Mons Calpe make it into top six

With Europa Point having secured their place within the top six with a draw against Bruno Magpies, it was somewhat of a strange scenario for Mons Calpe on Sunday as they faced St Joseph. A draw would ensure they went through into the third round; a defeat would leave them to have to wait for the result of the next match between Manchester 62 and Lynx; and a victory would set the scene for Lincoln Red Imps to head into the third round with a two-point advantage over their rivals, St Joseph. This latter fact meant that St Joseph, who had been expected to be the ones with the easier task, were facing an important match which could determine how they entered the third round of the competition.

Stealing close to the halfway line, St Joseph set goalscorer Aznar on the run to beat Mons Calpe keeper on the 18th minute. This was the first clear chance for them to score after some nervy play from both sides. Mons Calpe, looking before this in two minds on whether to attack and leave themselves exposed at the back, or defend and aim for a draw, had no option but to try and seize any opportunity they had against what has been turning out to be the defence of the season.

A corner produced Mons Calpe’s equaliser on the twenty-fourth minute. The cross sent to the far post was easily diverted to goal with an unchallenged header, leveling the scoreboard. It was a frustrating time for St Joseph as they arrived into the final 15 minutes of the first half. Dominating possession, they were, however, not dictating the game as Mons Calpe sat back and killed the pace of the game to suit their needs.

The draw was not something St Joseph wished as it would see them one point behind Lincoln Red Imps. Mons Calpe played a very patient game, holding their position and trying not to risk. In possession, it was a slow, deliberate build-up which gave them the result they wanted. While it was not nice to watch, it was an effective way to protect the point they could get and try to slowly build to see if they could score a second. St Joseph, impacted by Mons Calpe’s goal, seemed to have lost their way and were not the team we had seen throughout the season.

Mons Calpe stuck to their guns in the second half, frustrating St Joseph and patiently building on the rare possession they had in the early part of the second half. Things started to get complicated for St Joseph as they required a Bradley Banda save to stop Mons Calpe taking the lead within the first ten minutes of the second half. However, it was not long after, as they approached the one-hour mark, that Bradley Banda was caught out of his goal with a shot from distance sent over him as Mons Calpe took the lead. Just three minutes later, some half-hearted defending allowed Mons Calpe to break quickly, and only a mistake in the final pass saved St Joseph from facing a third goal against.

St Joseph faced an uphill struggle, forced to seek two goals to take the three points. They were being left exposed at the back and were constantly chasing back and forth when they lost possession. Something which was happening a lot as they reached the midway points of the second half and continued trying to prod at Mons Calpe’s defence.

Slow and laboured in their offensive play, St Joseph were having probably one of the worst displays seen this season from the blue and whites. As the minutes ticked away, they looked more and more unlikely to score and more troubled in their approach. Panicky and with an urgency which provided for mistakes, St Joseph arrived at the final ten minutes still needing two goals to protect what had been their lead at the top of the table all these past weeks.

A final tense five minutes was lived as St Joseph piled everyone into Mons Calpe’s half, searching for that elusive goal. At the same time, having to backtrack and deal with persistent Mons Calpe frontmen who did well when they had the ball to shield it and waste as much time as they could when they knew they couldn’t get to goal. Disciplined defending by Mons Calpe took them into the end of the match still leading. They were to face seven minutes of injury time with a St Joseph side which kept piling the pressure. Within the first minute of injury time, Fraiz was forced to stretch to save.

With four minutes of injury time played and Mons Calpe not yielding in their stance, St Joseph faced a free kick after their defence had been caught out by a quick break from Vinet which saw Bathowiate running alongside and pulled back. Mons Calpe played the wasting time game but on losing the ball also faced a red card for Clinton in an off-the-ball incident, leaving them with ten men for the final two minutes of injury time. This added to the tensions as some confrontations between players and the benches ensued, adding to the injury time to be played.

The pause played in favor of Mons Calpe as St Joseph did not regain their momentum again in the short time left. The defeat left them two points behind Lincoln Red Imps at the end of the second round, and for the first time in months dropping into second place. Mons Calpe’s victory secured their place in the last six and only left one place to be decided with Manchester and Lynx yet to play after them.