League Play-Off

Stadion Ryazan
Spectators: 34 (Terracing: 26, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) Ryazan FC's Vladimir Filov started the match with a crisp pass. The crowd had been anticipating this game for weeks and the excitement in the stadium was easily visible. Igor Savin took the ball and in the 5 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised Igor Balakhontsev. Igor Balakhontsev dived to the right, and did manage to get a hand on the shot, but it still went into the right corner making it 0-1. Igor Balakhontsev showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Petr Baranov, who was totally free with the ball in the 12th minute. In the 14th minute of the match Vyacheslav Stvolov sent off a long shot with destination to the right of the goalkeeper, but Igor Balakhontsev skillfully saved the ball. Vyacheslav Stvolov kicked well hit freekick during the 16th minute of the match. The audience thought a goal was coming when Anton Gorbuzenko got free with Mstislav Koshelenko in the 17th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. The Shahty FC fans' excitement grew in the 32nd match minute when Shahty FC's Petr Baranov 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 0-2 before the goalkeeper had a chance to intervene. Igor Balakhontsev showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Leonid Belyaev in the 38th minute of the match. In the 42nd match minute, Shahty FC was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Leonid Belyaev to maneuver through the defense. 43 minutes into the match, Shahty FC's goal looked a bit too open when Vladimir Filov came free, but Mstislav Koshelenko reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Anton Gorbuzenko received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 46th minute. Mstislav Koshelenko tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Vladimir Filov sent away a hard shot on goal in the 48th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. After the first half Shahty FC were leading 0-2. They had played with great self confidence throughout the first half and fully deserved their lead.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Igor Savin stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. Anton Gorbuzenko sent away a hard shot on goal in the 57th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. When Vladimir Filov came up free with the goalie in the 63rd minute, the Ryazan FC 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 Vladimir Filov couldn't finish the play. Danila Tochilin charged in rather forcefully in the 65th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Danila Tochilin the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. If Petr Baranov had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 67th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 79th minute Igor Savin shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Igor Balakhontsev saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. After a defensive mix-up in Shahty FC's zone, Vladimir Filov stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Mstislav Koshelenko came out of the goal and Vladimir Filov tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Anton Gorbuzenko received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 88th minute. Mstislav Koshelenko tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. The away crowd were delighted with the way their team had played and cheered loudly when the final whistle sounded. Shahty FC walked away with the win, even though the match was close until the end.