MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Troubled Mexican side Veracruz have finally won a league match, ending a winless run of 41 games which saw them employ six different coaches, lasted 14 months and featured an unorthodox protest by the players.
A second-half goal by English-born forward Colin Kazim-Richards gave the Red Sharks a 1-0 win over Puebla on Tuesday, their first win since they beat Xolos de Tijuana on Aug. 25 last year.
Since then, Veracruz have lost 30 and drawn 11 matches with coaches Hugo Chavez, Jose Luis Gonzalez China, Juvenal Olmos, Robert Dante Siboldi, Enrique Meza and current incumbent Enrique Lopez Zarza all attempting to end the sequence.
Earlier this month, Veracruz players protested against unpaid wages by standing still for the first three minutes of their league match against UANL Tigres.
The Tigres players agreed not to play for the first minute but then twice walked the ball into the net as their opponents remained motionless, apart from re-starting the match. Tigres went on to win 3-1.
Despite the win, Veracruz remained bottom of the standings with seven points from 15 games.
(Writing by Brian Homewood; Editing by Christian Radnedge)