Challenge

Croatia Arena
Spectators: 45 (Terracing: 35, Seating: 10, VIP seats: 0) Dimosthenis Tzalakostas started the match with the kick off in front of an excited audience. 3 minutes into the match, Dimosthenis Tzalakostas 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 Dimosthenis Tzalakostas was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 0-1. Damir Pongrac fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 7th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Panos Stergalas having to interfere. Panos Stergalas made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Martin Bosak in the 9th minute of play. When Damir Pongrac came up free with the goalie in the 10th minute, the Croatia fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Damir Pongrac couldn't finish the play. 11 minutes into the game, MELATES F.C.'s Tasos Valassatos 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, 0-2. 16 minutes into the match, Croatia's goal looked a bit too open when Dimosthenis Tzalakostas came free, but Ilija Skugor reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Ilija Skugor showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Dimosthenis Tzalakostas, who was totally free with the ball in the 18th minute. Antonis Antonakos charged in rather forcefully in the 19th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Antonis Antonakos the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. In the 19th minute, Antonis Antonakos hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. After a rather tough play, MELATES F.C.'s Takis Dimou got a free kick in the 20th minute. 21 minutes into the game, Dinko Stankovic was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Croatia's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave MELATES F.C. the free kick. Dinko Stankovic's shot straight on target was not completely harmless. The ball had pretty good speed, but Panos Stergalas firmly grabbed it by the left post. Croatia's attacker deliberately struck the ball against an opponent to win a corner for his team. The corner was taken by Toni Mauzer in the 25th minute. The corner led Croatia's Toni Mauzer to fire away a dangerous shot which Panos Stergalas despite some difficulties managed to get hold on the ball. In the 30th minute of the match, Dinko Stankovic got a very nice opportunity to score, but Panos Stergalas was well-placed and pushed the ball away from the goal at the left post. Ilija Skugor took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Tasos Valassatos, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. The supporters of Croatia booed when MELATES F.C. was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 36 match minutes in a wonderful position. Savas Ioannidis didn't get a good kick on the ball. Croatia's Martin Bosak got a good chance for a goal in the 43rd minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Neven Culina fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 46th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Panos Stergalas having to interfere. If Damir Pongrac had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 47th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Toni Mauzer to make the kick off. After a rather tough play, MELATES F.C.'s Antonis Antonakos got a free kick in the 53rd minute. In the 54th minute of the match Toni Mauzer sent off a long shot with destination to the right of the goalkeeper, but Panos Stergalas skillfully saved the ball. The supporters of Croatia booed when MELATES F.C. was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 55 match minutes in a wonderful position. Dimosthenis Tzalakostas didn't get a good kick on the ball. After some careless play in the MELATES F.C. defense, Toni Mauzer kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Panos Stergalas. The MELATES F.C. fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Panos Stergalas should have stopped the shot. If Antonis Antonakos had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 62nd minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Toni Mauzer blasted a shot towards the goal in the 63rd minute, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar and went out without Panos Stergalas having to make a save. Toni Mauzer fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 75th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Panos Stergalas having to interfere. The supporters of MELATES F.C. booed when Croatia was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 76 match minutes in a wonderful position. Dinko Stankovic didn't get a good kick on the ball. Ilija Skugor made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Dimosthenis Tzalakostas in the 78th minute of play. Ilija Skugor made an important save on a dangerous shot by Tasos Valassatos in the 79th minute. If Toni Mauzer had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 87th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Ilija Skugor made a fantastic save in the 89th minute, when Antonis Antonakos sent off a good shot on target. When Damir Pongrac came up free with the goalie in the 91st minute, the Croatia fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Damir Pongrac couldn't finish the play. Panos Stergalas showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Toni Mauzer in the 93rd minute of the match. In the 95th minute, Dinko Stankovic got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. When the final whistle was heard the away supporters stood up and showed their joy. MELATES F.C. had managed to secure a win in what was a close match throughout.