Smedge 3 - 0 Fantastic (390050740)

58261 punters turned up at The Tromp Arena, and despite threatening clouds on the horizon, no rain came. John Bråthen was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Jarno Vihanto and Toke Heyde. Smedge had chosen a strategic 2-5-3 formation. They fielded: Latraverse - Di Nucci, Carmona - Waite, Cantington, Comyn, Sloman, Crotta - Morris, Norgate, Russells.

Fantastic decided to use a 3-5-2 set up. The following players took the field: Giurea - Rothe, Gábor, Perman - Trompetto, North, Molveno, Duffey, Banaszkiewicz - Silva, Blum.

Pressing was the tactic of the day for Fantastic. S. Di Nucci gave Smedge the lead as he successfully challenged the guests' central defenders, then slotted the ball into the bottom corner, giving the keeper no chance. 1 - 0 24 minutes into the match D. Carmona put Smedge ahead 2 - 0 with a truly marvelous free kick. The players of Smedge now seemed to think the job was done and acted more defensively, just waiting for the ref to blow the final whistle. 26 minutes into the match, the visitors' central line of defence had to look on as F. Russells broke through, making the score 3 - 0 for Smedge. F. Latraverse made a brilliant save 36 minutes into the match, blocking a rocket of a shot from W. Molveno on the right hand side. Halftime score was 3 - 0. Smedge claimed to have seen most of the ball, and the statistics agreed with them - possession being 67 percent.

The coach of Smedge was happy with the game so far, but still wanted to change the line up. After 55 minutes, S. Wallace came on for M. Comyn. In the lead, Smedge adjusted their style of play with 56 minutes gone. K. Norgate could have put Smedge up one more, but he fired into the side netting after breaking free on the left after 59 minutes. Smedge's S. Di Nucci had an excellent opportunity after 74 minutes, shooting after receiving a pass from the right hand side, but he missed the goal by miles! With 76 minutes played, C. Crotta could have brought this one home for Smedge as he charged up on the left, but his hooked ball went just a bit too high. After 80 minutes, a couple of quick and successful challenges followed by a shot from just outside the penalty area by T. Sloman might have resulted in another goal for Smedge. However, R. Giurea made a spectacular save. Smedge had most of the ball, with 66 percent of possession.

Most important Smedge player was F. Russells. S. Wallace turned in a dismal performance, however. Fantastic's best player was J. Silva. M. North was a disappointment, however. The match ends 3 - 0.