By Staff Reporter,

Defending CAF Champions League champions ES Sétif were held to a 1-1 draw by Al Merreikh at Stade du 8 mai 1945 on Saturday evening.

The stalemate leaves the two sides deadlocked on four points apiece in group Group B after three rounds of fixtures.

The visitors looked more threatening in the early exchanges, but it would be the the Algerians to open the scoring through Abdelmalek Ziaya in the 16th minute.

Setif’s lead lasted all of nine minutes before Nigerian midfielder Solomon Jabason found the equaliser for the Sudanese giants with a bullet header.

The two teams cancelled each other out throughout the second-half, with Bakri Almadina brilliantly denied by Setif’s Abderaouf Belhani.

Said Arroussi had a chance late on to secure all three points for the Black Eagles, but he failed to hit the target from a pin-point Fares Hachi free-kick.

Setif and Al Merreikh trail group leaders USM Alger, who have three wins from three, by five points.

The two teams will once again square off, in the reverse fixture, in Omdurman on Sunday 9 August.