Dionysos 3 - 2 Assoua (374582913)

Clouds darkened the skies at Ring Arena as 70000 spectators turned up for the match. Yuri Montefiori was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Robert Kiedrowicz and Nikos Patinios. Everyone was excited about the upcoming Lagunes derby and the crowd was divided evenly. A 4-5-1 alignment was the formation of choice for Dionysos. The following players took the field: Vaidla - Mitsuki, Gesualdi, Häkämies, Cendre - Cabo, Hodină, Iivarinen, Zampetas, Slovatik - Trnić.

Assoua had chosen a strategic 4-3-3 formation. Lineup: Jansche - Orville, Izquierdo, Sæther, Oláh - Darnault, Goncalves, Faust - Van Waeyenberghe, Pilla, Coenen.

It was an obvious ambition of Dionysos to use their ability at attacking on the flanks. A mistake by the home side's central defence after 26 minutes allowed J. Van Waeyenberghe to score for Assoua. The scoreboard now read 0 - 1. Dionysos's K. Häkämies made an attempt at equalising 36 minutes into the match, coming in from the right, but the ball hit the post and the defence easily cleared the rebound. Assoua almost scored after a counterattack 37 minutes into the match, but T. Coenen took a shot from the left that landed harmlessly in the side of the net. 39 minutes into the match, Dionysos's D. Gesualdi maneuvered his way around the opposition on the left flank, delighting the crowd with his twists and turns. The effort paid off as the ball found the back of the net, evening the score at 1 - 1. Halftime score was 1 - 1. Dionysos claimed to have seen most of the ball, and the statistics agreed with them - possession being 55 percent.

After the game, the most discussed event will probably be the penalty given after 57 minutes that gave the visitors the 1 - 2 lead. Despite the controversy, T. Coenen struck home the penalty, as cool as anything. With 60 minutes played, the Dionysos coach decided a substitution may help turn the game around. J. Rechner came on, O. Trnić had to leave the fray. After a scuffle in the guests' penalty area 72 minutes into the game, the home team was awarded a penalty. C. Zampetas scored to make it 2 - 2. Assoua's G. Pilla had to watch the rest of the game from the sidelines, after twisting his ankle with 73 minutes having been played. M. Schokoprinz was the replacement. Slack defending gave Dionysos a chance to take the lead with 80 minutes played, but V. Hodină's cross from the left flank was fumbled in front of the goal and easily dealt with by the opposition. After 81 minutes of play, C. Zampetas gave the home team a 3 - 2 lead after an attack coming in from the right. Possession in this half belonged to Dionysos, who controlled the ball 55 percent of the time.

S. Iivarinen performed admirably for Dionysos. However, J. Rechner made a disastrous appearance. Most important Assoua player was T. Darnault. Å. Sæther was a disappointment, however. The match ends 3 - 2.