League Play-Off

Ykspihlaja Stadium
Spectators: 35 (Terracing: 27, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) The field was rather wet after several days of rain when Olof Ekman took the kick off in the first half of the match. Jonni Rimpiläinen's late challenge caught a Kortjärvi IFK's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Jonni Rimpiläinen helped the player get up and apologised. In the 10th match minute, Ykspihlaja was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Jonni Rimpiläinen to maneuver through the defense. 13 minutes into the match, Ykspihlaja's goal looked a bit too open when Juha Setälä came free, but Leo Kirjonen reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Fermín Salan was out of position in the 14 minute of play, and Jyrki Meltoranta capitalized on the mistake with a soft shot into the goal. Jyrki Meltoranta really showed his touch with that goal: 1-1. Olof Ekman's late challenge caught a Ykspihlaja's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Olof Ekman helped the player get up and apologised. In the 18th match minute, Kortjärvi IFK was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Olof Ekman to maneuver through the defense. A collision led to Kortjärvi IFK getting a freekick after 22 minutes play. Veikka Hakala hit a great ball. 24 minutes into the match, Ykspihlaja's goal looked a bit too open when Luca Mutu came free, but Leo Kirjonen reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. In the 32nd minute Herkko Viitaluoma shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Fermín Salan saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Patrick Malinen kicked well hit freekick during the 33rd minute of the match. Fermín Salan was in the perfect position, and the defense had done a good job marking him, but Herkko Viitaluoma showcased his skills and made a perfect shot to score 2-1 in the 39 minute of play. Juha-Pekka Lahikainen received a nice pass, split the defenders, and ran untouched towards the goal. Fermín Salan came out and tried to block the shot, but Juha-Pekka Lahikainen slotted it home off the left post making it 3-1 in the 42nd minute. No-one was surprised that the home team were leading 3-1 at half-time.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Juha-Pekka Lahikainen to make the kick off. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Tero Myllyniemi during the 55th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. After a rather tough play, Ykspihlaja's Tero Myllyniemi got a free kick in the 55th minute. 56 minutes into the game, Juha Setälä was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Kortjärvi IFK's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Ykspihlaja the free kick. Juha Setälä hit a great freekick 56 minutes into the match. Leo Kirjonen was in the perfect position, and the defense had done a good job marking him, but Luca Mutu showcased his skills and made a perfect shot to score 3-2 in the 60 minute of play. In the 64th minute Herkko Viitaluoma shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Fermín Salan saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Urpo Laitila charged in rather forcefully in the 65th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Urpo Laitila the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. A collision led to Kortjärvi IFK getting a freekick after 65 minutes play. Urpo Laitila hit a great ball. Fermín Salan came out of the goal in the 66th minute to try and stop a shot by Ykspihlaja's Juha-Pekka Lahikainen. But to his dismay, Juha-Pekka Lahikainen quickly shot the ball in between his legs and into the goal making it 4-2. Veikka Hakala recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 70th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. Jyrki Meltoranta's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Fermín Salan read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 72nd minute of play. Fermín Salan made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Juha-Pekka Lahikainen in the 74th minute of play. Leo Kirjonen was in the perfect position, and the defense had done a good job marking him, but Olof Ekman showcased his skills and made a perfect shot to score 4-3 in the 75 minute of play. Ykspihlaja's Juha-Pekka Lahikainen got a good chance for a goal in the 79th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Fermín Salan showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Isko Leppilampi in the 81st minute of the match. Tero Myllyniemi recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 88th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Juha-Pekka Lahikainen in the 91st managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Fermín Salan saved Kortjärvi IFK from getting behind. Luca Mutu sent away a hard shot on goal in the 92nd minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Kortjärvi IFK's Fermín Salan played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Herkko Viitaluoma in the 95th minute of play. The Ykspihlaja fans' excitement grew in the 98th match minute when Ykspihlaja's Juha-Pekka Lahikainen looked to have a clear shot with the ball near the goal. The shot wasn't hard, but the ball still rolled over the goal line to make it 5-3 before the goalkeeper had a chance to intervene. The referee blew his whistle, and the match came to a close. The players exchanged shirts and headed down the tunnel. The Ykspihlaja fans cheered their team off the field, for while Kortjärvi IFK had put up a good fight, they were unable to come out of the game with any points to show for their effort.