Tai Po met Eastern at Tai Po Sports Ground on Sunday afternoon (13th October) for JC Sapling Cup (Group A) fixture of the day. Tai Po beat Eastern by 2:1.
Tai Po threatened early, with Fung Kwan Ming unleashing a powerful drive from outside the box following Igor Sartori's layoff, narrowly missing the target.
Eastern responded two minutes later, as Prabhat Gurung's pass found Calum Hall in a tight spot, but his effort was blocked and gathered by the keeper.
Tai Po broke the deadlock in the 12th minute when Gabriel Roberto's long ball exposed a defensive mix-up, allowing Igor Sartori to pounce and slot home into the unguarded net, putting Tai Po 1:0 up.
Tai Po continued to press, with Igor Sartori connecting with Guilherme Bitencourt’s pass to unleash a curling shot that sailed just wide in the 19th minute.
Both sides had chances before the break. Eastern's Marcos Gondra saw his long-range free-kick fly over, while Tai Po's Gabriel Roberto nodded Igor Sartori's set-piece delivery inches off target. The first half ended with Tai Po holding a slender 1:0 lead.
Eastern came out firing after the restart, with Wong Ho Chun attempting an audacious bicycle kick from Prabhat Gurung's cross in the 47th minute, but failed to hit the target.
Eastern' persistence paid off in the 54th minute. Wong Ho Chun's cross wasn't dealt with by the Tai Po defense, falling kindly for Leung Kwun Chung at the far post, who rifled home a volley to level the scores at 1:1.
However, Tai Po regained the lead with eight minutes remaining. Igor Sartori's corner was met by a towering header from Gabriel Roberto, restoring Tai Po' advantage at 2:1.
Eastern pushed for another equalizer, with Ma Hei Wai surging into the box and delivering a teasing cross to the far post, but the unmarked Liu Hing Yau couldn't connect in time.
In the end, Tai Po held on for a nail-biting 2:1 win, securing maximum points from this crucial encounter.