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KEY POINTS:
Kuwait 2
Waitakere 1
Kuwait needed a late penalty to snatch a win against 10-man Waitakere United last night at Allan Hill Stadium.
The visitors, looking for two-from-two following their 2-0 win over Auckland City on Tuesday, had the better of the first half.
They created a handful of reasonable chances but again were let down by some ordinary efforts in front of goal and the efforts of keeper Danny Robinson.
Kuwait's twin-pronged attack of Fahd Al-Rashidi and Bader Almutwa asked plenty of the Waitakere defence but only rarely threatened to score.
The turning point came at the end of the first half when referee Mike Hester sent off Neil Sykes for a tackle on Al-Rashidi.
The red card was harsh and unnecessary. Mesaed Alzeni's penalty attempt - booted straight to Robinson - even worse. He saved easily.
The drought was eventually broken 17 minutes into the second spell when Almutwa charged through the Waitakere defence before unleashing a shot just inside the near post.
The Kuwaiti joy was short-lived. From the kick-off the ball was played through to Kayne Vincent who whipped in a stunner from just inside the penalty area for 1-1.
The deciding goal came seven minutes from time when Hester ruled against an Tim Myers tackle. This time, Alzeni converted.
It was a useful exercise for both teams with Kuwait now heading to their Asian Cup clash with Australia while a much-rearranged Waitakere prepare for Manawatu tomorrow in the NZFC.
