Challenge

Dan Paltinisanu
Spectators: 40 (Terracing: 31, Seating: 9, VIP seats: 0) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Emilian Tărău kicked off to start the match. Toni Mauzer kicked well hit freekick during the 3rd minute of the match. Ilija Skugor showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Panait Nicoliță, who was totally free with the ball in the 5th minute. Cazimir Marincean took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Toni Mauzer, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Cazimir Marincean took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Toni Mauzer, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. In the 10th minute, Alexandru Maghear hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. In the 11th minute, Dinko Stankovic ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Cazimir Marincean was frozen by the shot and now it was 0-1. Ilija Skugor showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Alexandru Maghear, who was totally free with the ball in the 14th minute. If Martin Bosak had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 17th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. With a little luck, Croatia's Ilija Skugor got control of the ball when Robert Nestor tried to sneak it across the goal line. FC POLI TIMISOARA's Cazimir Marincean played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Toni Mauzer in the 20th minute of play. Alexandru Maghear could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 27th minute of the match, but Ilija Skugor made a huge save. The crowd rose to their feet as Alexandru Maghear kicked a wonderful shot that went in to the left of a diving Ilija Skugor. That made the score 1-1 in the 31 minute of play. The referee felt a red card was in order, 34 minutes into the game, when Benjamin Domazet put in a rough tackle. After a rather tough play, Croatia's Benjamin Domazet got a free kick in the 35th minute. After 40 played minutes Croatia got a freekick which was hit by Martin Bosak. 44 minutes into the match, Croatia's goalkeeper Ilija Skugor had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Irinel Breazu. The first half was very even, with the score at 1-1 when the whistle went for half-time. The players welcomed the break and quickly retired to the dressing rooms.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Martin Bosak was the one to do the kick off. After 56 minutes of play, FC POLI TIMISOARA's Emilian Tărău made it 2-2 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Ilija Skugor was left in no man's land by his defense there! Nichifor Benga took the ball and in the 59 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised Ilija Skugor. Ilija Skugor dived to the right, and did manage to get a hand on the shot, but it still went into the right corner making it 3-2. An unexpectedly hard shot by Emilian Tărău in the 66th minute of play forced Croatia's goalkeeper Ilija Skugor to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Eduard Kostelac during the 66th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. A collision led to Croatia getting a freekick after 66 minutes play. Eduard Kostelac hit a great ball. 70 minutes into the match, Emilian Tărău had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Ilija Skugor. Croatia's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Emilian Tărău was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 4-2. When Damir Pongrac fell near the penalty area in the 76th minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored Croatia's protests and gave Damir Pongrac a yellow card for diving instead. After 79 minutes of play, FC POLI TIMISOARA's Irinel Breazu made it 5-2 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Ilija Skugor was left in no man's land by his defense there! Cazimir Marincean made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Martin Bosak in the 86th minute of play. Ilija Skugor showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Emilian Tărău in the 88th minute of the match. A collision led to Croatia getting a freekick after 89 minutes play. Silvije Santek hit a great ball. An unexpectedly hard shot by Irinel Breazu in the 92nd minute of play forced Croatia's goalkeeper Ilija Skugor to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. There was no doubt that FC POLI TIMISOARA were the better team. FC POLI TIMISOARA's players enjoyed the ovations of the crowd after the victory.