Al Dhafra came from behind to secure a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Hatta on Saturday evening at Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Stadium, earning their first three points of the ADNOC Pro League season.

Al Dhafra made the stronger start and looked the more threatening side in the opening stages. In the 20th minute, the visitors were awarded a penalty, but the decision was overturned following a VAR review. The ruling sparked strong protests from Al Dhafra players and coaching staff, particularly after an earlier goal had also been ruled out following the preceding incident.

Hatta then took the lead in the 24th minute through Tunisian striker Seifeddine Al Jaziri. His effort struck the post before deflecting off Al Dhafra goalkeeper Amjad Al Sayed and ending up in the back of the net.

Al Dhafra responded strongly after the break, increasing the attacking pressure and making the most of Hatta’s numerical disadvantage. Their persistence was rewarded in the 57th minute when Rostand D jooh fired a powerful effort from outside the box to bring the visitors level.

Hatta came close to restoring their lead in the 75th minute on a dangerous counterattack. Firas Al Arabi’s powerful long-range effort struck the post before falling back to him, but Al Dhafra goalkeeper Amjad Al Sayed reacted brilliantly to keep out his second attempt.

With five minutes remaining, Al Dhafra completed the comeback. Moroccan forward Karim El Berkaoui found the back of the net in the 85th minute to put his side ahead and secure a valuable three points.

The victory takes Al Dhafra to three points and 12th place in the standings, while Hatta remain 13th with the same number of points.

A crucial victory for the Knights of Al Dhafra, who will be hoping to build on this result and continue their climb up the table in the coming fixtures.