With every TFPL side having now played at least half of their games, the destinies of each team are starting to become apparent. With Taipower suffering an unexpected loss to Taichung Rock, a three horse race between Hang Yuan, AC Taipei and Tainan FC is now emerging at the top of the table.

AC Taipei: 2 – Tatung FC: 2

Naoyuki Yamazaki got things going after just five minutes when the Japanese forward finished cooly from close range after Taipei had driven the ball down the right-hand side of the field. Chen Jui-chieh then equalized for Tatung from a corner after Hsuan Tuan rashly left his line but was unable to reach the ball.

Yamazaki picked up his second goal of the game with fifty-three minutes played after he beat the Tatung offside trap and got onto countryman Jun Uchida‘s carefully weighted through-ball.

But Tatung would have the last laugh after tying the game, this time from a free kick conceded by Yamazaki. The subsequent cross into the box did not look especially threatening but when Hsuan again got himself caught in no-mans land, Wei Pei-lun‘s opportunistic header was able to loop into an empty net.

Hang Yuan: 2 – Taichung Futuro: 1

Hang Yuan scored first after Genki Tateiwa surged down the left wing before spotting the run of Kang Tae-won into the box. The Taiwanese national team player didn’t have much room to work with but his first-time shot was powerful enough to find the bottom corner of the net. Kang then scored his second of the game directly from a corner kick to give his side a sizable lead before halftime.

Taichung were able to get themselves on the scoresheet when Liou Wei-Zhe‘s curling pass was firmly headed home at the far post by Chen Ting-yang. But with only ten minutes to play, Hang Yuan were savvy enough to close out the game without conceding again.

Tainan City: 5 – Ming Chuan: 0

Tainan put a hurting on bottom side Ming Chuan in a result that keeps the Hawks in third place– albeit with a game in hand.

The home side signaled their intentions early when Diocunda Gory nearly scored with an acrobatic overhead kick after just six minutes. Tainan eventually went ahead through Matheus Porto‘s equally impressive volley from outside the box.

Porto added a second from a close range header before Jhon Benchy put Tainan up by three goals with his own header following a great cross from Yao Ko-chi. An own goal from Kuo Chia-cheng and a late strike from Benchy closed out an easy win for Tainan, who could have doubled their goal tally if things had fallen their way.

Taipower: 1 – Taichung Rock: 2

Three goals in a sixteen minute period defined a spicy game between Taipower and Taichung Rock, and it is possible that the CTFA will be looking at the game footage closely in case further punishment is required.

Gao Wei Jie put the team in green shirts ahead when Tu Shao-chieh‘s freekick was deflected onto his foot. But Taichung tied things up within minutes of Taipower’s goal. Having driven in from the right, Li Hung-chun saw his pass blocked by a defender but when the ball fell back into his path, Li uncorked a swerving shot from the edge of the box for his first goal of the season.

Remarkably, Taichung then scored the winner soon after when Li Yu-lin got on the receiving end of Chang Cheng-yang‘s inch-perfect long ball. Having controlled the pass, Li then finished firmly on his weaker foot from just outside the six-yard box.

That would prove to be final goal of the game but it wasn’t the last major moment. Just before halftime, Li accidentally kicked He Chiang-yang in the back whilst attempting to get the ball. In the heat of the moment, Taipower’s players felt it was an intentional act and several of them tried to get their hands on the Taichung full-back before the referee got the situation under control.

Photo Credit: AC Taipei