League

Santiago Bernabeu
Spectators: 7090 (Terracing: 5221, Seating: 1774, VIP seats: 95) The mood of the audience was pleasant when Jari Varis made the kick off which started today's match. 2 minutes into the match, Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's goal looked a bit too open when Jonni Mäkinen came free, but Aarne Niemelä reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Tino Piispa showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Jari Varis, who was totally free with the ball in the 4th minute. 6 minutes into the game, Ali Välivaara was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Manchester City the free kick. Ali Välivaara hit a great freekick 6 minutes into the match. Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's Aarne Niemelä proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 8th minute of the match, managed to save Rovaniemen Pallo Seura from getting a goal against them. The supporters of Manchester City booed when Rovaniemen Pallo Seura was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 11 match minutes in a wonderful position. Teemu Rauvola didn't get a good kick on the ball. After 14 minutes of play, Manchester City's Perttu Pynnönen made it 1-0 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Aarne Niemelä was left in no man's land by his defense there! Tino Piispa took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Anssi Ihanamäki, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. If Jari Varis had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 25th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 30thth minute of the game Jari Varis who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Manchester City's Tino Piispa was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. Tino Piispa took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Jari Varis, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. An unexpectedly hard shot by Jari Varis in the 37th minute of play forced Manchester City's goalkeeper Tino Piispa to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Hannes Kaikkonen's late challenge caught a Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Hannes Kaikkonen helped the player get up and apologised. 47 minutes into the match, Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's Jari Varis sent off a blazing shot straight on target, a shot that Tino Piispa narrowly saved just below the crossbar.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Jonni Mäkinen was the one to do the kick off. After having played for 51 minutes, Teemu Rauvola managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's supporters crossed their fingers, but Teemu Rauvola was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Taisto Pelttari fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 53rd minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Tino Piispa having to interfere. When the match clock showed 55 minutes, the score became 2-1 when Anssi Ihanamäki sped through Manchester City's defense and sent away a curving shot that went into the net to the right of Tino Piispa. When the match had gone on for 58 minutes, Jari Varis put it in 2-2 from a short distance just to the right of Tino Piispa. 64 minutes into the match, Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's goal looked a bit too open when Perttu Pynnönen came free, but Aarne Niemelä reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Jari Varis received a nice pass, split the defenders, and ran untouched towards the goal. Tino Piispa came out and tried to block the shot, but Jari Varis slotted it home off the left post making it 2-3 in the 66th minute. After a rather tough play, Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's Anssi Ihanamäki got a free kick in the 70th minute. 71 minutes into the match, Jonni Mäkinen notched a goal, 3-3, to the right of Rovaniemen Pallo Seura's Aarne Niemelä. Aarne Niemelä was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. A collision led to Manchester City getting a freekick after 74 minutes play. Sampo Grönholm hit a great ball. The supporters of Rovaniemen Pallo Seura booed when Manchester City was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 77 match minutes in a wonderful position. Kerkko Rimpilä didn't get a good kick on the ball. Jari Varis struck a weak shot in the 83rd minute. Tino Piispa didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Rovaniemen Pallo Seura. After a defensive mix-up in Manchester City's zone, Anssi Ihanamäki stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Tino Piispa came out of the goal and Anssi Ihanamäki tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. When the match had gone on for 94 minutes, Jari Varis took a quick shot and it went in 3-4 without a chance for Tino Piispa to make any attempt to save it. The Manchester City fans had already started to leave before the final whistle blew. Rovaniemen Pallo Seura were clearly better and deserved to take the win.