Over 40 persons have been injured (some critically) as two buses one travelling from Galle to Ampara and the other from Tangalle to Matara crashed head on at Talalla Matara this morning.

The injured have been admitted to the Matara General Hospital and Bathhegama District Hospital.

Sweden salvaged a 1-1 draw with Japan as both sides confirmed their progress to the World Cup knockout rounds after Anthony Elanga curled in a 62nd-minute equaliser to earn his side a share of the points in Group F.

Elanga struck six minutes after Daizen Maeda had finished off a team move of the highest quality for Japan, who finish second in the group with five points to set up a last 32 clash with five-time world champions Brazil.

The Swedes remain third with four points, and that will be enough to secure one of the eight slots available in the next phase for the best third-placed teams across the 12 groups.

The points were shared after a tepid first half that only showed signs of life moments before the interval on Thursday.

Keito Nakamura went closest to opening the scoring, the Japan winger hitting a low first-time strike from Maeda’s layoff that forced Jacob Widell Zetterstrom into a full-stretch save to push the ball around his left post.

Viktor Gyokeres then found space at the other end to drive towards goal, with a deflection from Shogo Taniguchi looping the resulting shot well wide of the target.

The Japanese came out for the second half with intent, with Ao Tanaka’s wayward strike underlining that Hajime Moriyasu’s side would not be content to sit back and take a point.

The dynamism of their play was rewarded when Maeda applied the finishing touch to an exquisite team goal instigated by Ritsu Doan.

The winger received a return pass from Ayase Ueda as he cut in from the right and slid the ball into the space between the Swedish centre-backs for the unmarked Maeda to stroke his shot home.

Japan’s lead was to last six minutes, however, as Elanga contributed a quality finish of his own to equalise, bending a left-foot strike from the corner of the area over the Japanese defence and past the unsighted Zion Suzuki.

Suzuki had to be at his sharpest to keep the scores level three minutes later with a sprawling save to his left to keep out Alexander Isak’s attempt, as the Swedes belatedly started to show their attacking quality.

And the goalkeeper was on hand to deny Isak again in stoppage time, palming the forward’s header into the air to confirm a second-place finish for the Japanese.

[Aljazeera]

The Netherlands overcame Tunisia 3-1 to top World Cup Group F, avoiding a tricky encounter with Brazil in the last 32.

Ronald Koeman’s men flew into a two-goal lead in soggy Kansas City, thanks to some poor defending from their opponents, who leave the tournament without a point.

First, Ellyes Skhiri sliced Denzel Dumfries’s cross into his own net, and minutes later, Sunderland forward Brian Brobbey lashed home from close range.

That apparently sealed the deal for the Netherlands, whose orange-clad fans were entertaining themselves with Mexican waves midway through the first half at Arrowhead Stadium.

Tunisia pulled a goal back in the second half, but the Dutch restored their two-goal lead courtesy of a Jan Paul van Hecke header shortly after the hour mark.

The Netherlands, who finished their group fixtures with seven points, pipped Japan to top spot in Group F, and will face Morocco in the second round in Monterrey on Monday.

Japan drew 1-1 against Sweden in Arlington, Texas, to confirm second spot, though the Scandinavian side also advanced as one of the eight best-placed teams who finished third.

Thursday’s game started on time after a lightning storm had threatened major disruption earlier in the American Midwest.

Tunisia went close in the opening moments, when Ismael Gharbi fired over from close range, but that proved a false indicator of what was to come.

Instead, Skhiri turned the ball into his own net in the third minute to put the three-time finalists in front.

Just four minutes later, Brobbey smashed home his third goal of the World Cup after Virgil van Dijk headed a cross goal following a Tijjani Reijnders free kick.

Tunisia threatened to unravel further but managed to reach half-time without conceding again.

The North Africans pulled a goal back in the 54th minute, when Hazem Mastouri headed home from Hannibal Mejbri’s corner.

But any potential jitters were quickly dispelled minutes later, when Van Hecke’s header from Reijnders’s corner found its way into the net via a deflection.

Tunisia will go home with their tails between their legs after an embarrassing campaign in which they shipped 12 goals in three games.

Veteran French coach Herve Renard was hired last week, after Sabri Lamouchi was fired following the team’s 5-1 hammering by Sweden in their opening match in Mexico.

But he was unable to stop the rot, as Tunisia, who romped through qualifying without conceding a single goal,n collapsed 4-0 against Japa before their defeat against the Dutch.

[Aljazeera]