 0-0 with lowly Sarih with Jazira moving up to third after a 2-1 win over Hussein Irbid.

Wihdat took the lead atop Group B despite a 1-1 draw with Ahli in Group B as Ramtha climbed to second after they beat Shabab Urdun 2-1 while That Ras held Manshieh 0-0.

The upcoming week’s Group B matches will see Ahli face Shabab Urdun, That Ras take on Wihdat and Manshieh play Ramtha. That Ras need a win to stay in contention to the second round.

Group A will see Faisali play Jazira, Baqa’a face Hussein and Sahab take on Sarih. After Sahab won their first two matches and are firmly in command of Group A, Faisali also need to win to advance to round 2.

The first week saw Faisali beat Hussein 2-0 while Baqa’a beat Sarih and Sahab beat Jazira 2-1. On the other hand, Wihdat beat Manshieh 2-1, Ahli held Ramtha 0-0 and Shabab Urdun beat That Ras 2-0.

The top two from each group will move to the semis on September 5 and the winners advance to the final on September 16.

The season started with Ahli making history when they beat reigning Jordan Professional League champs Wihdat 2-1 to win the 34th Super Cup — the first major competition on the 2016/17 football calendar. The league will kick off on October 22 while the Jordan Cup preliminary round will kick off October 31 after the conclusion of the U-17 Women’s World Cup.

Last season, Wihdat won their third consecutive and 15th league title. Faisali beat league and Super Cup titleholders Wihdat 1-0 to clinch the Super Cup while it was Ahli who were the overall better team of the season. After years in the backstage, Ahli beat Shabab Urdun to win their first Jordan Cup title.