Fofa 1 - 3 Näädät (385615736)

It had rained all day, but 4731 hardy fans still made it out to Fofa Trafford. Kelvin Heemskerk was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Pere Baquero and Mika Tervakallio. Fofa tactics involved an interesting 2-5-3 combination. They fielded: Ferwanger - Rigollet, Oberfrank - Ribera Murcia, Gyosharkov, Pimiä, Duyzer, Jovanovic - Helenius, Mihaylov, Holopainen.

A 4-4-2 alignment was the formation of choice for Näädät. Starters: Guardamino - Pastoors, Immanen, Inkeroinen, Kääriäinen - Alsos, Al-Shaibani, Riekkinen, Mehtälä - Kettunen, Heilimo.

Fofa saw most attack opportunities on the wings. Today, Näädät's strategy involved concentrating on the flanks for their attacks. Fofa's M. Holopainen was shown a yellow card after 17 minutes for slicing down an opponent. Näädät's T. Kääriäinen managed to lose the defenders as he advanced down the right wing and scored, putting the visitors ahead after 20 minutes. 0 - 1. A penalty was awarded after 25 minutes, and T. Kääriäinen made the most of his chance to put Näädät up by another goal. 0 - 2 for the visitors. E. Al-Shaibani came close to extending the visitors' lead when he found himself completely unmarked in front of the goal after a pass through the middle. He tried to lift the ball over L. Ferwanger but overcooked it and hit the bar instead. L. Rigollet sailed high above the opponents as he headed in a corner kick from K. Oberfrank after 28 minutes of play, making the score 1 - 2. Fofa's defence sent a ball soaring up the middle on a beautiful counterattack with 30 minutes gone, but J. Helenius's finish was met by the reaching hands of the keeper. Fofa's K. Oberfrank got himself booked for a foul. Players in Fofa heard their coach's words ringing in their ears and steered their central attacks to the wings instead. With 38 minutes played, Fofa's M. Pimiä found an opening in the visitors' left side defence, but his shot was handled easily by the keeper. Fofa needed a fresh pair of legs on the field, and after 40 minutes D. Duyzer made way for B. Ellingsen. 1 - 2 was the halftime score. Fofa had most of the ball, with 54 percent of possession.

It might be a while before the fans see Näädät's J. Riekkinen again, after he had to leave the field in great distress at the 50 minute mark. He was replaced by E. Özok. Although the whole team were struggling to impress, Fofa's M. Pimiä was singled out as being the problem as he was called off the pitch after 55 minutes. J. Iltanen was given a chance to change things around. The muddy pitch made the game a gritty affair, which seemed to suit S. Alsos just fine. Fofa's M. Holopainen made an attempt at equalising 79 minutes into the match, coming in from the right, but the ball hit the post and the defence easily cleared the rebound. Näädät increased their lead after 80 minutes when E. Al-Shaibani broke through on the right, upping the score to 1 - 3, much to the home crowd's dismay. J. Iltanen received some harsh words from his coach after he acted foolishly 83 minutes into the match, probably out of lack of experience, and almost let an opponent score. Fofa enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 53 percent of possession.

Most important Fofa player was J. Helenius. M. Holopainen was a disappointment, however. The most dominating Näädät player was without a doubt R. Kettunen. E. Özok on the other hand, had a terrible day. The match ends 1 - 3.