FC suffers a setback against Vitkin's big boys: 'Every good thing must end sometime...' and today it was the end of Yakum FC's run. Two styles of play collided at the local stadium; brilliance versus power, technique against sheer strength... unfortunately for the Red'n'Blacks, it was the stronger team which took the upper hand.

Pre game conditions were great. A mild and sunny afternoon, with a light breeze - a perfect day for football. FC's roster was almost complete for the first time since the start of the season (although missing its coach, Mauro K.), and the spirit was high - FC was on a three games winning streak. The opponent, Vitkin, is new to the league. There was little information about it, and their results until the game were modest: one win, one loss and two draws.
FC took control at the first stages of the game, although it was obvious from the start that it was not going to be a walk in the park: Vitkin turned out to be a very disciplined team, and its BIG players did not hesitate to take down FC's faster and more skilled players. The battle for midfield control was fierce, sometime even brutal, and when Gabi L. left the game early in the first half due to a thigh sprain, Vitkin took control over the midfield. FC tried to play long balls to the wings trying to take advantage on its fast attackers, Roi C. and Ilan A. Neither Vitkin, nor FC managed to create chances, until the 30th minute: Itay R. lost the ball trying to break Vitkin's pressure by passing it back to Idan S., who missed on the rebound. Vitkin's striker failed to take advantage on the one-on-one opportunity, but another Vitkin player caught the rebound from FC's keeper and scored, 1-0 Vitkin. There were no more significant events until half-time, and the score stayed.
As the second half began, it became obvious that FC has no real answer to the strength and determination of Vitkin players who dominated the game. On the other hand, Vitkin's problem turned out to be creating chances and scoring: they could not transform their control in midfield to scoring opportunities until the 15th minute of the half, when an offensive move from the right wing led to a cross into the box. A terrible mistake by Idan who missed the ball, followed by another miss by Ishay R. the defender left Vitkin's striker in a 100% chance, and this time he could not miss: 2-0 Vitkin. Even then, the R & B players could not wake up from the nightmare. The game pattern stayed the same: FC sending long balls which were easily handled by Vitkin's tough defense, while Vitkin controlling the midfield, but failing to create meaningful opportunities. FC managed to create two chances to score, both with a cross from the right deep into the box, but Amir R. (a bad game for the captain throughout...) missed the two close headers. Vitkin made yet another goal late in the game, but the ref signaled for offside, saving FC from a humiliating 3-0 defeat.

FC players looked a little dazzled after the game. Some argued against the ref, which [they said] allowed the game to become 'too physical'. others, like Eyal B. said: "They beat us because they were more determined than us. We used to play like this in the previous seasons; but today, we met a team that wanted to win more than we did. Judging from their previous results and from their style, I think that every team in the league is going to have hard time against them...". Dror C. added: "we met a 'german style' team and we could not handle them". Amir R. concluded: "We had a bad game. Gabi's injury proved to be very significant in the middle. We didn't expect them to be that good; still, with a little luck, we could've saved this game".
FC is facing two hard games now: Burgata and Ha'ogen. The team needs to look forward and get ready. It turns out that the DUDUZI are coming back next week and this could prove to be a big boost for the Red'n'Blacks.
C YA NEXT WEEK!