League Play-Off

Manta Stadionul Cãlr
Spectators: 36 (Terracing: 28, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) The field was rather wet after several days of rain when Sandu Vataman took the kick off in the first half of the match. 9 minutes into the match, Mihai Pricop notched a goal, 0-2, to the right of Manta CSF's Maxim Cheptene. Maxim Cheptene was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. Anton Stratulat made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Sandu Vataman in the 12th minute of play. After having played for 14 minutes, Mihai Pricop managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Paladea's supporters crossed their fingers, but Mihai Pricop was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. After a rather tough play, Paladea's Mircea Botnaru got a free kick in the 16th minute. An unexpectedly hard shot by Sandu Vataman in the 19th minute of play forced Paladea's goalkeeper Anton Stratulat to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. If Sandu Vataman had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 30th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Constantin Cazacu sent away a hard shot on goal in the 32nd minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Anton Stratulat showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Sandu Vataman in the 34th minute of the match. In the 37th minute Mihai Pricop shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Maxim Cheptene saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Cãlin Fratea hit a great freekick 38 minutes into the match. Maxim Cheptene took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Mihai Pricop, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Viorel Burduf sent away a hard shot on goal in the 40th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. 45 minutes into the match, Paladea's goalkeeper Anton Stratulat had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Lilian Iordan. After 45 minutes, Mircea Botnaru mouthed his way into the referee's book. The tension between the Paladea and the Manta CSF players grew even worse after the yellow card. Mircea Botnaru hit a great freekick 46 minutes into the match. Anton Stratulat made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Sandu Vataman in the 47th minute of play. The crowd was extremely unhappy with the home team's performance in the first half. They were losing 0-2.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Mihai Pricop stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. If Viorel Burduf had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 52nd minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Lilian Iordan hit a great freekick 52 minutes into the match. After having played for 54 minutes, Viorel Burduf managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Paladea's supporters crossed their fingers, but Viorel Burduf was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Manta CSF's defense didn't have a chance, in the 58th minute, when Mihai Pricop scored to the left of an out of position Maxim Cheptene, making the score, 0-3. Manta CSF's Constantin Cazacu got a good chance for a goal in the 62nd minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. After a rather tough play, Manta CSF's Cãlin Fratea got a free kick in the 65th minute. Mihai Pricop sent away a hard shot on goal in the 69th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Eduard Graur's late challenge caught a Paladea's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Eduard Graur helped the player get up and apologised. A collision led to Manta CSF getting a freekick after 70 minutes play. Eduard Graur hit a great ball. Viorel Burduf sent away a hard shot on goal in the 73rd minute, but the ball hit the crossbar and went out. A very good chance for a goal. Maxim Cheptene made an important save on a dangerous shot by Viorel Burduf in the 75th minute. Paladea's Anton Stratulat played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Sandu Vataman in the 77th minute of play. Maxim Cheptene made a fantastic save in the 81st minute, when Viorel Burduf sent off a good shot on target. Maxim Cheptene made an important save on a dangerous shot by Viorel Burduf in the 83rd minute. An unexpectedly hard shot by Constantin Cazacu in the 86th minute of play forced Paladea's goalkeeper Anton Stratulat to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Anton Stratulat took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Sandu Vataman, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. The Paladea supporters could be heard counting down the last seconds of the match. They errupted in celebration when the whistle blew, knowing Paladea would go home with victory in their luggage after a match that easily could have ended differently.