League Play-Off

Central City
Spectators: 35 (Terracing: 27, Seating: 8, VIP seats: 0) The mood of the audience was pleasant when John Escobar made the kick off which started today's match. 6 minutes into the match, Excaliburs's goalkeeper Adrian Hicks had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Porter Karros. Porter Karros sent away a hard shot on goal in the 10th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Adrian Hicks took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Emilio Valentine, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. An unexpectedly hard shot by Elliott Wall in the 13th minute of play forced Central City AFC's goalkeeper Parker Cerna to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. If Porter Karros had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 18th minute. The ball went over the crossbar instead. John Escobar received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 19th minute. Adrian Hicks tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. When Tad Hahn fell near the penalty area in the 28th minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored Excaliburs's protests and gave Tad Hahn a yellow card for diving instead. Tad Hahn hit a great freekick 28 minutes into the match. After having played for 33 minutes, Rod Byrd managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Central City AFC's supporters crossed their fingers, but Rod Byrd was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. If John Escobar had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 36th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. After some fancy dribbling in the 37th minute, Porter Karros managed to get in a good position for a shot. Central City AFC's supporters rose to their feet, but Porter Karros was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Adrian Hicks breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. After 40 minutes of play, Excaliburs's Tad Hahn made it 0-1 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Parker Cerna was left in no man's land by his defense there! In the 42nd minute the ball was on its way in behind Excaliburs's goalkeeper Adrian Hicks, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. An unexpectedly hard shot by Elliott Wall in the 46th minute of play forced Central City AFC's goalkeeper Parker Cerna to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. After some careless play in the Central City AFC defense, Tad Hahn kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Parker Cerna. The Central City AFC fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Parker Cerna should have stopped the shot. Disappointed in the 0-2 score, the home team went to the dressing room to adjust tactics for the second half.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Elliott Wall to make the kick off. Parker Cerna took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Elliott Wall, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Central City AFC's Porter Karros got a good chance for a goal in the 59th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Parker Cerna made an important save on a dangerous shot by Tad Hahn in the 61st minute. In the 63rd minute Elliott Wall shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Parker Cerna saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. If Porter Karros had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 64th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Adrian Hicks took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Emilio Valentine, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. In the 69th minute Emilio Valentine shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Adrian Hicks saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. In the 70th minute, Tad Hahn hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Porter Karros sent away a hard shot on goal in the 71st minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. An unexpectedly hard shot by Elliott Wall in the 73rd minute of play forced Central City AFC's goalkeeper Parker Cerna to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. An unexpectedly hard shot by John Escobar in the 74th minute of play forced Excaliburs's goalkeeper Adrian Hicks to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 77th minute, Central City AFC's Duke Cora seemed to kick out at an opponent. The referee saw this and, surprisingly, showed Duke Cora the red card, dismissing him from the pitch. The coaching staff of Central City AFC protested bitterly, but the referee would have none of it, and Duke Cora had no choice but to slowly walk off the pitch. After some fancy dribbling in the 83rd minute, Emilio Valentine managed to get in a good position for a shot. Central City AFC's supporters rose to their feet, but Emilio Valentine was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Adrian Hicks breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. In the 87th minute, Emilio Valentine made a precise shot to the right of Adrian Hicks. Excaliburs's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 1-3. If John Escobar had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 96th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. When Emilio Valentine came up free with the goalie in the 97th minute, the Central City AFC 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 Emilio Valentine couldn't finish the play. Emilio Valentine received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 99th minute. Adrian Hicks tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. The Central City AFC manager could be seen shouting at his players as they walked down the tunnel after the match. He was clearly angry that they had squandered their superior possession, allowing Excaliburs to win.