BKN301 Championship: Rinaldi gives wings to La Fiorita

There are two goals per game in every Friday fixture of the fourth matchday of the BKN301 Campionato Sammarinese. On resumption after the international break, Murata claim the first win. In it, Manzaroli also shines, the black-and-white goalkeeper with a past at Juvenes-Dogana, his opponents on a stormy night in Montecchio. The keeper is immediately in the spotlight, neutralising a free kick from the edge taken by Stella. At the other end, Murata strike with their first foray: from a quickly taken corner, Patregnani finds Ferraro at the near post for a decisive first-time finish. It’s an entertaining game, although the forwards are wasteful. Santi, a defender by trade, does better, forcing another stop from Manzaroli on 77 minutes. Eleven minutes later the San Marino keeper is nothing short of monumental as he claws away Merli’s bicycle kick from the top corner – the forward had already started savouring his fourth goal of the season, and one of the finest of his career. Deep into stoppage time, Gaiani turns to gold a ball won on the edge of the box by Valentini and laid off by Baldini for the assist that seals the 2-0. Same scoreline in the big match of the day, the top-of-the-table clash in Acquaviva between leaders La Fiorita and Cosmos. It’s a very tactical encounter, with one chance apiece in the first half and Simoncini and Vivan dealing with their respective workloads without any fuss. After the break the script doesn’t change, except for the role taken on by Rinaldi. The La Fiorita captain becomes the undisputed star, making the most of Grandoni’s assist to ghost in behind Di Maio and beat Simoncini. Barely a minute later, the San Marino international striker strikes again from a Lunadei assist: he skips past Simoncini with momentum and fires his left-footer into the empty net, with Brighi’s desperate block attempt unable to prevent the goal. Before the end, Zafferani rattles the crossbar, coming close to adding a third for the reigning champions. Two draws on the other pitches, albeit achieved in completely different ways. The one at the Crescentini in Fiorentino comes at the end of a cracking contest. The meeting between Virtus and Libertas is unlocked in the 6th minute by a goal from former Virtus man Armando Aruci. Crucial is Nodari’s short back-pass, which allows the Libertas captain to round Passaniti and roll the ball into the net. Before the quarter-hour mark Morelli blasts over from the edge of the box, while Costa forces the opposing goalkeeper into action from distance. Virtus reply through Angeli, who scores from a Buonocunto corner, taking advantage of Zavoli’s hesitant attempt to come off his line. A golden chance falls to Aruci on 26 minutes, but his point-blank header somehow fails to hit the target. At the start of the second half Angeli is no more accurate, finding the ball at his feet after an uncertain intervention by Zavoli but failing to steer it on target with the goal gaping. At the other end, it takes all of Passaniti’s bravery to deny Libertas a second on the Olcese-Bucci combination. Virtus’ comeback goal would in fact arrive, but the match officials spot a foul in the melee from which Ciacci emerged as the winner, and the midfielder’s roar of celebration dies in his throat. Domagnano-Fiorentino, by contrast, offers far fewer thrills. The red-and-whites threaten early on through Fedeli from a corner; Fiorentino respond with a right-footed effort from Hirsch. The first turning point comes on 21 minutes, when Filippi – getting in the way of team-mate Tall – ends up fouling Babboni, who was clean through on goal. Beltrano doesn’t hesitate and produces a red card. Domagnano immediately try to make the extra man count, but Babboni mistimes his header from a Fedeli cross and Zonzini sees his left-footed effort, struck with conviction, blocked by a defender. Just after the half-hour mark, Lago also tries an acrobatic effort, but sends it inches over. Then, like a bolt from the blue, comes Hirsch’s individual moment of brilliance: the San Marino winger weaves his way through the defence, cuts back onto his right foot and beats Colonna with the help of a crucial deflection. The break arrives with Fiorentino a goal up but a man down – a situation that is set to change on 72 minutes, when Angelini conjures up a scissor-kick from a Ferraro cross, the ball crashing in off the underside of the bar before bulging the net. It’s a cold shower for the Rossoblù, who also have to deal with a double numerical inferiority after Hirsch receives a second yellow card on 79 minutes. Amadori’s men, however, fail to take advantage, creating only one real chance as Fedeli misses the target from twenty metres. Here is the full schedule for the seven fixtures of Matchday 4 of the BKN301 Campionato Sammarinese, all available live on the platform Titani.TV:

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