In the game today the boys had double trial to deal with as they had to struggle not only with the opponent, but also battle against the whims of weather. A drizzle that gradually converted into heavy shower, presented many troubles to the participants of this contest. Nevertheless, we have become witnesses of uncompromising struggle where Phoenix had advantage primarily due to well-adjusted combination game which had already become a business card of the team trained by Serhii Hrytsenko and Yurii Vashchenko.

Coaching staff issued instructions to put pressure on the competitors. Zhilstroy-1-KDYSSh-8 seemed to be simply not ready for such a turn of events. On the whole such a confrontation was new for Phoenix as our boys had not encountered girl teams before in official games. Right at the start of the game the boys managed to materialize their game advantage. The part of the first violin was played by Danylo Boldyzhev who managed to hit the target twice by working a ‘give-and-go’ with the partners. In the first game moment the assist was recorded to his achievements by Ivan Konkov, and in the second one – by the captain of the team Maksym Dolhulia.

Phoenix players rushed from defense to attack swiftly, and their female opponents were not quick enough to follow rapid movements of our boys. And, if it wasn’t not for the goalkeeper of Zhilstroy-1-KDYSSh-8 Yelizaveta Dovzhenko, the outcome of the game could be foretold long before it ended. Her counterpart – Eldar Bratchuk, who guarded the gate the whole game, entered the action very seldom before the break.

Nevertheless, he still conceded one goal in the first 20 minutes of the game. Phoenix keeper lost a personal duel to Valeriia Ihnatieva who went one-on-one with him and finished with a targeted shot in the lower corner. However, by that time Phoenix players had scored twice, and Demyd Yevsiukov was in the center of attention. At the beginning he assisted Olexandra Bezruka and then, after intercepting the ball, he scored the fourth ball into Phoenix net with a short range shot. Only after this episode Zhilstroy-1-KDYSSh-8 began to recover. The female opponents started to show better control of the ball, but they only had 2 shots on target in the first half (compared against 11 scored by Phoenix). Therefore, it’s not surprising that Danylo Boldyzhev succeeded to score a ‘hat trick’ in the first half.

The second half, though, started with a goal into the net of Eldar Bratchuk. The first attack of female competitors ended with a precise shot by Valentina Holovina. I will remark that unfavorable weather conditions readjusted the course of the game and sometimes it wasn’t easy for the players to master the slippery ball. That was the reason for increased errors in passes, as not every football player can calculate the rebound of the ball from wet field.

However, despite this fact, our boys did not give up combination play, which makes them successful. By keeping longer possession of the ball they were looking for gaps in the defense of the opposition. Another joining of Daniil Dudin to attack actions made the goalkeeper of Zhilstroy-1-KDYSSh-8 clear his powerful shot, but the swiftest one was Nikita Bodnar who was waiting for his chance to score. Then it was the turn of Mykhailo Soldatenko who sent the ball to the far corner of the net with a technically skilled shot. The resultant conclusion was made a few minutes before the final whistle by Demyd Yevsiukov who became author of the double in this match.

Thus, Phoenix is confidently covering the tournament distance by winning its 6th victory in seven games it played in.

Serhii Hrytsenko (Phoenix coach):

- You can see today’s weather … What can we do? The ball can neither be stopped nor taken. The only good thing – runs along the curb were successful. It’s difficult to play in such kind of weather.

- It was a very successful start today, several goals were scored. Was it a surprise for the opposition?

- Frankly, yes it was. We wanted to score a quick goal to let some boys born in 2007 a chance to play more.

- There are still some games ahead of Phoenix in the group stage. What is the boys’ mood?

- Our mood is always positive, we set our boys for victory. Most important is that they show high quality game.