Futsal: Cosmos climb continues, another spectacular 4-3 between Cailungo and Tre Penne

The ghosts of the cup are once again haunting Tre Penne, who, just as on 3 November (second leg of the quarter-finals), are forced to surrender 4-3 to Cailungo. Back then the Biancoazzurri were even 3-0 up at one stage; this time they squandered two leads, the last of which came with 4 minutes to go before the 60th minute. It was all in vain: Cailungo once again show their reluctance to accept the verdict when Galli’s side are in front of them (with the exception of the league first leg), and thanks to a brace from captain Venerucci, complete a late comeback in ‘Cesarinian time’ that gives them a second league win almost three months after the first (12 December, 3-2 against Libertas). In the cup, Jacopo Gamba scored twice in the first leg and four times in the return. Yesterday the no. 16 in red and green struck twice around the quarter-hour mark of the second half, overturning Tre Penne’s opener, produced by a spectacular overhead kick from Francesconi in the closing minutes of the first half. Manzaroli quickly gets the side from Città back on level terms; then, on 56 minutes, Fantini makes it 3-2. With little time left on the clock, Venerucci takes centre stage: with his quickfire double between the 57th and 59th minutes he delivers the final and decisive turnaround of the evening, allowing Cailungo to add to their tally in the table and above all to breathe new life into their hopes of reaching the post-season, even if the climb remains a very tough task. Tre Penne, for their part, had been eyeing a leap forward but must settle for not losing ground on Libertas and San Giovanni, both beaten on the Monday of matchday 21. The Granata cause Domagnano serious problems, who take the lead through Davide Dolcini but are pegged back right on the stroke of half-time when Burioni finds the gap to beat Muraccini. In the second half the match remains wide open. Villa decides it with his third goal in as many games. Domagnano thus make it three wins on the bounce and keep pace with Virtus and Tre Fiori, while waiting to see how La Fiorita – briefly caught by the Wolves – will fare this evening in the late derby against Faetano. Virtus also win by a single-goal margin against their opponents on the night, Juvenes-Dogana, who came into the game 5 points behind the Neroverdi, and who now see the gap widen further to the sides fighting for fourth place. The first of the two fixtures in Acquaviva is unlocked very early: after not even 2 minutes, Cecchetti’s deflection gives Virtus the lead, which they hold onto until half-time and then double at the start of the second period, when Morganti finds the net of the biancorossoazzurri. Two own goals, from Michelotti and Gatti, take the score to 3-1 in favour of Virtus; in added time Gatti redeems himself by making it 3-2, a scoreline that remains unchanged to the final whistle. It’s a second defeat in a row for Zonzini’s men, who at least do not lose any of their advantage over Pennarossa, beaten by Tre Fiori. Here, Boschi’s early opener is followed by strikes from Simoncini and Ferrenti to make it a temporary 3-0 to the Gialloblù, a lead put into question in the final minutes of the first half by goals from Ciacci and Selva. Boschi restores a two-goal cushion for Tre Fiori, who immediately have to swallow Ciacci’s 4-3 before finally pulling away thanks to goals from Cecchini and Mariotti. Bugli’s men fully succeed in their mission to protect third place, just as Cosmos stay true to their objective of extending their positive run, which now reads two draws and three consecutive wins in their last five games. Muccioli’s side celebrate the latest “hurrah” after sweeping aside San Giovanni 8-3. Half of the Gialloverdi’s attacking output comes from Zafferani, who also opens the scoring after 5 minutes. It’s 3-0 at the break, the result of a brace from the former Folgore player and a goal from Bologna. San Giovanni try to react at the start of the second half through Mularoni, but Zafferani, Righi and Guidi quickly dampen the Rossoneri, who have two further flashes from Zonzini and Giglietti but are forced to concede, before the final whistle, yet another goal from Zanotti, following on from the latest strike by the unstoppable Zafferani. With this win Cosmos move up to 19 points and set their sights on Pennarossa, six points ahead, while San Giovanni are forced to prolong their stay right on the border between the zone that grants access to the post-season and the one that denies it. On an evening when Fiorentino were idle due to their bye week, Folgore temporarily take over at the top of the table on their own thanks to a 12-0 demolition of Murata, who were without a goalkeeper, severely depleted in numbers and already 5-0 down by half-time, following goals from Ercolani, Giardi and a Pasqualini brace, plus an own goal from Beinat. Giardi’s strike sets the tone for a second half in which, in terms of scoring, Folgore complete the rout with further goals from Pasqualini, Pelliccioni (brace), Bernardi (brace), Giardi again and Allasia. This is the picture from matchday 21 of the San Marino futsal league, pending the late fixture: Click here for the updated table.

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