Taipower on Sunday opened a five-point gap at the top of the Taiwan Football Premier League table after a nine-goal thriller against the Red Lions, while Taiwan Steel handed Taichung Futuro their second straight loss and Tatung netted seven in a lopsided match.
Having occupied first place for most of the season, Futuro needed a good performance to keep pace with the leaders as they took on Taiwan Steel in Taoyuan.
Taiwan Steel were the more energetic side and they went ahead in the 15th minute when Haitian striker Benchy Astama latched on to a free-kick by midfielder Yao Ke-chi and tapped into the net.
Photo courtesy of the CTFA
Futuro went in search of an equalizer, but they looked in disarray for much of the game as they fell to their second straight 1-0 loss.
In Sunday’s Match of the Day, Taipower hosted the bottom-of-the-table Red Lions at the National Stadium in Kaohsiung in what turned out to be a nine-goal thriller, with the outcome in the balance until the final minutes.
A match that looked like an easy win for Taipower on paper was knotted at 4-4 in stoppage-time, before a rash tackle decided it.
Taipower defender Lin Cheng-yi opened the scoring with a header, before Chilean Esteban Vasquez slotted home from close range to level for the visitors.
Attacking midfielder Huang Kai-chun then grabbed a 2-1 lead for the hosts after 18 minutes.
Guatemalan Gerardo Rabre shook off his marker and chipped over the goalkeeper to level at 2-2 on the hour mark, before a flurry of late goals.
Lai Chih-hsuan found the net in the 73rd minute to put Taipower ahead, but the tenacious Red Lions roared back with a header from Jack Lin and a long-range shot by midfielder Wang Hsiang-yi in the 84th minute as they took a shock 4-3 lead.
Taipower forward Ke Yu-ting received a cross inside the penalty area and volleyed home to tie it at 4-4 with four minutes left.
The league leaders grabbed the win deep in stoppage-time when Red Lions defender Diego Loza pulled down Taipower midfielder Lin Chien-hsun as he advanced into the penalty area.
The referee had no hesitation in showing Loza the red card and awarding a penalty, which Lin Chien-hsun duly dispatched.
Elsewhere, Tatung thrashed National Taiwan University of Sport 7-1 in Taoyuan, with Ivorian striker Ange Samuel and midfielder Chang Hao-wei each scoring a brace.
Hang Yuan defeated Ming Chuan University 2-0 in New Taipei City.
A goal from Japanese midfielder Shimono Atsushi set up the win, before Brazilian forward Luan Anderson made sure in stoppage-time.
Taipower top the table with 26 points, five ahead of Futuro and Hang Yuan on 21. Tatung are fourth on 19 points, one ahead of Taiwan Steel.
National Taiwan University of Sport are sixth on 10 points, while Ming Chuan University on four points are seventh, above the Red Lions on goal-difference.
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