The 1981–82 Arab Club Champions Cup was the first edition of the Arab Club Champions Cup. The tournament featured three teams, after the withdrawal of South Yemeni club Al-Tilal, Saudi club Al-Nassr and Somali club Horseed.
Iraqi club Al-Shorta were crowned champions after a playoff victory against Lebanese side Al-Nejmeh. Al-Ahli of Jordan were the other team to take part.
Teams Participants TeamQualifying method Al-Shorta1979–80 Iraqi National League champions Al-Ahli1979 Jordan League champions Al-Nejmeh1974–75 Lebanese Premier League champions (most recent Lebanese championship)
Withdrawals TeamQualifying method Al-Tilal1979–80 South Yemeni League champions Al-Nassr1979–80 Saudi Premier League champions Horseed1979–80 Somali First Division champions
Semi-finals The six teams were originally drawn into two groups, with one group consisting of Al-Nejmeh, Al-Ahli and Al-Tilal, and the other group consisting of Al-Shorta, Horseed and Al-Nassr. However, Al-Nassr withdrew due to several of their players being unavailable on international duty, and Al-Tilal also withdrew.
A two-legged semi-final was therefore set up between Al-Nejmeh and Al-Ahli, with both matches being held at Amman International Stadium in Amman, Jordan due to the Lebanese Civil War.
Horseed were scheduled to travel to Baghdad on 2 February to play Al-Shorta in the other semi-final, but they withdrew, meaning that Al-Shorta qualified directly for the final.
Final Both legs of the final were held at Al-Shaab Stadium in Baghdad, Iraq due to the Lebanese Civil War.
First leg Al-Nejmeh's kits and boots were lost at the airport and did not arrive in Baghdad in time for the first leg, therefore Al-Shorta provided kits and boots to the Al-Nejmeh team to wear for the match. Al-Nejmeh wore red shirts with white shorts and black boots (except for the player Mohammed Hatoum who wore white boots), while Al-Shorta wore green shirts with white shorts and green socks.
Al-Shorta took the lead in the 40th minute; Mahmoud Hussein Mahmoud beat an Al-Nejmeh player on the right wing and sent in a cross which his brother Ali Hussein Mahmoud met with a header, sending the ball over Al-Nejmeh goalkeeper Zain Hashim and into the net. Ali Hussein Mahmoud scored his second goal in the 83rd minute, as he was sent through on goal and netted with a left-footed shot towards the near post from inside the penalty area. The Kuwaiti referee also awarded Al-Shorta a penalty in the match, but it was missed by Ali Hussein Mahmoud, and the match ended 2–0.
Second leg Al-Nejmeh wore orange shirts, black shorts and orange socks for the second leg, and the Lebanese side took the lead in the first half through Jamal Al-Khatib who got onto the end of a corner delivered by Al-Nejmeh's captain and struck the ball past goalkeeper Raad Hammoudi. Al-Shorta equalised in the first half when Riyadh Nouri bundled the ball over the line after an Al-Nejmeh defender had made a goal-line block. Al-Nejmeh took the lead again in the second half when Hassan Chatila scored with a shot from outside the penalty area, but Al-Shorta brought the game back level and restored their two-goal aggregate advantage when Tariq Abdul-Amir crossed the ball into the box for Salih Radhi to finish.
Al-Nejmeh player Jamal Al-Khatib suffered a dislocated hip during the match, which ended 2–2, therefore making Al-Shorta 4–2 winners on aggregate. Al-Shorta manager Douglas Aziz was presented with the trophy after the game.
Winner 1981–82 Arab Club Champions Cup WinnersAl-Shorta1st Title
Top goalscorers RankPlayerTeamGoals1 Ali Hussein Mahmoud Al-Shorta2 Jamal Al-Khatib Al-Nejmeh Hassan Chatila Al-Nejmeh4 Shaker Salamah Al-Ahli1 Riyadh Nouri Al-Shorta Salih Radhi Al-Shorta
References
External links 1981/1982 season - Al-Shorta video archive