U23 World League

Slaughtergate
Spectators: 7866 (Terracing: 5901, Seating: 1809, VIP seats: 156) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Teobald Lichniak kicked off to start the match. An unexpectedly hard shot by Matthew Brookman in the 4th minute of play forced Goral Zywiec's goalkeeper Leszek Pruss to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. A collision led to Goral Zywiec getting a freekick after 6 minutes play. Damian Tychy hit a great ball. The audience thought a goal was coming when Joel Groom got free with Leszek Pruss in the 11th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. Egg Chasers FC were awarded a corner in the 13th minute after Goral Zywiec's defender lost control of the ball, allowing it to roll out over the line. Kenny Duckworth took the corner. Marek Lampe hit a great freekick 16 minutes into the match. Joel Groom hit a great freekick 20 minutes into the match. With a little luck, Goral Zywiec's Leszek Pruss got control of the ball when Joel Groom tried to sneak it across the goal line. In the 29th minute, Artur Czajkowski ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Fabien Barthez was frozen by the shot and now it was 0-1. 34 minutes had been played when some careless play by Goral Zywiec's defense caused the ball to cross the line for a corner. Kenny Duckworth was slow to take the kick. During this time Egg Chasers FC's players had a chance to rest. A very nice done corner allowed Lee Bannatyne to score against Leszek Pruss in Goral Zywiec's goal. 1-1 after 34 minutes. Egg Chasers FC's Fabien Barthez played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Artur Czajkowski in the 37th minute of play. If Joel Groom had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 38th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 40th match minute, Goral Zywiec was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Artur Czajkowski to maneuver through the defense. Leszek Pruss made a fantastic save in the 40th minute, when Matthew Brookman sent off a good shot on target. Peter Crouch fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 45th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Leszek Pruss having to interfere. After a very even first half the match was still tied. The players went to their respective dressing rooms to discuss the tactics for the second half.

The wind increased when Peter Crouch made the kick off in the second half. Kenny Duckworth's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Leszek Pruss read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 56th minute of play. Leszek Pruss didn't have a chance when a screaming shot from Matthew Brookman went, in the 68th minute, to the upper right corner, 2-2 was the resulting score. Teofil Czajka hit a great freekick 70 minutes into the match. In the 74th minute of the match, Artur Czajkowski tried to roll the ball into the goal by the right post, but Fabien Barthez saw his intentions and got control of the ball before it passed the line. Fabien Barthez made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Teobald Lichniak in the 75th minute of play. In the 79thth minute of the game Lech Domaradzki who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Egg Chasers FC's Fabien Barthez was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. When Artur Czajkowski came up free with the goalie in the 81st minute, the Goral Zywiec 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 Artur Czajkowski couldn't finish the play. Leszek Pruss took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Peter Crouch, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Egg Chasers FC's Fabien Barthez played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Teobald Lichniak in the 89th minute of play. Kenny Duckworth kicked well hit freekick during the 92nd minute of the match. A hard shot 93 in the game by Teobald Lichniak from a close distance when the talented Fabien Barthez managed to make a qualified save. Egg Chasers FC's players were relieved. Both teams had looked equal from kick-off, and no-one was surprised when the match finally ended in a draw.