Just like a year ago Phoenix got through to the High League of the Futsal Fair in Lutsk. The previous season it was the turn of events and the tally of the games we did not participate in that decided the outcome of the tournament, this year the team won in its age group with no questions asked and with no drama.
To yesterday’s wins over FC InBev (Zhytomyr) and Lubart, Phoenix added a morning victory in its match against Children and Youth Sports School No 4 of Rivne, the fourth team in AFU’s ranking among children and youth sports clubs and children and youth sports schools. The match became one of the gems of the group stage – fast-paced, technical and combinational. A brace by Mikhailo Soldatenko and the goals by Danylo Boldyzhev and Maksym Dolhulia ensured Phoenix’s victory with a comfortable 4:1. The team played in a robust and disciplined way, with only one mistake, which led to a conceded goal in the second half.
This match over not getting through to the High League for Phoenix was close to impossible. Moreover, the team would do with the draw or a minimum loss in the final match of the tournament.
The violets played their match against Power of Rozhyshche as calmly as possible. The final day required a certain energy level and the boys had run out of a good deal of energy after the hectic four days of the Ukrainian Cup and two of the current tournament. Phoenix combined well and showed good positional defense when countering the opposition. The ball did end up in our net in the second half, a minute after, though, ours managed to retrieve their loss – the teammates took Ivan Konkov to a shooting position. Rozhyshche’s keeper did save Ivan’s first kick, turning the ball away rather awkwardly, though, and that is when Konkov attacked again - with a header and straight into the net, avoiding the opposition’s defender, who was attempting to keep guard.
Having made up for the conceded goal Phoenix calmed down and started to play the score. 90 seconds before the final whistle Vladyslav Fedoruk took advantage of scramble at our goalmouth and scored the second goal.
1:2 was the tally our team could easily accept, the boys did not feel like losing, though. The coaches took out a minute and Boldyzhev put on a T-shirt of the fifth field player. Power was trying to play for time but in the remaining 15 seconds of the match Soldatenko passed to Dolhulia and the latter beat the opposition’s defender brilliantly and sending the goalie to the floor with a fake sweep, kicked accurately into the goal.
Phoenix gets through to the Futsal Fair High League off the leader’s position in its group and will fight for medals tomorrow in matches against Sports School No 4 of Rivne, Respect of Manevychy and Sokil of Khmelnytskyi.