It's celebration time for Shandong Luneng.
Amid a sea of supporters clad in the team's orange jersey, the
coastal side edged visiting Beijing Hyundai 1-0 last night before a
packed house of 50,000 - a record attendance figure for this year's
Chinese Super League - at Jinan Stadium to capture the 2006 CSL
championship, with six rounds remaining in the season.
The victory, Shandong's 11th in a row and 19th in 23 starts so
far this season, widened the gap on its nearest rival Changchun
Yatai to an unassailable 20 points despite the later's 3-0
thrashing of Shenzhen Kingway earlier in the day. Shandong has
collected 60 points.
Chinese international Han Peng grabbed the winner only three
minutes into the match, slotting home a Zheng Zhi freekick.
Li Jinyu, the league's top scorer with 22 goals under his belt,
almost doubled the margin before the break when his close-range
header was tipped over by Beijing keeper Yang Zhi.
But the one goal difference was enough for Shandong to capture
its second domestic top-division title after the victorious 1999
season.
With the championship clinched, Shandong will now be aiming for
a brace on the domestic scene. It entertains International Xi'an in
the second leg of the FA Cup semifinal on Friday, having already
won the first leg 3-1 away.
Elsewhere yesterday, eight-time domestic champion Dalian Shide
scraped past Shenyang Ginde 2-1 to climb up to fifth in the table,
behind Beijing in fourth place.
(Shanghai Daily August 28, 2006)