AUSTRALIA: Wolves Park may not have the grandeur of other stadiums in Saudi Arabia, but it lacks nothing when it comes to drama — especially in Al-Taawoun’s run to the AFC Champions League Two semi-finals.

The 6,000-capacity stadium on the northern edges of Buraidah will on Tuesday host arguably the biggest game in the team’s history, 2019 King’s Cup final aside.

This is just the fourth time they have featured in Asian competition. While the ACL Two may be second tier, behind the AFC Champions League Elite, the new continental format means it is far more prestigious than its former incarnation, the AFC Cup.

After topping their group with five wins from six, Al-Taawoun faced Qatar’s Al-Wakrah in the Round of 16. After 2-2 draws across both legs, penalties decided the outcome — with Al-Taawoun advancing 4-3 after a thrilling climax in front of a raucous home crowd.

The drama of that night was not only matched but surpassed when they faced Iranian side Tractor in the quarterfinal. After a scoreless game in Iran, Al-Taawoun were confident of victory in front of a capacity crowd at Wolves Park.

A see-sawing battle ended 1-1 after 90 minutes, with both sides scoring again in extra time. Once more, penalties would test the nerves of the Al-Taawoun faithful who packed the stands.

Reserve goalkeeper Abdulquddus Atiah, deputizing for the injured Mailson, pulled off a huge save to deny Sajjad Ashouri and help his club through to a continental semifinal.

It was a moment that reduced interim coach Mohammed Al-Abdali to tears, pictured sitting in the center circle long after the final whistle had blown, as he took in the enormity of the moment. The rest of the ground was filled with wild celebrations.

“I thank the Al-Taawoun fans and promise them that we won’t stop at this stage, we will continue until the end,” 51-year-old Al-Abdali said afterwards.

Following that entree, admission to the 6,000-capacity stadium will be the hottest ticket in town on Tuesday.

Another full house is expected as the boutique venue hosts the first leg of the semi-final against UAE powerhouse Sharjah FC, with fans eyeing another slice of history.

If Al-Taawoun win the semifinal, a trip to either Singapore or Australia awaits. The ACL Two’s rotation policy means this year’s final will be hosted by the winner of the East Zone — either Singapore’s Lion City Sailors or Australia’s Sydney FC.

For a club the size of Al-Taawoun, the chance of a continental final rarely comes around. This might be their only opportunity for some time. 

The new structure means the top three finishers in the Saudi Pro League qualify for the AFC Champions League Elite, while the King’s Cup winners qualify for the AFC Champions League Two.

This season, the league’s “Big Five” fill all those spots — the four PIF-owned clubs plus Al-Qadsiah — and with their financial power increasing, it’s hard to see a future in which any other club can break in.

And with clubs like NEOM SC — coached by Pericles Chamusca, who guided Al-Taawoun to fourth last season — set to join the SPL next year, with all the financial backing they bring, expect it to be even tougher for the smaller clubs, which operate on far smaller budgets, to qualify for Asian competition as they did last season.

That’s what makes Al-Taawoun’s clash with Sharjah over the next two weeks so momentous. Never say never in sport, but this could be their make-or-break chance. After the high of their fourth-placed finish last season, they have come back to the pack this year and currently sit in seventh, nine points behind sixth-placed Al-Shabab.

Given the rising quality of the SPL, seventh for a club its size is nothing to be ashamed of, but it does highlight how difficult it will be to match last season’s heroics and return to this position in the future.

However, after a 2-0 win over Al-Kholood last Friday, Al-Taawoun carry with them confidence and momentum.

With the finals of the ACL Elite in Saudi Arabia in just over two weeks, it would be easy for this match to fall under the radar as attention focuses on the country’s biggest clubs, stadiums and fan bases.

But not in Buraidah. Not among the Al-Taawoun faithful. They’ll be at Wolves Park on Tuesday hoping to add another successful chapter to the club’s rich history.

MIAMI: The all-Australian Ripper GC team held a preseason training camp in January on the Blue Monster at Trump National Doral. The weather was cold, misty and windy. The 10th fairway was inaccessible. The conditions were brutal — but the payoff came Sunday at LIV Golf Miami.

The Rippers won the battle of survival under the harshest scoring circumstances in league history, with popular veteran Marc Leishman claiming his first LIV Golf individual title after shooting the week’s only bogey-free round. His Rippers won the team title with a cumulative 4-over total, the first time any team has won with an over-par score.

“It kicked our butts when we were here in January for the training camp, and it did the same again this week,” Leishman said. “I guess it kicked our butt less than everyone else.”

Leishman conquered the Blue Monster on Sunday by posting the only bogey-free round by any player this week, a 5-under 67 to finish at 6 under, one stroke better than Stinger GC’s Charl Schwartzel. Fireballs GC captain Sergio Garcia was another stroke back in solo third.

It’s the 14th time in LIV Golf history that a team has swept both trophies. And it’s the first win of any kind in four years for the 41-year-old Leishman, who had three runner-up finishes and five other top 10s since joining LIV Golf with his captain Cameron Smith in the middle of the inaugural 2022 season.

“It’s been a long time coming for Leish,” Smith said. “He’s knocked on so many doors, and at times has felt probably unlucky. Even for me as a mate, I’ve felt like he’s been unlucky.”

In the previous LIV Golf tournament in Singapore last month, Leishman tied for 51st, his worst result in LIV Golf. 

But on a demanding course toughened by wind gusts and firm greens, Leishman produced a masterpiece of steady, patient play.

“It was pretty disgusting how I played there,” Leishman said of Singapore. “To come back on a golf course like this where there’s trouble around every single corner, I think playing so bad in Singapore helped me today just not letting my guard down at all.”

Leishman started Sunday three shots off the lead but quickly moved up the leaderboard with birdies in two of his first four holes. 

He shared the lead with round 2 leader Bryson DeChambeau through eight holes, but the Crushers GC captain went bogey-double bogey around the turn to effectively end his chances.

Leishman’s final birdie of the day at the par-5 10th gave him a three-shot cushion and he nursed it with eight consecutive pars to end his round, never providing his challengers with an opening.

Even so, several players made a charge on the back nine.

Stingers GC’s Charl Schwartzel reeled off four straight birdies to climb into contention, while teammate Dean Burmester, the defending LIV Golf Miami champion, also made noise before a disastrous final two holes.

Garcia, seeking his second win of the season, was 3-under during a 11-hole stretch. 

His birdie at the 17th after a brilliant approach shot moved him within a shot of Leishman’s lead.

Leishman, playing in the group ahead of Garcia, found the trees with his tee shot at the 18th and had to punch out. 

His third shot left him 13 feet above the pin, but he knocked in the clutch par putt to keep the lead. 

Garcia ultimately bogeyed the 18th, hitting his tee shot into the trees, then finding the water with his approach. 

“I’ve played well in a lot of LIV events,” Leishman said. “I’ve had chances to win, haven’t won. You wonder if you’re going to win again … I doubted myself but that just made it all so much sweeter today.”