U23 World League

ACRUX
Spectators: 7755 (Terracing: 5818, Seating: 1783, VIP seats: 154) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Darío Cvitanich started the match with the kick off. Nicolas Queirós received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 4th minute. Robert Steffens tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Delfim Vilas Boas showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Darío Cvitanich, who was totally free with the ball in the 7th minute. JS 22's Robert Steffens played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Noel Tinoco in the 8th minute of play. After some fancy dribbling in the 12th minute, Carlos Castelo Branco managed to get in a good position for a shot. MZ Fénix's supporters rose to their feet, but Carlos Castelo Branco was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Robert Steffens breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. If Noel Tinoco had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 13th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Arnulfo Tancredos short, quick shot in the 16thth minute got Delfim Vilas Boas to make great effort and bar the ball away from getting in. After a rather tough play, JS 22's Epifanio Laffitte got a free kick in the 19th minute. When MZ Fénix's Noel Tinoco in the 20th minute got a chance for a shot 20th didn't hesitate and placed the ball to the right of the goalie. A beautiful save bye JS 22's goalie prevented a goal. Ubaldo Ostots made in the 21st minute of the game a fairly good throw-in which was taken care of by Darío Cvitanich. Noel Tinoco struck a weak shot in the 31st minute. Robert Steffens didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for MZ Fénix. After 34 played minutes MZ Fénix got a freekick which was hit by Nicolas Queirós. When Noel Tinoco came up free with the goalie in the 39th minute, the MZ Fénix 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 Noel Tinoco couldn't finish the play. 42 minutes into the match, MZ Fénix's Noel Tinoco sent off a blazing shot straight on target, a shot that Robert Steffens narrowly saved just below the crossbar. 47 minutes into the match, MZ Fénix's goalkeeper Delfim Vilas Boas had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Darío Cvitanich. The JS 22 players were disheartened as they walked off the pitch after the first half. MZ Fénix were winning 0-1.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Noel Tinoco to make the kick off. Alfonso Cilio kicked well hit freekick during the 50th minute of the match. Noel Tinoco who was well placed in front of the goal fired away a dangerous shot that in the 52ndth minute tested the skills of Robert Steffens when he managed to save the team from getting behind. 54 minutes into the match, JS 22's goalkeeper Robert Steffens had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Noel Tinoco. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Ubaldo Ostots during the 55th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. In the 57th match minute, JS 22 was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Ubaldo Ostots to maneuver through the defense. The crowd rose to their feet as Noel Tinoco kicked a wonderful shot that went in to the left of a diving Robert Steffens. That made the score 0-2 in the 59 minute of play. In the 63rd minute the ball was on its way in behind JS 22's goalkeeper Robert Steffens, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. Robert Steffens was in the perfect position, and the defense had done a good job marking him, but Noel Tinoco showcased his skills and made a perfect shot to score 0-3 in the 67 minute of play. When Cassiano Raminhos fell near the penalty area in the 80th minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored MZ Fénix's protests and gave Cassiano Raminhos a yellow card for diving instead. In a very dangerous position, a player in MZ Fénix fell when an opponent tried to get the ball from him in the 80th minute. Penalty! The audience was convinced that Noel Tinoco's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Robert Steffens was relentless in the 84th minute of the game. Robert Steffens showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Noel Tinoco in the 86th minute of the match. A throw-in in the 88th minute of the game was made by Ubaldo Ostots with Darío Cvitanich as target, who quickly passed the ball forward. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Noel Tinoco during the 90th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. A collision led to MZ Fénix getting a freekick after 90 minutes play. Noel Tinoco hit a great ball. 96 minutes into the match, JS 22's goal looked a bit too open when Noel Tinoco came free, but Robert Steffens reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. MZ Fénix's fans were overjoyed with their teams well-earned victory and stayed in the stadium long after the final whistle to celebrate the win.