Sparks 2 - 2 Norfolk (374450925)

37691 spectators arrived at The Slaughterfield, where weather conditions were pretty good for football. Otmar Schuh was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Tero Rantakaulio and Iso Ritsch. A 4-4-2 alignment was the formation of choice for Sparks. The following players had been chosen: Trail - Montero, Gehe, Castelain, Meirlaen - Surgeon, Batens, Forsbratt, Cenčić - Škrbić, Fan.

Norfolk started off with a 3-5-2 lineup. Starters: Arhan - Maqashvili, Klajn, Giordanetto - Villar, Metcalfe, Stockley, Blanc, Mettiäinen - Rimlinger, Van Thuyne.

For their match strategy, Sparks had decided to use their ability to counter-attack whenever possible. At 5 minutes played, M. Škrbić came in from the right with the intention of giving Sparks the lead, but his rocket of a shot rattled the crossbar. After several obvious shirt pulling incidents, D. Van Thuyne got himself booked. The manager of Norfolk was not happy. The crowd gasped as A. Trail of Sparks was flattened by an opponent after 14 minutes and had to be carried off. J. Clutterbuck came in off the bench. The visiting W. Rimlinger was booed thoroughly by the home crowd 19 minutes into the game, after he broke through the middle and scored, resulting in the visitors taking the lead. 0 - 1 was the score. Sparks had a great opportunity to score following a counterattack after 25 minutes, but M. Škrbić's shot from the left sailed high over the bar. 0 - 1 was the score after the first half. Possession in the forty-five minutes was dominated by Norfolk, with 56 percent of the ball.

60 minutes into the match, the visitors put themselves ahead 0 - 2 as A. Stockley finished off an attack from the left with a spectacular scissors kick. Sparks's O. Fan got the home crowd going when he finished off a left wing charge, reducing the away team's lead to 1 - 2. 75 minutes into the match, Sparks's B. Cenčić 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 2 - 2. D. Surgeon of Sparks received a yellow card after 78 minutes for unsportsmanlike behaviour. Norfolk had several good opportunities to take the lead, especially 78 minutes in when W. Rimlinger came up alone against J. Clutterbuck who managed a block. Norfolk enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 57 percent of possession.

Sparks's best player was M. Škrbić. J. Clutterbuck turned in a dismal performance, however. S. Blanc performed admirably for Norfolk. On the other hand, F. Giordanetto's play was disheartening. The match ends 2 - 2.