The first of the two Israeli Cup semi-finals took place on Tuesday night, seeing Maccabi Netanya and SC Ashdod face off at Bloomfield Stadium.
It was almost the perfect location for the occasion, with the stadium located roughly halfway between the two coastal cities.
Both came into the tie thirsty for silverware and glory.
Ashdod hasn’t won a trophy in their history - both for the current team, nor any of the former incarnations.
Meanwhile Maccabi Netanya are longing for the glory days of the 1970’s and 80’s - they last won the league in 1983, and the State Cup five years earlier.
This year however, they have already won the Toto Cup, Israel’s third most important competition, achieving this feat without scoring a single goal and winning three straight penalty shoot-outs.
Today, they didn’t need the game to go to penalties.
Maccabi Netanya fans, supported their team on the road for a first major title since 1983 (Nicole Liberman/BabaGol)
The Yellow Diamonds came out firing on all cylinders, scoring two quick goals in the first 10 minutes, and a third before half-time.
They had effectively put the game to bed already.
Talented midfielder Boris Enow opened the scoring in the sixth minute with a nice left footed shot from outside the box.
The stunned Ashdod team barely had the chance to regroup before Ukrainian striker Stanislav Bilenkyi scored a second in the ninth.
Later in the half, Bilenkyi converted another - both goals were from close range with a composed finish.
Fueled by the performance on the pitch, the larger Netanya crowd put on a show in the stands.
Stanislav Bilenkyi, a quick brace in the semi final (Nicole Liberman/BabaGol)
After the break, Ashdod looked much better, as coach Ran Ben Shimon desperately sent on subs Elton Acolatse, Shalev Harush and Zakaria Mugeese.
Shavit Mazal scored a consolation for Ashdod in the 65th minute, and the Dolphins had a few more clear cut chances that put further pressure on Netanya.
But it was too little too late, the final result was 3-1.
In the final, Netanya will meet either Maccabi Tel Aviv or Beitar Jerusalem, both powerhouses of the Israeli games.
With their disappointing display in the 2014 and 2019 cup finals still fresh in their memory, they will hope for a different outcome on 23 May.
Counting the days until the cup final, would it be their greatest moment in the last 40 years? (Nicole Liberman/BabaGol)
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