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Dalian Wins but Marred by Refereeing Dispute
Reigning champions Dalian Shide retained its winning momentum by edging Tianjin Taida 2-1 at home court in a third-round match of the Chinese Football League Sunday.
But joy from the victory was diluted by a match halt lasting more than five minutes, resulting from referee's pendulum-style decision on a penalty kick.
Dalian Wanda was awarded a penalty in the 83rd minute following a hand ball of a Tianjin player, only to be confiscated in the wake of a protest from the Tianjin side and consultation between the referees.
By the same token Dalian replied strongly and restored its penalty before Tianjin's goalkeeper walked out of the goal in a demonstration of his discontent.
The drama lasted no less than five minutes until it was Dalian who finally relied on the penalty kick for a controversial win.
Earlier, Dalian's ace striker Hao Haidong headed home in the 16th minute his first goal of the season, only to be canceled out by Marcelo A.De Souza who scored on a free kick on 40th minutes.
Dalian collected nine points from three matches but stand second to Shanghai Shenhua who take the leading position on goal advantage.
Courtesy of a 93-minute goal from Shensi, Shanhai Shenhua retains a clean record by squeezing with a 2-1 win over the visiting Qingdao Beer.
Yunnan Hongta overcame one goal deficit to beat the visiting Liaoning Fushun 3-1 in an amazing comeback. It is currently place third with six points from three matches.
In a rematch of last season's final of the CFA Cup, Chongqing Lifan was held to a 1-1 tie with Beijing Guo'an at home court.
On Sunday's match marred by rain, Lifan, who is winless so far, failed to show the form which helped them lift the CFA Cup title on a 4-2 aggregate score.
In Shenyang, Haishi scored a 2-0 home victory over Bayi Zhenbang, ending its scoring drought since the start of the new season and lifting itself from the bottom of the league standings.
In Sichuan, Shangwutong pulled off a 3-0 triumph over Shaanxi Guoli for its first win of the new season. The club is now coached by Bobby Houghton, the former head coach of the Chinese men, who was sacked following poor performance in Olympic qualifiers.
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