League: Cosmos and Tre Penne neck and neck, La Fiorita held by Libertas

Six matchdays from the end of the regular season, the title race is looking more and more like a two-horse sprint between Cosmos and Tre Penne. La Fiorita, six points behind and having played one game more than the leaders, will need something miraculous to get back into contention, and tomorrow risk slipping to fourth place if Tre Fiori should get the better of Folgore on the Montecchio artificial pitch. It was at Fonte dell'Ovo that Tre Penne’s big win over Fiorentino took shape, even though the latter were very much in the game for a good hour. After Luca Ceccaroli’s opener, beating Bianchi on 15 minutes, the inevitable Torsani hit back four minutes later, pouncing on a loose ball in the box after Molinari had struck the bar from a set piece. Tre Penne had the strength to edge ahead again on the half-hour mark thanks to Gai, who found himself alone in front of an empty net after Badalassi’s header had crashed against the crossbar. In the second half the City striker missed the chance to make it three from the spot, but Barretta made no mistake with his header from Righini’s corner. That was nothing compared to the swivelled finish that, in the first minute of added time, allowed the centre-back to double his personal tally – this time from a Cibelli corner. Before the final whistle, a counter-attacking burst on the Gai-Pieri axis ended with the latter rolling the simplest of balls across for Cauterucci, who put the seal on Tre Penne’s superb four-goal haul. Cosmos also answered the call, delivering a solid, characterful performance against an in-form Domagnano. Berardi’s Gialloverdi did well to break the deadlock midway through the first half with Prandelli’s 15th goal of the season, the forward expertly glancing in a precise Pastorelli corner at the near post. While keeping Simoncini’s goal largely untroubled, Cosmos also created further chances and took the first of them early in the second half, allowing Zulli to stamp home the 2-0. Errico missed the penalty that would have brought up the third, while in the closing stages Ferraro’s sending-off further blunted Domagnano’s hopes of getting back into the match. Balanced, if not outstanding from a technical standpoint, was the clash in Domagnano between Libertas and La Fiorita. The deadlock was broken from the penalty spot, awarded in the 27th minute after Barlafante was fouled. From eleven metres Emiliano Olcese was ruthless, leaving La Fiorita with a mountain to climb. Manfredini’s men, however, stayed in the contest and went close to equalising on 68 minutes through Vitaioli, whose effort thudded against Zavoli’s right-hand post. His compatriot Danilo Rinaldi was more accurate: from a corner he brought the ball under control in the area and, from a tight angle, drilled a powerful left-footed strike that made it 1-1 and proved to be the final scoreline. The draw held firm despite the late stages being played with Libertas down to ten men following Mingucci’s dismissal. Sperindio’s side will be back on the pitch on Tuesday evening (Montecchio, 21:15) to contest the second half of their match with Cosmos, which was abandoned due to snow at half-time with the Serravalle club leading 1-0. Rounding off the early fixtures was the high-scoring 4-2 between Virtus and Cailungo. It looked like being a quiet afternoon for Bizzotto’s men, already 2-0 up inside 15 minutes thanks to a flash of brilliance from Tortori and a penalty converted by Buonocunto. Cailungo had the strength to get back into it, leaning on an excellent Canini, who punished the opposition rearguard – far too passive on the occasion – with a splendid right-footed strike from 20 metres. In bizarre fashion Virtus managed to restore a comfortable cushion, with a cross into the area from Buonocunto that Benincasa attacked with a sliding lunge. The Bologna-born forward failed to make contact, deceiving Elia Benedettini, whose desperate attempt to claw the ball away was cruelly denied by the crossbar. Statistically, the goal is credited to the Virtus playmaker, who moves on to a season “double-double” (10 goals and 11 assists). In the second half, Cailungo had a huge chance to get back into it. On 70 minutes Benincasa clumsily diverted a Marinaro shot from the edge of the area with his arm outstretched. The referee pointed to the spot and brandished a penalty and a yellow card, the second for Benincasa, leaving Virtus down to ten men and allowing Canini to complete his brace with a central effort. The energy poured in by Protti’s youngsters brought no reward, and Virtus struck again through the Buonocunto-Angeli connection. The former delivered a pinpoint cross from the byline, and the latter powered home an unstoppable header past Elia Benedettini to seal the Neroverdi’s 12th league win of the season. This is the partial picture from Matchday 24 of the Campionato Sammarinese BKN301, which will be completed by tomorrow’s three late fixtures – all live in free streaming, with Italian commentary, on TITANI.TV:

---