Hamriya, Diba Al Hisn, and Al Orooba United Advance to Cup Quarterfinals

Four teams secured their spots in the third preliminary round of the UAE President's Cup yesterday, moving one step closer to the Round of 16. Al Hamriyah, Dibba Al Hisn, Al Urubah, and United all won their matches to advance from the first division qualifying stage.

Dibba Al Hisn delivered the most convincing performance, beating Al Arabi 2-0. Algerian striker Akasha Hamzawi opened the scoring in the 18th minute, and Brazilian Lucas Rocha sealed the victory with a late goal in the 86th minute. The team controlled the match from start to finish.

Al Hamriyah squeezed past Hatta with a narrow 1-0 win. Abdullah Ibrahim scored the only goal just before halftime in the 40th minute. It was a tight contest that could have gone either way, but Al Hamriyah held their nerve.

The most entertaining match came from Al Urubah, who beat hosts Majd 3-2 in a back-and-forth thriller. Brazilian Lucas de Souza got things started early with a 10th-minute goal. Portuguese midfielder Ivanildo Silva doubled the lead just before halftime, and Brazilian Francisco Diego extended it to 3-0 in the 66th minute.

But Majd wasn't done yet. Algerian striker Aboubaker Bouktoch pulled one back in the 34th minute, and Abdullah Al Hammadi scored with 10 minutes left to make it 3-2. The late rally fell just short, leaving Al Urubah to celebrate a hard-fought victory.

United rounded out the day with a 1-0 win over Al Dhaid. Brazilian midfielder Gustavo Oliveira scored the decisive goal in the 42nd minute, giving his team just enough to advance.

These four teams now join the third preliminary round, where they'll face tougher competition as they try to reach the Round of 16. The President's Cup remains one of the UAE's most competitive domestic tournaments, giving first division clubs a chance to test themselves against higher-level opponents.