KUWAIT SOCCER TEAM DEVOURS BHUTAN 20-0 KUWAIT, FEB 14 (KUNA) -- KUWAIT DEVOURED NEWCOMERS BHUTAN ON MONDAY 20-0 IN GROUP FIVE OF THE ASIAN CUP QUALIFIERS. THE KUWAITIS SCORES 10 IN EACH HALF.
BHUTAN, PLAYING IN ONLY ITS SECOND INTERNATIONAL MATCH, WERE KEEN TO DEFEND THEIR GOAL AGAINST KUWAIT'S BARRAGE OF ATTACK AND SUCCEEDED FOR SOME 18 MINUTES BEFORE STRIKER FOR AL-HELAL OF SAUDI ARABIA JASSEM AL-HUWAIDI OPENED THE SCORING IN THE 19TH MINUTE.
AL-HUWAIDI, WHO WAS CROWNED AS THE WORLD'S SCORING CHAMPION LAST YEAR, SCORED FIVE MORE. KUWAIT'S OTHER STRIKER SCORED SEVEN MORE, WHILE YOUNG DEFENDER AHMAD A-MUTAIRI HAD A HAT TRICK.
FAWWAZ BAKHEET, ESSAM SAKEEN AND NUHAYYER AL-SHAMMARI SCORED ONE EACH. GOALIE AHMAD JASSEM WAS ALLOWED TO SLID HOME ONE OF THE GOALS FROM THE PENALTY SPOT.
KUWAIT COULD HAVE EASILY ADDED SOME 10 MORE IN THE ONE-SIDED MATCH.
BHUTAN HAD ONLY ONE SHOT ON GOAL DURING THE ENTIRE GAME, WHICH WAS LIKE A TRAINING SESSION FOR THE KUWAITIS, WHO THRASHED THEIR ONLY TRUE RIVAL IN THE GROUP, TURKMENISTAN 6-1 IN THE OPENER LAST THURSDAY.
THE GROUP ALSO INCLUDES YEMEN AND NEPAL.
WINNER OF THE GROUP WILL PLAY IN THE ASIAN CUP FINALS IN LEBANON THIS OCTOBER. (END) AA.AJ KUNA 142035 Feb 00NNNN