U23 World League

Valleslona Arena
Spectators: 7555 (Terracing: 5668, Seating: 1737, VIP seats: 150) New England Minas's Cory Kirkland started the match with a crisp pass. The crowd had been anticipating this game for weeks and the excitement in the stadium was easily visible. Dadá Ponta hit a great freekick 4 minutes into the match. Tirso Benito showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Jarod Hester, who was totally free with the ball in the 9th minute. Tirso Benito showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Dadá Ponta in the 11th minute of the match. The supporters of Valleslona F.C. booed when New England Minas was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 12 match minutes in a wonderful position. Jarod Hester didn't get a good kick on the ball. An unexpectedly hard shot by Chris Cabezon in the 16th minute of play forced Valleslona F.C.'s goalkeeper Tirso Benito to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. The supporters of New England Minas booed when Valleslona F.C. was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 18 match minutes in a wonderful position. Ander Bargas didn't get a good kick on the ball. Tirso Benito made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Cory Kirkland in the 19th minute of play. Segundo Gol showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Rolando Silvestre in the 27th minute of the match. In the 31st minute Dadá Ponta shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Tirso Benito saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. In the 35th minute Cory Kirkland shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Tirso Benito saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Tirso Benito took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Cory Kirkland, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Harry Kane struck a weak shot in the 36th minute. Segundo Gol didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Valleslona F.C.. With a little luck, New England Minas's Segundo Gol got control of the ball when Harry Kane tried to sneak it across the goal line. In the 44th minute, Harry Kane left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Valleslona F.C. fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 1-0. Erasmo Barba was astounded when the referee showed him the red card after a seemingly innocent challenge, 47 minutes into the match. A collision led to Valleslona F.C. getting a freekick after 48 minutes play. Erasmo Barba hit a great ball. In the 49th minute, Dirk Hatfield made a precise shot to the right of Tirso Benito. Valleslona F.C.'s defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 1-1. After the first half the score was level. The break gave the players a chance to catch their breath, whilst the managers went over the tactics with them again.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Arturo Cortes was the one to do the kick off. Cory Kirkland hit a great freekick 54 minutes into the match. New England Minas's Segundo Gol played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Rolando Silvestre in the 55th minute of play. Tirso Benito made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Dadá Ponta in the 56th minute of play. Jon Negron hit a great freekick 58 minutes into the match. Tirso Benito made a fantastic save in the 73rd minute, when Chris Cabezon sent off a good shot on target. In the 74th minute, Cory Kirkland got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. Valleslona F.C.'s Maurin Calvo was substituted for Xoan Gonzalvez. With his leg Tirso Benito managed to avoid a goal in the 81stth minute, when New England Minas's Wilfredo Middleton fired away a shot with a lot of spin towards his right hand side. Valleslona F.C.'s Tirso Benito proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 85th minute of the match, managed to save Valleslona F.C. from getting a goal against them. 93 minutes into the match, Valleslona F.C.'s goalkeeper Tirso Benito had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Domenico Welch. After 95 played minutes New England Minas got a freekick which was hit by Jarod Hester. Segundo Gol showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Arturo Cortes in the 97th minute of the match. After some careless play in the Valleslona F.C. defense, Dadá Ponta kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Tirso Benito. The Valleslona F.C. fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Tirso Benito should have stopped the shot. The New England Minas players were relieved to hear the final whistle blow to end the match. The away crowd was happy to see their team win after a very tight game.