Burkina Faso's Abdoulaye Cisse scored twice for Masry
Coastal sides Ismaily and Masry kicked off their Egyptian Premier League campaign in style, beating Petrojet and promoted side Ghazl El-Mahalla respectively on Friday.
Big-spending Masry, who are bankrolled by film producer Kamel Abou Ali, crushed El-Mahalla 3-0 away from home in a bad-tempered match that was marred towards the end after the disgruntled home fans hurled stones onto the pitch.
Burkina Faso striker Abdoulaye Cisse opened the scoring after 12 minutes with a superb glancing header after connecting with a right-wing cross.
Midfielder Mahmoud Touba, who joined from Cairo giants Ahly in the close season, doubled the lead on 25 minutes after sending a precise low shot into the bottom corner of the net from the edge of the area.
The match was halted for around 20 minutes after a barrage of stones were thrown by El-Mahalla fans, whose team produced a below-par performance on the opening day of the season.
Cisse completed the rout deep in stoppage time when he finished off a breakaway.
Ismaily, who are beset by constant financial problems, got off their campaign to a winning start after defeating Petrojet 3-1 in a match that was played behind closed doors, thanks to an inspirational performance from star midfielder Hosni Abd-Rabou.
The Egyptian international, who stayed put after rejecting Zamalek’s overtures in the summer, needed five minutes to put Ismaily ahead with a powerful long-range free kick which went past the motionless keeper.
He converted a penalty eight minutes after the restart to add the second before winger Omar Gamal killed off Petrojet’s hopes with a 63rd-minute goal. The visitors scored a consolation through Ivorian midfielder Mohamed Koffi one minute from time.
Last season’s surprise package Maqassa crushed prompted Bani Suef Telephones 3-0, thanks to a brace from Ivorian frontman Oussou Konan.
Geish claimed a 2-1 victory over Arab Contractors while Ittihad El-Shorta beat El-Entag El-Harby 2-1.
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