League Play-Off

Curicica
Spectators: 32 (Terracing: 25, Seating: 7, VIP seats: 0) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Aírton Linares kicked off to start the match. Frank Leite made a fantastic save in the 7th minute, when Aírton Linares sent off a good shot on target. Frank Leite showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Geovanni Nunes in the 8th minute of the match. After 11 minutes of play, the referee blew the whistle. It was a penalty for Manica! Fábio Baiano shot the penalty kick by force right in the crossbar. No goal. With an all-out effort, Curicica EC's Frank Leite threw himself towards the right post 15 minutes into the match and grabbed hold of the ball from Geovanni Nunes, which otherwise would have been placed in the net. Geovanni Nunes received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 18th minute. Frank Leite tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. 20 minutes into the match, Curicica EC's Geovanni Nunes sent off a blazing shot straight on target, a shot that Frank Leite narrowly saved just below the crossbar. Edgard Pitta made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Sidnei Rezende in the 21st minute of play. Edgard Pitta made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Sidnei Rezende in the 23rd minute of play. After 25 minutes, Aírton Linares made it 1-0 with a short kick to the right side. Manica's Frank Leite tried to save the shot but he was too slow in reacting to the shot. 29 minutes into the match, Kiko Guimarães notched a goal, 1-1, to the right of Curicica EC's Edgard Pitta. Edgard Pitta was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. Geovanni Nunes sent away a hard shot on goal in the 37th minute, but the ball hit the crossbar and went out. A very good chance for a goal. When Geovanni Nunes came up free with the goalie in the 39th minute, the Curicica EC 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 Geovanni Nunes couldn't finish the play. In the 47th minute Sidnei Rezende shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Edgard Pitta saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. The first half was very even, with the score at 1-1 when the whistle went for half-time. The players welcomed the break and quickly retired to the dressing rooms.

The audience thought a goal was coming when Sidnei Rezende got free with Edgard Pitta in the 52nd minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. Aírton Linares fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 53rd minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Frank Leite having to interfere. In the 55th minute, Geovanni Nunes made a precise shot to the right of Frank Leite. Manica's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 2-1. 61 minutes into the match, Aírton Linares had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Frank Leite. Manica's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Aírton Linares was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 3-1. Geovanni Nunes scored 4-1 in the 66th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Frank Leite, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. Thanks to some nice foot action and superb ball handling Aírton Linares in the 69th minute a chance for a shot on goal. With an extended leg and a bit of luck Frank Leite prevented the ball from getting in the gole. 74 minutes into the match, Manica's Sidnei Rezende sent off a blazing shot straight on target, a shot that Edgard Pitta narrowly saved just below the crossbar. Kiko Guimarães received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 77th minute. Edgard Pitta tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Geovanni Nunes received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 81st minute. Frank Leite tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. It was no surprise that this one had ended in a win for the home team. Curicica EC had played much better football throughout.