Group D was really hotting up as we entered Round 4 and we had quite a tussle in prospect on Pitch A as Fail Madrid 1 met Wonder Vision. These teams currently sat in 7th and 8th position but could feel pretty hard done by. Their performances had merited more than the 2 points each they had to show for their efforts.

Fail Madrid 1 had earned a draw against the 2015 champions and the league leaders. Wonder Vision had earned a draw against the 2016 champions and a strong looking Danish Dynamites team. Both teams really needed a win to boost them up the table.

At the 2016 Riga Tournament Fail Madrid 1 earned 3 draws in a row and, whilst these were good performances and going unbeaten is highly respectable, these draws did stall their progress up the table. They would hope that they would not become the “draw specialists” in Barcelona and seemingly not get the rewards for their performances. They needed a win and things started well with Rob Maller putting them ahead for the second time today.

Last time out they could not hold on to the lead as Club Esportiu Llefia hit back in Round 2. Here in Round 4, Rob Maller gave them the cushion of a 2-0 lead and from here they did not look back. A second clean sheet in a row for Joe Clark also helped their cause as they picked up their first win of the day.

It was disappointment for Wonder Vision as they slipped to the foot of the table – harsh.

The next game in Group D was FourInTina versus Danish Dynamites. As the first Danish team in our tournaments, Danish Dynamites were setting the benchmark for their future performances and all other future Danish teams in our events. FourInTina were making the 8th appearance by a Welsh team overall in our tournaments. The track record of their compatriots so far was:

Goals Aloud, 2011 Amsterdam Fives:

6th of 7 teams, Group A (although 3rd to 6th level on 7 points)

P6 W2-D1-L3 Goals: 11-19 Points: 7

Plate QF: Lost 3-2 to Deportivo Dooradoyle

Goals Aloud, 2012 Algarve Open:

4th of 5 teams, Group B

P4 W1-D0-L3 Goals: 4-10 Points: 3

Plate QF: Won 2-1 v Bede FC

Plate SF: Lost 1-0 to Contejus Hurricanes

AFC Ramos, 2012 Mallorca Tournament:

5th of 6 teams, Group A

P5 W1-D0-L4 Goals: 4-17 Points: 3

Plate QF: Lost 5-3 to Norton Old Boys

Abertawe All Blacks, 2013 Mallorca Tournament:

6th of 6 teams, Group A

P5 W0-D0-L5 Goals: 1-23 Points: 0

Wooden Spoon: Lost 4-1 to Arenal Vets

Wrexham Rednecks, 2014 Barcelona Fives:

5th of 5 teams, Group A

P4 W0-D1-L3 Goals: 1-10 Points: 1

DNQ for knock-out phase.

Wrexham Rednecks, 2015 Mallorca Tournament:

4th of 6 teams, Group A

P5 W1-D1-L3 Goals: 5-5 Points: 4

Plate QF: Won 7-3 v Stanford FC

Plate SF: Lost 5-1 v Seleccion Balear

Abertawe, 2017 Mallorca Tournament:

5th of 6 teams, Group A

P5 W1-D0-L4 Goals: 4-12 Points: 3

Plate QF: Lost 4-0 to Shergold's Hairline Harriers

FourInTina started off well today with 2 victories in a row but they were heading towards their second defeat in a row as Danish Dynamites were really finding their feet. The Danish team had responded to Round 1 defeat with 4 points from 6 and they were about to make that 7 points from 9.

Jens Bodker Knudsen and Jesper Frisch goals helped them on their way to a solid 2-0 win. They would share the lead of Group D at the end of Round 4.

Deportivo 2.0 were up next against P Slayers. Deportivo 2.0 started off with a very good win over Danish Dynamites but two narrow defeats (both 2-1) had seen them fall off the pace a little in Group D. If they wanted to reach the Cup for the second time they needed a win to kick-start their campaign.

The task for the Irish team would not be easy though as they were up against a P Slayers team who currently lead the way in Group D and had 7 points from a possible 9. Up until now P Slayers had only conceded the one goal but Deportivo 2.0 had a great chance when P Slayers conceded a penalty. Patrick O'Brien stepped up and duly obliged to make it 1-0. O'Brien had scored in every round so far so was there any doubt?

P Slayers were not league leaders for nothing and they showed their quality when they equalized for 1-1. Nick Pocock claimed his second of the tournament to put his team back on level terms.

It was another penalty that would decide the game and it was Deportivo 2.0 who would get it. Patrick O'Brien stepped up again and also scored again. He took his tally to the tournament to 5 goals and earned a vital 2-1 win for Deportivo 2.0.

That left us with the final two teams yet to play their fourth fixture – Club Esportiu Llefia and Elcombe Old Boys. This was an epic fixture as it was the 2015 champions playing host to the 2016 champions. The two teams had almost identical records today with 1 win, 1 draw and 1 defeat each. Both teams had scored 5 goals but Elcombe Old Boys had conceded one less so sat above their opponents on goal difference.

Elcombe Old Boys haul of 4 points from 3 games was exactly the same as their title winning campaign so they were still well placed but did not have much margin for error.

Matt Hall scored his second in three games to give Elcombe Old Boys the lead before Andy Hampshire scored 7 goals in the 2016 campaign and he was up to three for the day as he put Elcombe Old Boys 2-0 up.

Daniel Martin Montes pulled a goal back for Club Esportiu Llefia to make it 2-1 but time was not on their side as Elcombe Old Boys pulled off their second consecutive win. The 3 points took the English team to the top of the table and their title defence was back on track.

The 2015 champions slipped to seventh position but it must be pointed out that only 3 points separated the top seven teams.