Kestrel 2 - 1 Amialeiros (386242016)

The 51692 fans in attendance at Kestrel Stadium were roasting in the hot sun. Björn Wuttke was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Tolga Duran and Maurizio Paolinelli. Kestrel started off with a 3-5-2 lineup. Lineup: Moreira - Lamelas, Bernardo, Oliveira Afonso - Lepojević, Canhão, Costa, Legzda-Legzdiņš, Komiszár - Menau, Kiukkonen.

Amialeiros tactics involved an interesting 3-5-2 combination. Starters: Campanella - Castaño, Batzu, Kasabov - Duarte, Weichelt, Mercês, Martin, Moskwiak - Pipão, Hrabina.

After a fine move down the middle R. Costa nearly gave the home side a goal after 2 minutes. However the finishing shot went just wide. S. Legzda-Legzdiņš caused the crowd to go mental with his goal up the middle after 5 minutes. This gave Kestrel the 1 - 0 lead. The Kestrel coach was visibly pleased with the score so far, but still ordered a few tactical changes 5 minutes into the game. After 6 minutes, a couple of quick and successful challenges followed by a shot from just outside the penalty area by A. Bernardo might have resulted in another goal for Kestrel. However, A. Campanella made a spectacular save. S. Legzda-Legzdiņš could have increased the lead after 15 minutes, but his shot hit the post after a nice combination in the middle of the park. Having been awarded a free kick in an awkward position after 18 minutes, Amialeiros did not go for a shot but instead fired the ball hard into the 6 yard box. After a brief tussle with his marker, A. Pipão was able to power the ball past the keeper to make the score 1 - 1. The teams went for the halftime break at 1 - 1. Kestrel had most of the ball, with 51 percent of possession.

After 60 minutes, the Kestrel coach wanted to see a new face on the pitch, waving S. Legzda-Legzdiņš off the field. G. Belchior took his place. This was a good period for the visitors, with several opportunities to take the lead, particularly when P. Hrabina slipped through the defence on the right to come up alone against J. Moreira, but the home side's keeper showed his lightning reflexes. 67 minutes into the game, O. Duarte almost gave the visitors the lead, as he clipped a delicate lob over the keeper, but the ball glanced harmlessly off the crossbar. The visitors' central defence should have had no trouble clearing the pass to B. Lepojević, but the Kestrel player managed to shrug them off and fired a low shot past the keeper to give his team the lead. 2 - 1! The Kestrel players could smell victory in the air. L. Kiukkonen wasn't in a hurry to leave the field as he was substituted for A. Amaro after 78 minutes. Kestrel's A. Amaro saw his fine effort strike the top of the bar following some good work up the middle by his teammates after 80 minutes. Possession in this half belonged to Kestrel, who controlled the ball 53 percent of the time.

Most important Kestrel player was B. Lepojević. J. Moreira turned in a dismal performance, however. B. Martin performed admirably for Amialeiros. O. Duarte was a disappointment, however. The match ends 2 - 1.