South Sudan Super Cup Final: How Al-Ghazala Wau’s Efficiency Secured the Title Against El Merrikh Bentiu’s Dominance
By: Emmanuel Ashaya | Sports Hunter South Sudan
JUBA - The South Sudan Super Cup final delivered a fascinating tactical battle between Al-Ghazala Wau and El Merrikh Bentiu, with Al-Ghazala securing a 1–0 victory. The match once again demonstrated that possession and dominance do not necessarily guarantee success in a final.
El Merrikh Bentiu entered the match with great confidence and imposed their style from the opening minutes. They were the more dominant side in possession, better in their positioning, build-up play, and ability to reach the final third.
GEM, wearing 25, was one of El Merrikh’s key attacking outlets, benefiting from the support provided by BANGASI, 40, while MASHA, 3, played an important role in switching the play and searching for spaces.
This setup made El Merrikh the more active attacking side throughout the first half, but they faced one major problem: the lack of a clinical final touch.
El Merrikh dominated, but they failed to score.
Al-Ghazala Wau: A Half of Patience and Defensive Discipline
On the other side, Al-Ghazala Wau head coach RIZIK HAKIM approached the match with a highly pragmatic strategy.
Al-Ghazala did not try to engage El Merrikh in an open game. Instead, their main focus was on defensive organization, closing spaces, and absorbing the opponent’s pressure.
Throughout the first half, Al-Ghazala showed very little attacking aggression and created no significant attacking transitions. Their main priority was protecting PITIA’s goal and maintaining the compactness of their defensive structure.
The attacking duo of David Vincent and ZACKERIYA remained largely quiet and away from dangerous areas.
Defensively, however, Al-Ghazala were well organized and successfully kept El Merrikh from converting their clear dominance into a goal.
And that was Al-Ghazala’s first tactical victory:
If you cannot control the game, at least do not allow your opponent to capitalize on their control.
The Second Half: The Game Changes
The second half brought a completely different phase of the match.
El Merrikh tried to maintain their dominance, but the substitutions made by their coach were not entirely successful, particularly the withdrawals of Habibo and BANGASI, No. 40, who had been providing an important contribution on the flank, both defensively and offensively.
After these changes, El Merrikh began to lose some of their strength on the wings and became less balanced compared with their first-half performance.
The introduction of KEER, No. 19, along with the positional change involving GEM, No. 25, also affected one of El Merrikh’s most dangerous attacking outlets.
GEM had been one of the most active players in the first half, but the positional change reduced his influence instead of giving El Merrikh the additional attacking threat they needed.
Al-Ghazala Come Out of Their Shell
This was when Al-Ghazala Wau began to show a different personality.
After spending the first half primarily defending, they became much more aggressive in the second half, particularly in long balls, second balls, and physical one-on-one duels.
As El Merrikh began to lose some of their structure, spaces started to appear, and Al-Ghazala were ready to exploit them.
The match was no longer simply El Merrikh attacking and Al-Ghazala defending. It became a game in which Al-Ghazala were waiting for the right moment to launch a transition.
81st Minute: Three Passes to Win the Cup!
Then came the moment that decided everything.
After winning the ball back inside their own defensive area, Al-Ghazala did not need prolonged possession or a complicated passing sequence.
Just three passes were enough to transform a defensive situation into a devastating counterattack that ended with the winning goal in the 81st minute.
And this is where the biggest contrast of the match becomes clear:
El Merrikh needed an entire half of dominance to reach dangerous areas, while Al-Ghazala needed just three passes to reach the championship-winning goal.
The goal was not simply an isolated moment; it was the direct result of the tactical transformation that had taken place during the match:
Win the ball → quick pass → exploit the space → goal.
Tactical Conclusion
El Merrikh Bentiu were not poor in this match. In fact, they produced an excellent first half in terms of possession, build-up play, and attacking through the flanks.
However, their main problem was their failure to turn their dominance into goals. Then, the substitutions affected the team’s balance and created more space for Al-Ghazala to attack in transition.
Al-Ghazala Wau, meanwhile, played a completely different game. They defended patiently in the first half, became more aggressive in the second half, and waited for the right moment to deliver the decisive blow.
In the end, Al-Ghazala did not need a large number of chances.
They needed just one chance... and three passes.
Al-Ghazala Wau 1–0 El Merrikh Bentiu
Al-Ghazala Wau are the South Sudan Super Cup champions.
“El Merrikh had the control, but Al-Ghazala had the efficiency. In finals, the team that dominates does not always win; the team that takes advantage of the moment that decides the trophy does.”
