The race to the quarterfinals of the Club Maldives Cup 2025 heated up last night as Road Recreation Club (RRC), MACL, Stelco, and Maldivian emerged victorious in their respective Round of 16 encounters held at the Rehendhi Futsal Pitch.
RRC, the reigning Kings Cup champions, put on an impressive attacking display to defeat United BML 6–2. The match began with RRC taking the lead through Shanan Rashad, but BML responded with two quick goals, one from captain Ishan Ibrahim (Sattu) on the counterattack, followed by a well-taken free kick from Muzdhan Hassan.
However, RRC regained control before halftime, scoring three rapid goals courtesy of Ahmed Aflaaz, Ibrahim Aswadh (Gabey), and Adam Nasih.
In the second half, Nasih and Shanan both found the net again, putting the result beyond doubt and securing RRC’s place in the quarterfinals.
MACL, three-time champions of the tournament, edged past Club TTS in a thrilling 7–4 victory. They started strong, scoring three goals in the first half through Ahmed Hameed (Ammadey), Abdulla Suzair, and Azyan Ibrahim.
However, TTS bounced back after the break, leveling the game with goals from Ali Alson, Mohamed Reza, and an own goal by Mohamed Jinah of MACL. The game shifted again when TTS committed their sixth foul, resulting in a long penalty converted by Ahmed Husham (Husaanko).
As TTS pushed forward in desperation, MACL capitalized on the space, scoring three more long-range goals—two of them from Ammadey and Husaanko, and one from goalkeeper Mohamed Yamaan. Alson added a second goal late in the game for TTS, but it wasn’t enough to prevent MACL from advancing.
Stelco avenged their group-stage loss to Club HDC with a hard-fought 2–1 win. The match began after a 17-minute delay due to a technical issue, but once underway, Stelco wasted no time. Ahnaf Rasheed (Ahukko) opened the scoring with a quick counterattack.
HDC, spearheaded by their Portuguese star Ricardinho, struggled to break through Stelco’s defensive line, largely thanks to an outstanding performance from goalkeeper Russian Mohamed. In the second half, Stelco extended their lead when Naaih Mufeed (Naah) converted a long-range penalty awarded after HDC’s sixth foul. Despite HDC going all out with a powerplay strategy, they managed only a consolation goal from Hussain Suhail.
In the night’s final fixture, Maldivian Sports & Recreation Club clinched a 4–2 win over Dhiraagu, led by a standout performance from Ibrahim Nadad (Kudattey), who netted a hat-trick. Mohamed Abdulla (Mode) also got on the scoresheet for Maldivian. Mohamed Shaneez and Ashfaq Ahmed scored for Dhiraagu, but their efforts fell short as Maldivian held firm to progress to the quarterfinals.
The remaining four matches of the Round of 16 are set to take place tonight, as the tournament edges closer to crowning this year’s champions.
