Ali Thameem
Three teams from group C of the King’s Cup 2026 have secured their spot in the quarterfinals, as unbeaten Cora Cora Maldives finish the group stage on top.
Cora Cora finished the group with a goalless draw against STELCO RC last night. The Raa Atoll resort was held back for the first time in three games. They had previously managed narrow wins against both Conrad Maldives and Club Binaara.
The one point from last night’s draw means Cora Cora finished the group with seven points and a two-goal advantage.
Group runner-ups and Resort Super League champions Conrad Maldives fell just one point short of Cora Cora. Conrad confirmed their spot in the quarters after last night’s victory over Club Binaara.
A brilliant hat-trick from Mohamed Shanau Naseer helped Conrad advance to the quarterfinals. Shanaau was the one to break the deadlock in the first half, before Club Binaara equalized. Conrad fought back to take the lead via Hussain Shifaah. Shanaau went on to complete the hat-trick in the second half.
A draw may not have been ideal for STELCO RC, who narrowly stepped into the quarterfinal stage with just four points. But the one point earned last night is going to be enough for STELCO to advance as one of the two best-placed third place teams. They finished one point ahead of Group B’s third placed team – Road Recreation Club – the defending champions of the tournament.
STELCO had started off the group stage with a big win over Club Binaara but lost to Conrad Maldives in the second fixture.
