Challenge

Croatia Arena
Spectators: 45 (Terracing: 35, Seating: 10, VIP seats: 0) The field was rather wet after several days of rain when Michael Ahlroth took the kick off in the first half of the match. In the 3rd minute the ball was on its way in behind Croatia's goalkeeper Ilija Skugor, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. Leonardo Pisculichi blasted a shot towards the goal in the 9th minute, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar and went out without Ilija Skugor having to make a save. Ilija Skugor made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Leonardo Pisculichi in the 9th minute of play. When the match clock showed 11 minutes, the score became 0-1 when Leonardo Pisculichi sped through Croatia's defense and sent away a curving shot that went into the net to the right of Ilija Skugor. After 17 minutes of play, the referee blew the whistle. It was a penalty for Croatia! Leonardo Pisculichi might have been able to make a better finish in the 22nd minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Ilija Skugor. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Leonardo Pisculichi ran back to his position shaking his head. Ilija Skugor took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Leonardo Pisculichi, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Croatia's Ilija Skugor played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Leonardo Pisculichi in the 28th minute of play. Leonardo Pisculichi scored 0-5 in the 32nd match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Ilija Skugor, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. 35 minutes into the match, Croatia's goal looked a bit too open when Leonardo Pisculichi came free, but Ilija Skugor reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Ilija Skugor stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Leonardo Pisculichi's shot from short distance in the 38th minute. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Leonardo Pisculichi in the 43rd managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Ilija Skugor saved Croatia from getting behind. In the 45th minute, Leonardo Pisculichi made a precise shot to the right of Ilija Skugor. Croatia's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 0-7. The crowd was extremely unhappy with the home team's performance in the first half. They were losing 0-7.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Martin Bosak stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. In the 56th minute, Leonardo Pisculichi made a precise shot to the right of Ilija Skugor. Croatia's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 0-9. In the 64thth minute of the game Leonardo Pisculichi who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Croatia's Ilija Skugor was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. Michael Ahlroth could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 65th minute of the match, but Ilija Skugor made a huge save. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Leonardo Pisculichi in the 66th managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Ilija Skugor saved Croatia from getting behind. When the match clock showed 66 minutes, the score became 0-11 when Leonardo Pisculichi sped through Croatia's defense and sent away a curving shot that went into the net to the right of Ilija Skugor. 69 minutes into the game, Ψ virgen Ψ's Michael Ahlroth nearly tore a hole in the net with a booming shot. Ilija Skugor made a valiant effort, but he could not reach the ball in time, 0-12. A throw-in in the 72nd minute of the game was made by Silvije Santek with Neven Culina as target, who quickly passed the ball forward. After 75 minutes of play, Ψ virgen Ψ's Leonardo Pisculichi made it 0-13 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! The throw-in from Silvije Santek in the 79th minute of the game was unfortunally taken care of by Ψ virgen Ψ's Pepillo Santandres. 80 minutes into the match, Croatia's goalkeeper Ilija Skugor had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Leonardo Pisculichi. 83 minutes into the game, Silvije Santek threw the ball into play from the sideline. Ψ virgen Ψ's Celso Gar quickly snatched the ball and retained possesion. Ilija Skugor made a fantastic save in the 84th minute, when Leonardo Pisculichi sent off a good shot on target. Eduard Kostelac charged in rather forcefully in the 85th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Eduard Kostelac the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. The supporters of Ψ virgen Ψ booed when Croatia was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 86 match minutes in a wonderful position. Eduard Kostelac didn't get a good kick on the ball. Ψ virgen Ψ's Leonardo Pisculichi got a good chance for a goal in the 87th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Ilija Skugor stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Leonardo Pisculichi's shot from short distance in the 89th minute. Pepillo Santandres recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 91st minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. Thanks to some nice foot action and superb ball handling Leonardo Pisculichi in the 94th minute a chance for a shot on goal. With an extended leg and a bit of luck Ilija Skugor prevented the ball from getting in the gole. 95 minutes into the match, Croatia's goalkeeper Ilija Skugor had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Leonardo Pisculichi. When the match was over Ψ virgen Ψ could go home with a victory in their luggage, having controlled the game far better than Croatia throughout the match.