League Play-Off

Temecula Stadium
Spectators: 34 (Terracing: 26, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) Peapack and Gladstone FC's Mounir Larfaoui 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. After a defensive mix-up in Temecula's zone, Mounir Feraoun stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Mehdi Kafi came out of the goal and Mounir Feraoun tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. In the 11thth minute of the game Mounir Larfaoui who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Temecula's Mehdi Kafi was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. Khair ad-Din Mehenni made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Chadli Belhagj in the 13th minute of play. Mounir Feraoun took the ball and in the 18 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised Mehdi Kafi. Mehdi Kafi 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. Chadli Belhagj blasted a shot towards the goal in the 21st minute, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar and went out without Khair ad-Din Mehenni having to make a save. Mounir Larfaoui sent away a hard shot on goal in the 27th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. After having played for 28 minutes, Mounir Larfaoui managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Peapack and Gladstone FC's supporters crossed their fingers, but Mounir Larfaoui was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Mounir Adjani charged in rather forcefully in the 30th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Mounir Adjani the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. After 30 minutes of play, the referee blew the whistle. It was a penalty for Peapack and Gladstone FC! Khair ad-Din Mehenni made a fantastic save in the 35th minute, when Alain Faudel sent off a good shot on target. Mounir Feraoun received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 40th minute. Mehdi Kafi tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. 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.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Chadli Belhagj stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. After some fancy dribbling in the 53rd minute, Mounir Feraoun managed to get in a good position for a shot. Peapack and Gladstone FC's supporters rose to their feet, but Mounir Feraoun was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Mehdi Kafi breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. When the match had gone on for 55 minutes, Mounir Larfaoui took a quick shot and it went in 1-2 without a chance for Mehdi Kafi to make any attempt to save it. In the 61st minute, Peapack and Gladstone FC's Mounir Larfaoui ran free of his marker and smoothly shot the ball into the goal behind Mehdi Kafi. Mehdi Kafi yelled at his defense, as they had left him out to dry. 1-3. After 66 minutes, Ali Larbi mouthed his way into the referee's book. The tension between the Temecula and the Peapack and Gladstone FC players grew even worse after the yellow card. In the 66th minute, one of Temecula: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 Temecula. In the 76th minute the ball was on its way in behind Temecula's goalkeeper Mehdi Kafi, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. 85 minutes into the match, Temecula's goalkeeper Mehdi Kafi had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Abdelmalek Ammour. Chadli Belhagj received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 94th minute. Khair ad-Din Mehenni tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Khair ad-Din Mehenni stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Chadli Belhagj's shot from short distance in the 96th minute. When the final whistle sounded Peapack and Gladstone FC left the ground with the victory after a much better performance than Temecula.