U23 League

Rasnita
Spectators: 161 (Terracing: 121, Seating: 37, VIP seats: 3) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Liviu Zubaşcu started the match with the kick off. Aimilios Manolas made a fantastic save in the 6th minute, when Gheorghe Stoiciu sent off a good shot on target. In the 12th minute of the match, Iosif Doicaru got a very nice opportunity to score, but Aimilios Manolas was well-placed and pushed the ball away from the goal at the left post. In the 16th minute, Gheorghe Stoiciu ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Aimilios Manolas was frozen by the shot and now it was 1-0. An unexpectedly hard shot by Liviu Zubaşcu in the 19th minute of play forced Rasnita's goalkeeper Manuel Hogaș to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Iosif Doicaru sent away a hard shot on goal in the 22nd minute, but the ball hit the crossbar and went out. A very good chance for a goal. In the 24th minute, Gheorghe Stoiciu ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Aimilios Manolas was frozen by the shot and now it was 2-0. In the 26th minute Valeriu Jula shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Aimilios Manolas saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Rasnita's Manuel Hogaș played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Liviu Zubaşcu in the 31st minute of play. Manuel Hogaș made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Fabian Kaszubowski in the 36th minute of play. In the 38th minute of the match Uptown Otters got a corner. Rasnita's goalie ran out to the linesman to protest the call, but the linesman resolutely pointed his flag at the cornerflag. Liviu Zubaşcu ran over to the corner to take the kick. Uptown Otters's Liviu Zubaşcu was first on the ball when the corner was shot and he dangerously headed the ball towards goal, but Manuel Hogaș in the goal jumped up to prevent it from getting in. The audience was convinced that Liviu Zubaşcu's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Manuel Hogaș was relentless in the 40th minute of the game. In the 41st minute of the match Uptown Otters got a corner. Rasnita's goalie ran out to the linesman to protest the call, but the linesman resolutely pointed his flag at the cornerflag. Liviu Zubaşcu ran over to the corner to take the kick. Iosif Doicaru's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Aimilios Manolas read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 43rd minute of play. Uptown Otters's defense didn't have a chance, in the 43rd minute, when Gheorghe Stoiciu scored to the left of an out of position Aimilios Manolas, making the score, 3-0. Af the end of the first half the score was 3-0. The first half had gone as expected for the home team.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Gheorghe Stoiciu stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. 53 minutes into the match, Uptown Otters's goal looked a bit too open when Iosif Doicaru came free, but Aimilios Manolas reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. 55 minutes into the game, Remus Maleș was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Rasnita's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Uptown Otters the free kick. In the 70th minute Rasnita were awarded a corner. Paul Ene went to the cornerflag to take it. After taking down the ball on Rasnita's corner Paul Ene fired away a hard shot, but the defenders efficiently covered the most dangerous angles and Aimilios Manolas quite easily take care of the ball. 74 minutes into the game, Martin Pădureanu was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Uptown Otters's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Rasnita the free kick. The supporters of Rasnita booed when Uptown Otters was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 74 match minutes in a wonderful position. Martin Pădureanu didn't get a good kick on the ball. After a defensive mix-up in Rasnita's zone, Fabian Kaszubowski stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Manuel Hogaș came out of the goal and Fabian Kaszubowski tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. In the 79th minute, Iosif Doicaru left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Rasnita fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 4-1. Aimilios Manolas took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Iosif Doicaru, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. In the 89th minute, Liviu Zubaşcu hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. A collision led to Uptown Otters getting a freekick after 91 minutes play. Fabian Kaszubowski hit a great ball. Francis Lefevre's late challenge caught a Rasnita's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Francis Lefevre helped the player get up and apologised. Francis Lefevre hit a great freekick 93 minutes into the match. In the 95th minute Gheorghe Stoiciu shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Aimilios Manolas saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Rasnita's fans were exulted and cheered after their team won in a match that could easily have gone the other way.