League Play-Off

Gondoriz
Spectators: 34 (Terracing: 26, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Vicente Esteves started the match with the kick off. After having played for 3 minutes, Manuel Brito managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. SC Gondoriz's supporters crossed their fingers, but Manuel Brito was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Vicente Esteves blasted a shot towards the goal in the 5th minute, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar and went out without Rui Aguiar having to make a save. In the 7th minute Vicente Esteves shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Rui Aguiar saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. After 8 minutes of play, Cascalhal FC's Jorge Pinheiro made it 0-1 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Rui Aguiar was left in no man's land by his defense there! Manuel Brito fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 13th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Rogério Fonseca having to interfere. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Basílio Delgado during the 22nd minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. In the 22nd minute, Basílio Delgado hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. After 25 played minutes, Cascalhal FC's Nuno Nascimento shot from a long distance, and at first it looked like the ball was going into the goal, but the goalkeeper Rui Aguiar came through and got his fingers on the ball before it flew over the goal line. He then quickly gripped the ball tighter before the forwards in Cascalhal FC reached it. In the 26th minute, Tiago Leão hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. After some fancy dribbling in the 27th minute, Vicente Esteves managed to get in a good position for a shot. Cascalhal FC's supporters rose to their feet, but Vicente Esteves was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Rui Aguiar breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. After 30 minutes, Manuel Brito mouthed his way into the referee's book. The tension between the SC Gondoriz and the Cascalhal FC players grew even worse after the yellow card. After 30 played minutes SC Gondoriz got a freekick which was hit by Manuel Brito. 32 minutes into the game, Jorge Pinheiro was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Cascalhal FC's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave SC Gondoriz the free kick. A collision led to Cascalhal FC getting a freekick after 39 minutes play. Fábio Santos hit a great ball. In the 43rd minute, Jorge Pinheiro got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. Jorge Pinheiro 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.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Manuel Brito stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. If Miguel Anjos had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 53rd minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 56th minute, Manuel Brito left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The SC Gondoriz fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 1-1. Miguel Anjos sent away a hard shot on goal in the 65th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. SC Gondoriz's Rui Aguiar proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 68th minute of the match, managed to save SC Gondoriz from getting a goal against them. 73 minutes into the game, Jorge Pinheiro cracked a shot to the right of the goalkeeper, 1-2. Rui Aguiar was not in position, and could only watch the ball fly in. Jorge Pinheiro fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 76th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Rui Aguiar having to interfere. An unexpectedly hard shot by Vicente Esteves in the 78th minute of play forced SC Gondoriz's goalkeeper Rui Aguiar to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. 80 minutes into the match, Basílio Fontes had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Rui Aguiar. SC Gondoriz's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Basílio Fontes was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 1-3. If Miguel Anjos had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 86th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 94th minute of the match, Vicente Esteves tried to roll the ball into the goal by the right post, but Rui Aguiar saw his intentions and got control of the ball before it passed the line. Basílio Barbosa kicked well hit freekick during the 95th minute of the match. After some fancy dribbling in the 96th minute, Jorge Pinheiro managed to get in a good position for a shot. Cascalhal FC's supporters rose to their feet, but Jorge Pinheiro was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Rui Aguiar breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. The Cascalhal FC supporters could be heard counting down the last seconds of the match. They errupted in celebration when the whistle blew, knowing Cascalhal FC would go home with victory in their luggage after a match that easily could have ended differently.