League Play-Off

Arkhangelsk
Spectators: 34 (Terracing: 26, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) The sun was shining, the grass was green and the audience cheered when Mark Topolskiy got the match started through his kick off. When Vadim Kalinin came up free with the goalie in the 3rd minute, the Arkhangelsk HC 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 Vadim Kalinin couldn't finish the play. 4 minutes into the match, Mark Topolskiy dribbled the ball past the defender and swiftly kicked the ball to the left of Oleg Guschin, 1-0. Oleg Guschin showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Mark Topolskiy, who was totally free with the ball in the 7th minute. Vladislav Ovcharov hit a great freekick 8 minutes into the match. Vadim Kalinin's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Oleg Guschin read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 15th minute of play. In the 17thth minute of the game Velimir Ilchinskiy who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Arkhangelsk HC's Felix Dyachkov was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. German Veryugin's late challenge caught a Chita FC's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. German Veryugin helped the player get up and apologised. In a very dangerous position, a player in Arkhangelsk HC fell when an opponent tried to get the ball from him in the 19th minute. Penalty! In the 21st minute there was a penalty for Chita FC. Lev Bogdanov stepped forward and shot the ball to the right of a diving Felix Dyachkov. 1-1. Anatoliy Maslenkin hit a great freekick 23 minutes into the match. Vadim Kalinin struck a weak shot in the 27th minute. Oleg Guschin didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Arkhangelsk HC. In the 30th minute, one of Arkhangelsk HC:s players had the ball in front of the goal but got pushed and fell. The referee felt it was an obvious case and blew a penalty for Arkhangelsk HC. 38 minutes into the game, Andrey Palen was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Chita FC's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Arkhangelsk HC the free kick. Oleg Guschin was out of position in the 40 minute of play, and Mark Topolskiy capitalized on the mistake with a soft shot into the goal. Mark Topolskiy really showed his touch with that goal: 2-2. The first half was very even, with the score at 2-2 when the whistle went for half-time. The players welcomed the break and quickly retired to the dressing rooms.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Roman Sazonov to make the kick off. Velimir Ilchinskiy got a fine position in front of goal ttaking advantage of the opportunity to rumble in 2-3 in the right cross in the 53rd match minute before Felix Dyachkov had time to react. Thanks to some nice foot action and superb ball handling Vadim Kalinin in the 58th minute a chance for a shot on goal. With an extended leg and a bit of luck Oleg Guschin prevented the ball from getting in the gole. When Vadim Kalinin came up free with the goalie in the 64th minute, the Arkhangelsk HC 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 Vadim Kalinin couldn't finish the play. An unexpectedly hard shot by Vadim Kalinin in the 69th minute of play forced Chita FC's goalkeeper Oleg Guschin to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 71st minute, Vadim Kalinin had to be helped off the field due to a pulled leg muscle. 71 minutes into the game, one of Chita FC:s players got tackled near the goal, and the referee blew for a penalty. German Veryugin walked up to take care of the penalty kick. He was aiming for the top corner, but the ball went just outside the post. In the 82nd minute Roman Sazonov shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Felix Dyachkov saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Arkhangelsk HC's Mark Topolskiy got a good chance for a goal in the 87th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. If Zinoviy Rybin had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 88th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead.