Recap
Cup Run Over
The Dragoons progress in the Puchar Polski ended this past weekend with a defeat against Piast Wołowice in the 3rd round.
Hugo Cruz made four changes to the team that defeated LKS Iskra Czułów in the previous round last weekend.
Gabriel Muñoz remained in goal, with Piotr Hajnrych coming into the side as captain to take the place of Roman Bilovol. Hajnrych started at left-back with Francesco Leuci moving over to the right alongside Kuba Drobny and Simon Calabrese.
Enrico Forabosco and Szymon Urzędowski missed the game, with Emre Çolakoğlu and Corneille Malonga coming into the team as their replacements. Meanwhile, Rob Smits started for the second consecutive game to make up the midfield trio.
Into the attack, Salah Missi and Martin Voženílek continued on the left and right flank, with Vałdzis Fuhaš coming into the team to replace Yuri Samyonov.
Kick Off
Piast started the game on the front-foot and immediately looked to apply pressure onto the Dragoons. An early corner saw an opponent rise highest to head towards the Expats’ goal. However, the header had no power and Gabi Muñoz easily plucked the ball out of the air.
Early Goal for the Visitors
The Dragoons failed to heed the warning signs and fell behind with 7 minutes on the clock. A poor pass out of defence saw the visitors capitalise, finding space in between the defence and midfield. A second pass saw Piast breach the Dragoons box and an incoming shot flew over Muñoz and into the net via the inside of the post.
Immediately after, the Dragoons again conceded possession and Piast burst through the Expats’ half. An opponent hit a firm shot from inside the box, which forced Muñoz to fingertip the ball over the bar.
Piast Double Their Lead
From the following corner, Piast scored a second goal to double their lead with only 9 minutes played. The ball came across to the far post, with a visiting opponent lurking unmarked. A headed effort went back across goal and left Muñoz with no chance as it dropped into the net.
Piast continued to apply the pressure and missed a good chance to score a third goal before the Expats registered their first effort in the 20th minute. Nice link-up play saw Fuhaš play a one-two with Voženílek, with the Czech finding the attacker free inside the box. However, Fuhaš elected to take a touch rather than shoot first-time and allowed the keeper to charge down his resulting effort.
Penalty Dragoons!
Rob Smits wandered over to the touchline to take the result corner and swung the ball into the box. Simon Calabrese got to the ball first with his head and saw the ball strike the hand of an opponent. The Expats appealed towards the referee, who put his whistle to his mouth and pointed to the spot.
With Forabosco absent, Smits stood up to take the spot kick and calmy sent the keeper the wrong way to score. The goal confirmed the Dutchmeester’s second strike of the season and dragged the Dragoons back into the game.
Five minutes later, an excellent low pass from Drobny picked out the smart run of Salah Missi. The Algerian struck first-time at goal, however, an excellent diving save denied the Expats levelling the match.
Visitors Notch A Third
Into the 33rd minute, the Dragoons became the owners of their own downfall. A communication error saw the ball booted out for a throw, with a silly foul giving Piast a crossing opportunity. The set-piece saw a visiting player meet the ball first, with a smart flick-on flying into the net to bring the score to 1-3.
The visitors continued to create chances, as the half wore on and deservedly went into the break ahead. The Expats had struggled to get going, making poor decisions all over the field in a rare error-filled display. Time and time again, Piast looked to take advantage and could easily have gone into half time with a bigger advantage.
Second Half
Hugo Cruz wanted more from his side in the second half and the Dragoons started well. The home side controlled the possession but too often struggled to find the telling touch in the final third.
It took until the 57th minute for the Expats to register their first chance of the half through Smits. The Dutchmeester hit a firm shot at goal, however, he failed to find the target on this occasion.
Piast Score Again
Despite the Dragoons starting the half the better of the two sides, the visitors showed their danger scoring a fourth goal with their first real attack on the hour mark. An incisive breakaway saw Piast break forward with numbers and a pass found an opponent unmarked inside the Dragoons’ box. A delightful curled effort took the slightest of knicks off a defender and arched into the corner of the net giving Muñoz no chance.
The Expats worked hard to get back into the game and had several attempts to score. However, the Piast goalkeeper proved to be a thorn in the Dragoons’ side denying both Çolakoğlu and Missi.
Dragoons Halve The Score
Finally, in the 77th minute the Dragoons managed to find a way past the visiting custodian to halve the deficit. Barry Chowaniec showed good battling qualities to win the ball on right flank and raced into the Piast box. The Polish forward picked out the waiting Smits, who applied the finishing touch to give the Dragoons hope.
Instant Riposte
However, any hope for a comeback soon disappeared with Piast notching a fifth goal in the 82nd minute. Once again the visitors found space in the Dragoons half and exploited the gaps with aplomb. An incoming effort from the edge of the box gave substitute keeper Marcin Obyrtacz no chance, flying into the top corner of the net to bring the score to 2-5.
Two minutes after, a frantic ending of the game saw Smits almost turn creator. The Dutchmeester played a deft chip over the Piast defence to put Barry Chowaniec on goal. Unfortunately, the keeper read the danger well and closed the gap well to stop the Dragoons striker from scoring.
Barry Bags A Third
Just a minute later however, Chowaniec would make no mistake in scoring the Expats’ third goal. The Dragoons attacker sprinted onto Çolakoğlu’s through pass and found himself with just the keeper to beat. On this occasion, the attacker patiently waited for the keeper to move before lashing a shot past him and into the net.
The Dragoons found a second wind from somewhere and poured forward in their attempt to get back into the tie. Nice football once again saw Chowaniec through on goal with a great chance to score. However, rather than shoot, the attacker elected to try and find Smits for a tap in, with a defender getting in the way to deny a great chance.
Not long after, the final whistle blew with Piast triumphing to progress to the next round of the cup. The visitors cruelly punished the Dragoons mistakes, with their set pieces and finishing being the main difference.
With the cup run now over, the Expats can concentrate on completing pre season ahead of their league campaign. The Dragoons remain in the same league, but have a host of new sides to face this time around. The first game is of the season will be at home on 25th August, with the Expats taking on Jastrzębiec Książ Wielki – the first time the two sides have met.
