Futsal: a derby with a play-off flavour lights up Matchday 13

The penultimate Inter-group round serves up a very tasty dish on the evening’s menu. In Fiorentino we will see the derby between Fiorentino and Tre Fiori, the former eager not to lose further ground on Group A leaders Folgore and, even more, not to let Domagnano close the gap, the latter with just one idea in mind: to protect the recently claimed solitary lead. A clash that promises play-off level intensity, a real post-season atmosphere, entrusted – not by chance – to the refereeing duo of international official Daniele D’Adamo and Sirio Lanuti. All this after La Fiorita vs Juvenes-Dogana has been played on the same court, with the Gialloblù having recently been forced to slow down after three straight wins, but still fully in the hunt for top spot. A victory for the Montegiardino side would also be a way of putting pressure on Tre Fiori just moments before kick-off in the derby. And the Montegiardino camp knows this well. At Juvenes-Dogana, having rediscovered the winning feeling, the aim now is to build on it: a difficult mission, even with the absence, among the opponents, of suspended Mattioli, but the only route to keeping alive play-off hopes which, truth be told, already look rather compromised. Folgore certainly have no such worries, with consistency being sought above all to keep updating their extraordinary numbers. The Group A leaders are sailing full speed ahead and tomorrow will look for their eleventh wonder in the league at the expense of Virtus, still smarting from the heavy defeat suffered against Fiorentino and constantly under pressure from the relentless presence of Pennarossa, just a single point behind the play-off zone currently occupied by the Neroverdi. The Chiesanuova side will be without Rinaldi, suspended by the Sports Judge, but will still look to pull off the overtake by taking advantage of their direct rivals’ very tricky assignment. Standing in the way of Casadei’s men will be San Giovanni, who have lost touch with the play-off zone (namely Domagnano) but are far from giving up on the idea of getting back in the race. It will be up to Davide Gualtieri and his players – among whom Volpinari returns from suspension – to halt a negative run of three consecutive defeats. Domagnano, on the other hand, have embarked on a virtuous path since the late 2021 defeat by Tre Fiori. The draw obtained in the last round with La Fiorita, former leaders of the other group, is a result the Wolves did not at all dislike, but one that cost them contact with second place, currently occupied by Fiorentino. Tomorrow’s opponents will be Cosmos, still in the running for the post-season – there are just five points separating the Gialloverdi from Virtus – but also needing to deal with the emotional aftermath of a derby that ended in a heavy defeat. Whether it will be the Giallorossi’s desire to continue improving a good – but still improvable – position in the table that prevails, or the urge for redemption from Dante Canducci’s side, will only be clear at the final whistle of the second match scheduled in Dogana. In Acquaviva, before San Giovanni vs Pennarossa, the meeting between Faetano and Libertas will take place, with the latter returning after a rest round. Last Monday the Gialloblù celebrated their first win in this season’s competition: the adrenaline rush stored up against Cailungo could also prove decisive in the balance of this encounter, which Libertas, for their part, will approach driven by the search for a result that can not only extend their positive streak but also revive – currently not so substantial – hopes of getting back into the play-off race. Cailungo sit out this round. Here is the schedule for Matchday 13 of the 2021-22 Campionato Sammarinese di futsal:

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