League Play-Off

Batigelas
Spectators: 32 (Terracing: 25, Seating: 7, VIP seats: 0) The field was rather wet after several days of rain when Manuel Alves took the kick off in the first half of the match. Paulo Paiva made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Joel Neto in the 4th minute of play. An unexpectedly hard shot by Américo Soares in the 6th minute of play forced Batigelas FC's goalkeeper Paulo Paiva to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 8th minute, Américo Soares 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. A collision led to Horta getting a freekick after 11 minutes play. Luís Martins hit a great ball. Manuel Alves had several of the Horta's defenders around him in the penalty area when he, after 13 minutes of play, received a pass and succeeded in some way to shoot a shot which went straight ahead into goal. This resulted in a 1-0 score and a disappointed Afonso Cabral as he didn't even see the shot coming. After 17 played minutes Horta got a freekick which was hit by Albertino Trindade. In the 19th minute, Manuel Alves 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. 22 minutes into the match, Horta's goal looked a bit too open when Manuel Alves came free, but Afonso Cabral reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Américo Soares might have been able to make a better finish in the 24th minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Paulo Paiva. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Américo Soares ran back to his position shaking his head. Paulo Paiva took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Joel Neto, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. In the 33rd minute Américo Soares shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Paulo Paiva saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Albertino Trindade kicked well hit freekick during the 39th minute of the match. Afonso Cabral made an important save on a dangerous shot by Basílio Torres in the 42nd minute. After some careless play in the Batigelas FC defense, Joel Neto kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Paulo Paiva. The Batigelas FC fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Paulo Paiva should have stopped the shot. Manuel Alves 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 score stood at 1-1 when the half time whistle went. Both sets of players seemed reasonably pleased with how the match was going.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Joel Neto to make the kick off. When Basílio Torres came up free with the goalie in the 54th minute, the Batigelas 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 Basílio Torres couldn't finish the play. The audience was convinced that Manuel Alves's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Afonso Cabral was relentless in the 55th minute of the game. Afonso Cabral made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Basílio Torres in the 59th minute of play. Américo Soares blasted a shot towards the goal in the 63rd minute, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar and went out without Paulo Paiva having to make a save. Paulo Paiva showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Américo Soares, who was totally free with the ball in the 65th minute. After some fancy dribbling in the 66th minute, Joel Neto managed to get in a good position for a shot. Horta's supporters rose to their feet, but Joel Neto was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Paulo Paiva breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. With an all-out effort, Horta's Paulo Paiva threw himself towards the right post 85 minutes into the match and grabbed hold of the ball from Joel Neto, which otherwise would have been placed in the net. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Gaspar Mota during the 87th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. The supporters of Horta booed when Batigelas FC was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 87 match minutes in a wonderful position. Gaspar Mota didn't get a good kick on the ball. In the 88th minute of the match Manuel Soares shot from a long distance. The ball could have gone into the goal to the right of the goalkeeper, but Paulo Paiva showed his good shape when he easily got hold of the ball. Oliveira Maia hit a great freekick 89 minutes into the match. When Mariano Melo fell near the penalty area in the 90th minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored Horta's protests and gave Mariano Melo a yellow card for diving instead. Mariano Melo kicked well hit freekick during the 91st minute of the match. After 93 played minutes Horta got a freekick which was hit by Albertino Trindade. An unexpectedly hard shot by Manuel Alves in the 96th minute of play forced Horta's goalkeeper Afonso Cabral to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Manuel Alves's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Afonso Cabral read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 98th minute of play. The referee blew his whistle, and the match came to a close. The players exchanged shirts and headed down the tunnel. The Batigelas FC fans cheered their team off the field, for while Horta had put up a good fight, they were unable to come out of the game with any points to show for their effort.