The 5th Vennskap Shield
at The Flynn Arena, Fligsive, The Inevitable Syndicate
96,500
SK Franz Josef City 2-0 RSK Longyearbyen Town
(L Mitchell 24', Pedrinho 71')
The fifth Vennskap Shield was a match that proposed many questions. Where were the Odegaard brothers for RSK? Who's this Klein kid and why does he think it's okay to take on SK single-handedly like it's no big deal? Will Pedrinho ever stop scoring goals? And have RSK managed to replaced Belgrave properly?
The venue was Fligsive, The Flynn Area - a stadium that for many of the travelling fans in the crowd held some pretty harrowing memories of a final defeat to Eura for the Terns. Of the players, Sudesval, Lucic and Korzhanenko will share precisely the same memory. Nonetheless, the weather was a balmy ten degrees above zero, and the teams were ready to blood some of their off-season purchases. For the reigning Divisjon One and two-time Champions' Cup holders, this meant the debut in green and white for both Delafreniere of New Montreal States - a hard working midfield presence - and local boy Luke Mitchell, signed from SK Aasiaat Harbour after the Champions' Cup win. For the Latitude Cup winners, the new recruits numbered only a couple of youngsters from the youth team, but much was hoped for them.
With both teams lining up in a narrow 4-2-2-2 or 4-1-2-1-2 formation, there was little space in the centre of the park for any of the midfielders to operate fluently, and the game struggled to settle into a rhythm. With a quarter of an hour it was Ismet van Huijgevoort who first forced a save out of a keeper, producing a wicked dipping volley that Cromdiir could only palm over the bar. Konigstein and Roger would also find space enough to get shots off in the opening quarter of an hour, and before too long it was SK who found themselves in the ascendency. Pedrinho also tested Cromdiir with a clipped shot form the edge of the box, but with Furellum defender Vladimerescu finding more and more space down the flank it would come as no surprise to see the first goal of the match come from a cross.
Beating Valtonen for pace, Vladimerescu cut inside and whipped the ball across for none other than Luke Mitchell to beat his man and head a bullet into the top corner, much to the delight of the home crowd.
Longyearbyen struggled to find any rhythm of their own in the first half, and with their main threat from open play, Asborn Larsen, being easily dealt with by Roger and Delafreniere it was clear that changes to the formation would have to be made at half time. Indeed, SK almost doubled their lead before the end of the first half when Pedrinho was unlucky to see his shot cannon off the crossbar and fall to the feet of a grateful Dennis Asplund on the edge the box who wasted no time in clearing it out for a throw in that prompted the half time whistle.
Replacing Loof with Hammel over half time, Merkens had hoped to see his side play it out from the back more than they had been, and this tactic worked almost immediately when Dickson was just unable to stretch his foot the extra inch that would have turned in his strike partner Montpellier's drilled cross along the edge of the six yard box.
Young Valtonen had impressed thus far for RSK, but after Sudesval came on to replace new signing Delafreniere, the Griffons began to find even more familiarity and fluency in their play, something that the Citizens just didn't have an answer to. The second goal felt like it was coming, and in the seventy first minute it was Konigstein who collected Weiss' through ball and sent a long diagonal ball across the penalty box towards Mitchell. The resulting acrobatic overhead kick from Mitchell could only be palmed away by Cromdiir, and Pedrinho was there to mop up the spilled ball and tuck it away for two-nil.
Merkens reacted immediately by replacing Larsen with Klein, and Montpellier with Jenssen. The appearance of Klein encouraged both Moses and Aagaard to make more runs forwards in support, and for a brief period it looked as if RSK were going to get an equaliser. Fine work from Aagard and Moses in the midfield allowed the fearless talent of Klein to round three SK players before pulling it back for Dickson to fire a cannonball right at Korzhanenko. The Terns keeper was equal to the power behind it however, and caught the ball before falling on it in order to both waste time and catch his breath again.
Iriarte would replace Mitchell with Eiger to warm applause from the home supporters, but even that wouldn't stop RSK's little passage of dominance, and for the second time in five minutes, Klein found himself rushing through on goal. This time there would be pull back however, and the shot was only just tipped wide by Korzhanenko, who managed to get a swift yelling session at his defence before the sequence of three corners that followed came to nothing.
