DOHA: Former Senegal international Mohamed Diame scored a late winner as Al Ahli edged out Qatar Sports Club 2-1 yesterday to seal their quarter-final spot in the prestigious Amir Cup. The match appeared to be headed for the penalties with the scores tied 1-1 when Diame rose high to produce a cracking header off a corner in the 88th minute to seal victory for Al Ahli. Ahli have won the Amir Cup four times, the first of which came in 1973 and the last in 1992. Since then their best performance is a runners-up finish in 2003. In recent years they have not been able to match their past standards and are currently placed eighth in the QNB Stars League with just five wins from 14 matches. Yesterday’s win though must have boosted their morale a wee bit as they fancy their chances of progressing further in the tournament. In a fast-paced match, both teams missed potential chances before former Ghanaian defender John Benson broke the deadlock in the 34th minute. Benson, who played for his country in the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in 2009 before joining the Aspire Academy in Doha, headed the ball in from just five yards out to put Al Ahli ahead. Although they dried their best, both teams failed to come up with any significant scoring opportunities for a considerable time after that. But a dashing run down the middle by Qatar Sports Club’s Uzbek striker Sardor Rashidov caught Al Ahli by surprise in the 64th minute, leading to the equalizer. Rashidov covered considerable ground and after trading a couple of passes scored with a powerful shot from just centimetres outside the penalty area. With time running out things got desperate but Al Ahli made good use of a late corner which saw the now-retired Senegal international finish off proceedings with just two minutes on the clock with Qatar SC bitterly disappointed.