A 2-2 draw against Eastern in the JC Sapling Cup the past Monday saw Kitchee finished the 3rd of group B after 8 group-stage games.
An early goal put Eastern ahead after 3 minutes, but midfielder Mingazov pulled one back for Kitchee just 7 minutes after the second-half. A goal at the 69th minute from Eastern saw Kitchee behind their opponent again and they needed two goals to overturn the match in order to get into the semi-final. Defender Hélio scored a dramatic equalizer for Kitchee at the 88th minute but it wasn’t enough to overcome Eastern. The 2-2 draw saw Kitchee eliminated from the competition.