Recap
Triumphant 12!
The final B Klasa fixture of 2021 saw the Dragoons face-off against a young Bieżanowianka II side. Despite being a home fixture for the Dragoons, Bieżanowianka hosted the match on their home turf this weekend.
A bright start by the Dragoons presented the first chance of the game in the 2nd minute. Enrico Forabosco played a lofted through ball to allow Martin Voženílek the chance to stretch his legs. The Czech accelerated past the Bieżanowianka defence and found himself with just Bartosz Zydek to beat. The winger sent a low shot at goal, which squirmed underneath Zydek but agonisingly bobbled back off the post.
Straight down the other end, the visitors had their first shot at goal. Tomasz Niemiec found space to hit a firm effort at goal from 20 metres, however Gabi Muñoz got down to comfortably save.
In the 5th minute, a Dragoons corner kick saw Bieżanowianka break forward on the counter in numbers. The ball was worked to the left side, but a poor cross into the box landed gratefully into the hands of Muñoz.
The Pace Slows Down
Following a fast paced opening of the game, both sides began to cancel each other out. The Dragoons struggled to break down a resolute Bieżanowianka side and started to become slightly wasteful in possession.
It took until the 25th minute for the next opportunity of note for either side. Yuri Samyonov had switched over to the left wing, cut in on his right foot, but could not find the target with his shot.
Minutes later and Bieżanowianka came close to grabbing the lead in a quick counterattack. Sebastien Hebda sprinted down the right side and put a low cross into the box. The ball found Mateusz Więcek who hit a first-time snapshot that whistled just past the post.
Bieżanowianka began to find some joy in attack and Gabi Muñoz had to be called into action twice in succession. The first effort came from Kacper Strzelec hitting a free-kick from range that bounced awkwardly in front of Muñoz, forcing the keeper to unorthodoxly divert the ball wide.
A minute after, Kacper Juszczyk hit a firm shot at goal from a long way out. Muñoz proved to be equal to the effort once again, diving to his right to palm the ball out of play.
The Dragoons came close to taking the lead in the 35th minute. A trademark long-throw from Michał Nowak found the head of the Belarusian giant Alexey Zelenkin. The centre back powerfully glanced the ball towards goal and saw it float tantalisingly past the post.
Alexey Alertness
In the 39th minute, the Dragoons managed to finally break down their stubborn opponents and take the lead. Enrico Forabosco swung in a delicious corner kick, that fizzed across the 6 metre line. Alexey Zelenkin reacted quickest, losing his marker to volley the ball into the net to score his second goal in consecutive games.
Shortly afterwards, the referee blew his whistle to end the half. The Dragoons had been the better of the two sides, but had struggled to keep possession and find creativity in the final third.
Second Half
The second half opened with the Dragoons storming out the traps to extend their lead with a further goal. Forabosco grabbed his second assist of the game, launching a long ball forward for Samyonov to chase. The Israeli attacker got the better of the plump last man and raced through on goal. With just Zydek to beat, Samyonov waited for the onrushing custodian’s move before calmly dinking the ball over his despairing dive and into net for 2-0.
Just a moment later, a quick turnover in possession saw Forabosco go close with a venomous shot hissing just past the post.
Into the 56th minute, two successive free kicks presented Forabosco with chances to further extend the Dragoons advantage. On both occasions however, the midfield man lifted the ball over the cross bar.
Flag Denial
Good pressing from substitute Edo Battaglion saw the Dragoons win the ball high up the field. The full-back played the ball to Samyonov, who in turn played a delightful seeking pass for Martin Voženílek. The Czech raced onto the ball and finished with aplomb past Zydek. The celebrations did not last long however, with the assistant referee’s flag denying the goal, much to the ire of the fans in attendance.
In a moment of comedy not long after, the assistant referee’s flag once again denied a goalscoring opportunity. On this occasion, Italian Enrico Forabosco raced onto a through ball to go one on one with the goalkeeper. The midfield wizard appeared to use the wrong spell in front of goal and somehow smashed the ball high and wide! – Thankfully Forabosco’s blushes had been spared by the assistant’s call.
With the Dragoons comfortably in the lead, the pace of the game slowed down considerably in the second half.
Brian Lemmen tried to break the monotony in the 72nd minute. The Dutch defender hit a rather speculative effort from miles out, which caused no alarm for the keeper.
In the 75th minute, a good run from Josh Dawson saw the defender dash into the Bieżanowianka box. The Englishman found space to shoot, however his effort was blocked in front of goal and cleared.
Substitute Filippo de Felice created a chance for Michał Nowak in the 81st minute. Nowak playing in a more advance role in the second half, blasted a shot at goal, but Zydek stood tall to block the ball with his legs.
Moments after, the Polish national came even closer to grabbing a goal after Cedrick Mwamba had been fouled. Nowak hit a firm effort at goal, only to see the ball cannon back off of the crossbar to deny a third goal.
Cue Titanic Music
As the match petered out to a close, the final attack of the game produced a third goal for the Expats. David Nicolas found space to swing a cross into the box from deep. Filippo de Felice rose highest to head the ball to the unmarked Cedrick Mwamba. Time stood still as the Dragoons cult hero chested the ball down and made no mistake in firing it beyond Zydek and into the net. All the Dragoons players, raced to celebrate with the Congolese native after getting his name on the score-sheet for the first time.
The goal proved to be the final kick of the game as the referee immediately blew his whistle to end the match.
A young and well organised Bieżanowianka gave a good account of themselves, but the experience and patience of the Expats saw them through in the end.
Unbelievably, the victory sees the Dragoons go unbeaten, winning in all 12 B Klasa fixtures so far this season. The team go into the winter break top of the league nine points ahead of their closest rivals.
The league season will resume again in the New Year with the Dragoons travelling to Bronowicki for the first time. Bronowicki have had a tough season so far and find themselves at the bottom of the pile with two wins, one draw and nine defeats. Following Grom’s withdrawal from the league, the Dragoons opening game of the season saw the only previous encounter between the sides. Despite going behind, the Dragoons fought back to defeat Bronowicki 6-1.
The Expats will now get the chance to recharge their batteries and have a deserved break from action. We would like to extend our thanks and best wishes to all friends and fans until such time.
WHO ARE WE? DRAGOONS!
