Challenge

La Bombonera
Spectators: 41 (Terracing: 32, Seating: 9, VIP seats: 0) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Joel Gaona kicked off to start the match. An unexpectedly hard shot by Lautaro Mancebo in the 3rd minute of play forced Gowland's goalkeeper Ezequiel Candela to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. After 5 played minutes Gowland got a freekick which was hit by Vladimir Madariaga. After 6 played minutes, Mexico's Joel Gaona shot from a long distance, and at first it looked like the ball was going into the goal, but the goalkeeper Ezequiel Candela came through and got his fingers on the ball before it flew over the goal line. He then quickly gripped the ball tighter before the forwards in Mexico reached it. After 6 played minutes Gowland got a freekick which was hit by Germano Furtado. Ezequiel Candela made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Joel Gaona in the 8th minute of play. Dante Lacasa took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Jose-Manuel Alabern, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. In the 11th minute, Lautaro Mancebo hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. In the 14th minute Jose-Manuel Alabern shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Dante Lacasa saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. An unexpectedly hard shot by Jose-Manuel Alabern in the 19th minute of play forced Mexico's goalkeeper Dante Lacasa to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 22nd minute of the match Mexico got a corner. Gowland's goalie ran out to the linesman to protest the call, but the linesman resolutely pointed his flag at the cornerflag. Joel Gaona ran over to the corner to take the kick. Piotr Charamut received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 23rd minute. Dante Lacasa tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Dante Lacasa showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Jose-Manuel Alabern, who was totally free with the ball in the 31st minute. After 32 played minutes Mexico got a freekick which was hit by Felix Luque. After having played for 34 minutes, Jose-Manuel Alabern managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Gowland's supporters crossed their fingers, but Jose-Manuel Alabern was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. In the 37th minute, Jose-Manuel Alabern left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Gowland fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 1-0. Ezequiel Candela showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Alberto Tafalla in the 42nd minute of the match. If Jose-Manuel Alabern had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 48th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Jose-Manuel Alabern to make the kick off. After 57 played minutes Mexico got a freekick which was hit by Luca Rouco. 61 minutes into the match, Mexico's goal looked a bit too open when Huly Estruch came free, but Dante Lacasa reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Jose-Manuel Alabern in the 66th managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Dante Lacasa saved Mexico from getting behind. When Mexico's Joel Gaona in the 68th minute got a chance for a shot 68th didn't hesitate and placed the ball to the right of the goalie. A beautiful save bye Gowland's goalie prevented a goal. Mexico's Luca Zorita got a good chance for a goal in the 69th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Gowland made a substitution. Alfredo Fresnos replaced Santi Goyanes. After 72 played minutes Mexico got a freekick which was hit by Luca Rouco. A sloppy throw-in by Andrija Kažanegra in the 80th minute of the game went astray and was snapped up by Mexico's Luca Zorita. Alberto Tafalla was extremely unlucky when he, in the 81st minute, took a shot that hit the right post and went out. Gowland's Ezequiel Candela proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 83rd minute of the match, managed to save Gowland from getting a goal against them. After 89th play minutes Alfredo Fresnos shot 2-0, a short shot which went by Dante Lacasa and just under the crossbar into goal. Gowland's Policarpio Dagora was substituted for Jose-Manuel Alabern. Dante Lacasa took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Alfredo Fresnos, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Vladimir Madariaga kicked well hit freekick during the 95th minute of the match. The crowd rose to their feet and cheered when the referee blew the final whistle. Gowland had won after a very even match.