DOHA -- Qatar rounded off their World Cup
first round qualifying campaign with a 3-0 win over Hong Kong on
Sunday.
Dhahi Noubi opened the scoring for the Qataris on the stroke
of halftime and Mechaal Mubarak and Jassem Tamimi sealed victory
with goals in the final two minutes of the Asian zone group
three match.
Qatar had already qualified for the second Asian stage with
Friday's 2-1 victory over Palestine. They join Saudi Arabia,
Iran and Bahrain in the next phase which kicks off in
mid-August.
In the night's other match in group three Malaysia twice
came from behind to beat Palestine 4-3, Akmal Rizal scoring
twice.
Qatar finished the group unbeaten with 16 points from six
matches, nine points clear of second-placed Palestine and
Malaysia in third.
COPYRIGHT 2001 Reuters Limited. All rights
reserved. Republication or
redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior
written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or
delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.