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YCAC Saturday 16th Feb,
In a hard-fought top-of-the table clash between two well-matched teams, FC International nabbed the points with a late winner to consolidate their Division 3 lead over second-placed Albion Old Boys.
The arid lunar landscape of the YCAC pitch has longed ago ceased to be conducive to anything resembling The Beautiful Game, which is a pity because both sides had plenty of talented footballers on display. But the bobbly surface and narrow dimensions of the playing area made it hard to get moves flowing, and the game soon settled into a grim struggle for midfield supremacy, with very few notable chances for either side. In fact the only memorable moment of a dour first-half came, appropriately enough, in the center circle. As Inter skipper Jorge stuck a leg out to prevent his Albion counterpart Karl Twohig's attempt to take a quick free kick, the follow-through from Karl's tame side-foot pass connected with the Inter player's shinpad. Or maybe not - maybe it did sever his leg off at the knee and send the bloody stump flying over the perimeter fence. That would better explain why the game was held up for a good three minutes as we all had to watch the wounded warrior writhing around like an epileptic hippo that's had its shame glands amputated. Still referee Paul Knighton showed the forbearance of one whose seen it all before, even if he did nearly put his back out trying to get the burly Mexican back on his feet. And after that little bit of comic relief it was back to the grim war of attrition in the forbidding no-man's land of midfield.
Though both sides were capable of causing each other a few alarms from corners, half-time came and went with neither keeper having been seriously tested. Albion's forward pairing of Andre Pinto and Kuni Katase ran hard all game, but were very well covered by an impressive Inter defence. The Old Boys too defended capably, with Niall O'Flaherty the standout player at the back. And it was well into the last quarter of the game before keeper Hitoshi Ono had to show yet again what a great athlete he is, flying across the goal to palm away a fiercely-struck shot from right under the angle of post and bar. And since the Old Boys hadn't been able to carve out a similarly good chance at the other end, they'd probably have settled for a scoreless draw. The Heavenly Pools Panel had other ideas though. Two minutes from time the referee spotted a clear handball by Old Boy Jorgen just outside the Albion box. Unfortunately he didn't spot the equally clear push in the back that had caused Jorgen to handle. A poorly positioned wall allowed the free kick to sneak in at the near post with Hitoshi stranded. Cue three more minutes of embarrassing writhing movements - this time a shirt-waving Salsa.
For the Old Boys, an annoying way to lose after contesting the game so well, but we've all played the game long enough to know that them's the breaks. FC International are an impressively well-balanced team who truly live up to their name, with a different nationality for almost every position. They'll be looking to get out of this division as soon as possible and test themselves at a higher level. The Old Boys on the other hand will be looking to get back to less energetic games against teams who will allow the vainglorious veterans more opportunities to make themselves look good and more talking points to wind each up with in the bar afterwards.
Report by Terry Cooney
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