Al-Buqaiqyah and Al-Anwar played out a 0-0 draw in the First Division League regular season opener on Friday. The match ended at the Al-Buqaiqyah ground without either side finding the net, which suited both teams equally well given where they stand in the table. To be fair, neither side arrived with much to prove after three games and two points apiece.
And here's the thing — the only real incident came at the 29th minute when S. Al Muwallad picked up a yellow card. The game had been quiet before that, and it stayed that way after. You could sense the coaches were watching more than reacting, waiting to see how the other side would set up once the half-time break came.
By then the managers had already begun reshuffling their options. Al-Anwar brought on A. Al Rashidi for the second half, while Al-Buqaiqyah went for a double change at the 69th minute with Bruno Bezerra and A. Al Barakah entering the fray. More substitutions followed — S. Grzan, S. Al Muwallad himself, M. Al Harthi, M. Al Mahmoudi and I. K. Eissa all had their turns on the pitch. It was a game that handed minutes to the squad rather than testing the starters.
The numbers told you what you could see: Al-Anwar held 54 per cent possession and managed four shots on target, while Al-Buqaiqyah had 46 per cent and none. Eight shots off target and three blocked efforts against two blocked shots and two corners — the hosts did not travel to make up the numbers, but neither side could find a way through. Shots accuracy sat at zero for the home side and 36 per cent for the visitors, which is another way of saying chances went begging.
Both teams remain at the bottom of the table with two points from three games, one loss and two draws between them. The result extends Al-Buqaiqyah's run of draws — they had not beaten anyone in their last five matches before this one — while Al-Anwar's recent form has been no better. A clean-sheet run came to an end for neither side, and the gap at the bottom has barely moved.