Challenge

Buġibba
Spectators: 45 (Terracing: 35, Seating: 10, VIP seats: 0) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Edgar Sigfridsson kicked off to start the match. After 4 played minutes Ponticella Stars got a freekick which was hit by Baldomiro Poncio. When the match had gone on for 6 minutes, Ciro Tieri took a quick shot and it went in 1-0 without a chance for Jonathan Ferrant to make any attempt to save it. After a defensive mix-up in Ponticella Stars's zone, Tomas Illescas stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Cláudio Maranhense came out of the goal and Tomas Illescas tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Alex Chicote charged in rather forcefully in the 10th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Alex Chicote the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. An unexpectedly hard shot by Tomas Illescas in the 13th minute of play forced Ponticella Stars's goalkeeper Cláudio Maranhense to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. If Patricio Costa had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 19th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Venezuela's Patricio Costa got a good chance for a goal in the 22nd minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Jonathan Ferrant stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Baldomiro Poncio's shot from short distance in the 23rd minute. Ponticella Stars's attacker deliberately struck the ball against an opponent to win a corner for his team. The corner was taken by Ciro Tieri in the 24th minute. Edgar Sigfridsson fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 26th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Jonathan Ferrant having to interfere. In the 27th minute, Patricio Costa ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Cláudio Maranhense was frozen by the shot and now it was 1-1. After 37 played minutes Venezuela got a freekick which was hit by Joshua Secada. In the 42nd minute of the match, Baldomiro Poncio tried to roll the ball into the goal by the right post, but Jonathan Ferrant saw his intentions and got control of the ball before it passed the line. Jonathan Ferrant made a fantastic save in the 44th minute, when Edgar Sigfridsson sent off a good shot on target. In the 45th minute, Edgar Sigfridsson collided with one of Venezuela's players - so bad that he fractured his nose. When Rigoberto Mina fell near the penalty area in the 45th minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored Venezuela's protests and gave Rigoberto Mina a yellow card for diving instead. Ponticella Stars made a substitution. Nick Testaferrata Moroni Viani replaced Edgar Sigfridsson. After a rather tough play, Venezuela's Rigoberto Mina got a free kick in the 47th minute.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Tomas Illescas was the one to do the kick off. If Patricio Costa had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 51st minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 54th minute the ball was on its way in behind Venezuela's goalkeeper Jonathan Ferrant, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. Camilo Gaos's late challenge caught a Ponticella Stars's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Camilo Gaos helped the player get up and apologised. The supporters of Ponticella Stars booed when Venezuela was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 57 match minutes in a wonderful position. Camilo Gaos didn't get a good kick on the ball. In the 60th minute, Tomas Illescas reached a very good position and smashed the ball with a huge effort into the net, just to the left of Cláudio Maranhense. The goal made the score 1-2. After 66 played minutes Ponticella Stars got a freekick which was hit by Baldomiro Poncio. Ponticella Stars's Adrian Lowell was substituted for Ciro Tieri. In the 76th minute, Tomas Illescas left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Venezuela fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 2-3. Cláudio Maranhense showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Patricio Costa in the 80th minute of the match. Venezuela's Patricio Costa got a good chance for a goal in the 83rd minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Jonathan Ferrant made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Sean McMaster in the 92nd minute of play. Rigoberto Mina was astounded when the referee showed him the red card after a seemingly innocent challenge, 94 minutes into the match. After 93 minutes of play, the referee blew the whistle. It was a penalty for Venezuela! The referee gave Ponticella Stars a penalty, 95 minutes into the game. The penalty shot was made by Adrian Lowell, who made a well placed shot into the net to the right of Venezuela's Jonathan Ferrant. 3-3.