League: Folgore surge, crazy finale in Domagnano

Four of the seven teams battling for five places in the Play-off quarter-finals took to the field early in Matchday 21 of the 2024-25 Campionato Sammarinese. The Fiorentino derby, one of the most eagerly awaited clashes of the weekend, was scheduled at the Ezio Conti in Dogana. Tarini and Girolomoni’s sides lived up to expectations: after a well-telegraphed free kick by Prandelli, El Ardoudi went close to the opener on a ball from Boubacar Diop. His diagonal effort beat Nardi, but Rea produced a monumental goal-line clearance. Tre Fiori replied on the counter, with Simone Benedettini alert to Bernardi’s right-footed attempt. Between two harmless efforts from Falzetta came a solo run by Belward – again denied by the ever-present Rea. Girolomoni’s team rehearsed the opener with Pini, flagged for offside on Dolcini’s through ball in the 39th minute. A minute later it took all of Simone Benedettini’s spring to keep out Prandelli, who then turned provider for the Sensoli goal deep into added time. With his first strike for his new club, the San Marino–Liechtenstein match winner also eased the guilt of Pini, who had incredibly crashed the ball against the upright at the start of the move. The second half maintained a very high level, crowned by a superb equaliser from Belward: a right-footed curler into the far top corner, leaving Nardi helpless. Tre Fiori’s reaction was ferocious and yielded two big chances on the Prandelli–Bernardi axis, not converted by the supporting striker. One clear opportunity each from set plays followed before the final whistle confirmed the perfect balance in the Fiorentino cross-town derby. The other derby of the day featured Folgore and Juvenes-Dogana. It was a tight affair in Fiorentino, where the Falciano side went in front as early as the 6th minute through former Juvenes man Marco Bernardi – in a borderline position when Fall’s touch left him with an open goal. Fabbri’s team threatened through Paszynski, who lacked the necessary killer instinct. The same flaw affected Bernardi who, after seeing a fine left-foot drive stopped by Gentilini, scuffed the finish for what looked a certain second goal, wasting a superb break led by Miori and Ura from close range. Ura went close to making it 2-0 at the start of the second half, but Bakalyar somehow denied him a certain goal in extremis after just 48 seconds. Ten minutes later, Gentilini drew applause with a brilliant stop on Miori’s fierce, deflected right-footed shot. Folgore failed to kill the game and Juvenes-Dogana grew in confidence, but lacked composure in the final third: Colonna headed wide from point-blank range, while Ferrulli forced Guddo into action from the edge of the area. With a quarter of an hour to go, Lady Luck looked ready to intervene: Bakalyar’s miscued cross beat Guddo and dropped onto the top of the crossbar. That was the final scare, and Folgore could then celebrate, helped by results elsewhere. Despite a long list of absentees, the Academy managed to claim another positive result against San Giovanni – who threatened early on with a thunderous strike from captain Boldrini. Cecchetti’s men, with Gespi taking his place on the touchline, tried to respond through Marco Gasperoni and Giacopetti, but Ghiggini bailed his side out. At the other end, an error by Alessandro Casadei went unpunished by Zanni, while in the 39th minute Aprea’s surge was thwarted by a stunning stop from Mattia Sancisi. The Under-22s went close again before the interval with a neat move down the flank, freeing Nicolò Sancisi for a right-footed effort that drifted wide. San Giovanni continued to dictate the play after the restart, when chances came thick and fast: Casadei was outstanding to keep out a swivel volley from Augusto Garcia Rufer, who then also saw a header saved. The forward appealed for a penalty in the 67th minute for a possible handball by Mattia Sancisi in the area, but the referee saw no foul. The finale had it all, starting with Aprea’s piledriver which Casadei turned away. In the first minute of stoppage time, Augusto Garcia Rufer played Corinti clean through, but the latter incredibly fired wide. That paved the way for the Academy’s remarkable opener: ball won back in midfield and quickly worked to Marco Gasperoni, who escaped the double marking and slotted past Starna into the corner. Even then it was not over, because on the game’s final ball – with the San Giovanni goalkeeper also joining the attack – a sensational equaliser arrived. Boldrini swung it into the box, where Casadei (perhaps nudged by two opponents) failed to claim and both his opposite number Starna and Stefano Sartini threw themselves at the loose ball. In reality, nobody seemed to get a touch and captain Boldrini could rightly claim the goal, sealing a pulsating 1-1 draw in the 97th minute. There was late drama in Montecchio as well, where Faetano claimed victory over Pennarossa. Del Prete was outstanding to deny Zonzini as early as the 4th minute, and the yellow-and-blues’ opener would follow ten minutes later. A brilliant assist from Brisigotti released Lisi, who hammered the ball in at the near post. Del Prete made amends by saving Brisigotti’s free kick, while Pennarossa began to gain territory. Efforts from Zenoni and Carrozzo testified to the Biancorossi’s improvement, and they threatened again after the break with two attempts from Pintore, both saved by Forconesi. The turning point seemed to arrive in the 74th minute, when Del Prete was sensational in tipping Lisi’s seemingly certain left-foot finish onto the post and crossbar. The ball dropped straight back into his hands, allowing Pennarossa to launch a transition which ended with the equaliser on the counter. Zenoni found the net after a superb run from Pintore. Dolci’s men enjoyed only brief joy, however, as two minutes later came the penalty awarded for Ricci’s shove on Brisigotti. The forward took on the responsibility from the spot, striking left-footed across goal to beat Del Prete and earn Faetano three precious points. The outcome also owed much to Forconesi’s great save, as he dived low to his left in the 87th minute to keep out a magnificent Zenoni free kick – just centimetres away from his brace. Here is the Matchday 21 schedule of the Campionato Sammarinese: Click here for the updated standings.

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