The game began to slow down after that, and in the end the best team won. RSK can be heartened with that performance however, as they managed to either match or restrict SK to long shots from range for a considerable chunk of the match. The season ahead is sure to be a long one with plenty of time for Klein to settle yet, and if he repeats performances like that for them in the league, he could well be the link between Aagard and Moses, and Dickson and Montpellier that the team needs.
As for SK, well. Will they ever stop winning?
Lineups
SK Franz Josef City: A Korzhanenko; A Weiss, Y-E Nilsson, V Lucic (C), S Vladimerescu (M Solem 82'); D Roger, P Delafrénière (E Sudesval 60'), B Konigstein, I van Huijgevoort; Pedrinho, L Mitchell (K Eiger 77'). [Unused Subs: J Ipsen, P Ernberger, V Haegmann, I Soloveitchik.]
RSK Longyearbyen Town: T Cromdiir; P Valtonen, M Kerzhakov, E Loof (O Hammel 46'), S Ipatiev; D Asplund, A Aagard (C), J Moses, A Larsen (H Klein 73'); R Dickson, E Montpellier (E Jenssen 73'). [Unused Subs: N Wilhemsen, F Odegaard, S Tapaninen, K Guseinov.]
Stats
Possession
SK Franz Josef City 58% - 42% RSK Longyearbyen Town
Shots
SK Franz Josef City 9 - 8 RSK Longyearbyen Town
Shots on Target
SK Franz Josef City 6 - 2 RSK Longyearbyen Town
Corners
SK Franz Josef City 2 - 4 RSK Longyearbyen Town
Fouls
SK Franz Josef City 5 - 8 RSK Longyearbyen Town
Yellow Cards
SK Franz Josef City 5 - 2 RSK Longyearbyen Town
Red Cards
SK Franz Josef City 0 - 0 RSK Longyearbyen Town
Offsides
SK Franz Josef City 3 - 4 RSK Longyearbyen Town
Nostromo Meteorites 10 7 2 1 17 5 +12 23
Magnaeus City 10 7 1 2 21 7 +14 22
AC Izotz Zubia 10 7 0 3 16 9 +7 21
Burgess FC 10 6 3 1 16 8 +8 21
1830 Cathair FC 10 6 2 2 13 8 +5 20
Westonbirt City 10 6 1 3 16 13 +3 19
Crystal Mertagne 10 5 1 4 7 9 -2 16
KT Itzalovalle 10 4 2 4 10 12 -2 14
FC Southern Ninestar 10 3 4 3 13 12 +1 13
Oljestaden IF 10 3 2 5 13 17 -4 11
Baudelaire Tulips 10 3 1 6 13 15 -2 10
Fligsive FC 10 2 3 5 11 14 -3 9
Lesko Pavillion 10 2 2 6 9 17 -8 8
KT Moreazerua 10 2 1 7 9 17 -8 7
Shamrock Cathair 10 1 3 6 8 17 -9 6
Wozinitz Wonderers 10 1 2 7 8 20 -12 5
Ager Alaba from 
Urbanista Trojans
Aísahaldu Arahayán from 
Sam Ashtree from 
Mascona FC
Ungalb Parkatsee
Leónidas Brêgoô from 
Julius Carrera from 
CA Paulinthal
Ellis Elmsvikur, last at 
Tropicorp FC
Rouyn-Noranda Coal Diggers FC
Ibon Galdo from 
La Nueva Avenida
Gentle Breeze from 
Mardi Lopunnies to 
Natasha Klossovskaya, last at 
Vidoslav Kovacic from 
Tanna Norovathar from 
Power from 
Juan Pablo Reyes from 
Aurelio Seriesta, last at 
Roger Steiner, last at 
3 Leagues (651, 656, 658) · 
4 Royal Cups (643, 652, 653, 658) · 
1 Ides of March Cup (657) · 
Champions' Cup 43
Federico Ferreyra
Aeropag Football Invitational 22 · 
Copa de Campeones 22 · 
Cygnus Cup 25
Oscar De Orebale, 
Khamisi McCluey
Arctic Lily, 
Camille Mitchell, 
Baudouin Richelieu, 
Globe Cup 45 · 
Super Cup 44 · 
Astograthian Club of the Century
Andrew Watson, 
Emil Rasmußen, 
Nate Parkinson, 
Gerhard Thunder, 
Eddie Barlow, 
Bayardo Morriyas
Victoria Hellion, 
Flappy Likessquidnowandthen, 
Gito Pizan
Hannibal, 
Raitin Minaya; 
Minatsu Jinnai, 
