Bahrain Snatch a 1-1 Draw Against Thailand
The teams had originally met on Saturday but the match was abandoned after 25 minutes, with Bahrain 1-0 in front, after an electrical fire broke out in Bangkok's Rajamangala Stadium.
Only pride was at stake for the two teams, with neither side able to qualify for next year's finals in Japan and South Korea.
The draw left Thailand rooted to the bottom of the table with just four points from seven matches. Bahrain are fourth in the five-team table with seven points.
The Thais took the lead on 21 minutes. Bahrain keeper Abdul Rahman Abdul Karim failed to gather a cross, and while Thai Captain Kiatisuk Senamuang's shot was blocked by a defender, striker Worrawoot Srimaka tucked in the rebound from a tight angle, said Reuters.
Thailand opened the second half brightly, but after defender Choketawee Promrut was sent off in the 74th minute for a second bookable offense they put everything into defense, desperately trying to hang on for their first win in the Group A qualifiers.
Their hopes were dashed four minutes into injury time when Bahrain's Hussain Ali Ahmed unleashed an 18-meter volley that crashed off the bar and went in.
"We were fired up for this one... We actually played quite well, scored a good goal from a challenge on the goalkeeper, and had another disallowed for a similar challenge," Thailand's English Coach, Peter Withe, told Reuters.
"Bahrain also came out and tried to win. They're a big physical side, and going into injury time we just made a stupid mistake. We gave the ball away and they scored when they rewon possession."
The group's final standings will be decided on Friday, when Bahrain play leaders Iran and second-placed Saudi Arabia host Thailand. Iran have 15 points, with Saudi Arabia a point behind.
The winner of Group A automatically qualifies for next year's World Cup, while the runner-up plays the second-placed team in Asian Group B for the right to contest a final playoff against the Republic of Ireland.
In the meantime, the last World Cup Asian Group A qualifying match between Iran and Bahrain was postponed, Iran's Football Federation (IFF) quoting Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced on Monday.
The Bahrain-Iran match was to be held in the stadium of Manama, Bahrain, at 8:30 p.m. on Friday but AFC changed the time and the two teams will clash on Sunday.
According to Asian Football Confederation, the Saudi Arabia-Thailand derby will be held in Riyadh, simultaneous with the Bahrain-Iran match.
The delay in the match between Thailand and Bahrain urged the AFC to change the schedule.
The referee stopped Thailand-Bahrain qualifier after an electrical fire in Bangkok stadium on Saturday.