Football Wales ride their luck to gain crucial win in Kazakhstan

WALES went top of their World Cup qualifying group with a hard-fought 1-0 win in Kazakhstan yesterday.

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Kieffer Moore marked the occasion of his 50th cap with a 24th-minute strike from close range.

It was Moore's 15th international goal and drew him level with the great John Charles.

Wales entered the Group J contest ranked 83 places higher than Kazakhstan in the FIFA world rankings, whose position of 114th casts them among the minnows of European football.

But Kazakhstan caused plenty of problems and their energetic second-half performance - when they hit the crossbar twice - merited a point.

More than 1,100 Wales fans had made the 3,000-mile trip to Central Asia across six time zones for the furthest Wales had ever travelled for a competitive game.

As well as the logistical challenges of that journey, Wales were also faced with an artificial playing surface at the Astana Arena, something manager Craig Bellamy had admitted he was “not a fan of”.

Joe Rodon’s late withdrawal through injury gave Bellamy a dilemma that he resolved by handing Dylan Lawlor his debut.