Lions Den
Spectators: 8571 (Terracing: 6429,
Seating: 1971, VIP seats: 171) Şükür Hagi made the kick off and thus started the match. With a little luck, Nacional's Hugo Araya got control of the ball when Tod Freeman tried to sneak it across the goal line. Nacional's Mikel Bascones managed, thanks to a brazen rush, stole the ball on a throw-in made by Damian Dyson in the 4 minute of the game. Grant Blacknell showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Gonzalo Carneiro in the 5th minute of the match. Grant Blacknell showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Luciano Inverso in the 10th minute of the match. Mikel Bascones's late challenge caught a Leicester Lions's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Mikel Bascones helped the player get up and apologised. The supporters of Leicester Lions booed when Nacional was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 14 match minutes in a wonderful position. Mikel Bascones didn't get a good kick on the ball. Hugo Araya made a fantastic save in the 18th minute, when Tod Freeman sent off a good shot on target. Grant Blacknell made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Gonzalo Carneiro in the 20th minute of play. Gonzalo Carneiro took the ball and in the 21 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised Grant Blacknell. Grant Blacknell 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. Gonzalo Carneiro took the ball and in the 25 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised Grant Blacknell. Grant Blacknell dived to the right, and did manage to get a hand on the shot, but it still went into the right corner making it 0-2. In the 28th minute Şükür Hagi shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Hugo Araya saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. In the 31st minute the ball was on its way in behind Leicester Lions's goalkeeper Grant Blacknell, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. With an all-out effort, Leicester Lions's Hugo Araya threw himself towards the right post 33 minutes into the match and grabbed hold of the ball from Şükür Hagi, which otherwise would have been placed in the net. After a defensive mix-up in Leicester Lions's zone, Gonzalo Carneiro stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Grant Blacknell came out of the goal and Gonzalo Carneiro tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. In the 35th minute Gonzalo Carneiro shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Grant Blacknell saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Leicester Lions's Grant Blacknell played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Gonzalo Carneiro in the 38th minute of play. Hugo Araya showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Camron Rhodes in the 39th minute of the match. Glyn Everard kicked well hit freekick during the 42nd minute of the match. Hugo Araya made a fantastic save in the 45th minute, when Damian Dyson sent off a good shot on target. Even after changing tactics the home team jogged off the field with a 0-2 deficit. They would have to work harder if they wanted to turn things around in the second half.
Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Gonzalo Carneiro to make the kick off. 53 minutes into the match, Nacional's goal looked a bit too open when Şükür Hagi came free, but Hugo Araya reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Grant Blacknell took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Gonzalo Carneiro, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Leicester Lions's Grant Blacknell proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 63rd minute of the match, managed to save Leicester Lions from getting a goal against them. Camron Rhodes kicked well hit freekick during the 68th minute of the match. After a defensive mix-up in Leicester Lions's zone, Gonzalo Carneiro stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Grant Blacknell came out of the goal and Gonzalo Carneiro tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Nacional's Hugo Araya played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Tod Freeman in the 71st minute of play. Leicester Lions made a substitution. John Peacock replaced Jack Sharp. Nacional's attentive Mateo Antoni managed to snatch the ball when Damian Dyson made a throw-in in the 80th minute of the game. An unexpectedly hard shot by Camron Rhodes in the 82nd minute of play forced Nacional's goalkeeper Hugo Araya to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Şükür Hagi might have been able to make a better finish in the 86th minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Hugo Araya. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Şükür Hagi ran back to his position shaking his head. In the 91st minute, Nacional's Joey Real seemed to kick out at an opponent. The referee saw this and, surprisingly, showed Joey Real the red card, dismissing him from the pitch. The coaching staff of Nacional protested bitterly, but the referee would have none of it, and Joey Real had no choice but to slowly walk off the pitch. In the 92nd minute, Joey Real hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. After a defensive mix-up in Nacional's zone, Damian Dyson stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Hugo Araya came out of the goal and Damian Dyson tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. The Nacional supporters could be heard counting down the last seconds of the match. They errupted in celebration when the whistle blew, knowing Nacional would go home with victory in their luggage after a match that easily could have ended differently.
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