Results
 

L'Albiceleste (Fra)

3*

V

3

Melee FC (Eng)

Cruz Del Sur A (Eng)

0

v

1

FC Dad (Eng)

FK Prienai Lithuania (Lit)

0

v

2

CAP FC (Eng)

Leilupe (Lat)

7

V

1

Drunken DisAudley (Eng)

* L'Albiceleste (Fra) won 1-0 on penalties.  
 

As the 2016 Riga Tournament Cup Quarter-Finals were about to get underway we were down to the elite 8 teams in the tournament. We had four nationalities in with a chance of glory – England, France, Latvia and Lithuania were all gunning for tournament success.

We started on Pitch A with L'Albiceleste versus Melee FC. It was two heavyweights in eurofootballfives.com competition with L'Albiceleste qualifying for the Cup for the 5th time in 5 attempts. Melee FC had qualified for this stage for the 4th time in 4 attempts.

Lionel Ledinh made the initial breakthrough for L'Albiceleste and it lead to a very quick second from Cedric Castarede. At 2-0 it looked ominous for Melee FC but Jack Dell got them back into it. Cedric Castarede restored the 3-1 lead before the break. In the second half Melee FC were back in business when David Stothard pulled it back to 3-2. A minute later we were all level at 3-3 and it was David Stothard again. If anyone was going to win it from here it looked like being Melee FC but there was no further score and we finished level. Penalties would decide this one.

It was Melee FC who would take the first penalty – Chris Pilsbury with the honours and he struck it firmly down the middle but Mickael Martin made the save. It was advantage L'Albiceleste and Cedric Castarede stepped up. He missed one in normal time in the group phase earlier today but made no mistake this time scoring in the bottom left corner.

Jack Dell was tasked with getting Melee FC back into it but Mickael Martin was the hero again. He dived low to his right to push the penalty away. Anthony Jouenne had the chance to win it for L'Albiceleste – struck to the right but Favio Zucchelli was even to it. Melee FC were still in it.

It was now all eyes on Kevin Lewis to keep his team's hopes alive. His penalty cannoned back off the post and out. Melee FC were out – it was fine margins for them. They were our tip to win it at the start of the day so we apologise for putting the mockers on them.

 
 
 

Up next on Pitch B was Cruz Del Sur A versus FC Dad. This promised to be an intriguing game. We had Cruz Del Sur A who had cruised through the group phase with 5 wins in 5 games – their best performance to date. FC Dad were also a team riding the crest of the wave in terms of their form and had qualified for the Cup for the first time.

Cruz Del Sur A had qualified for the Cup for the third time. On both previous occasions they had exited at this stage – losing to eventual winners Black Sheep in the 2012 Barcelona Fives and to Shahs of Sunset on penalties at the 2013 Budapest Fives. Today seemed to be a different day – more focused, won the group and with a determination to go home with the silverware.

Looking at today's form and it form over the years you had to make the case that Cruz Del Sur A were favourites but they were unable to breach the FC Dad defence in the first half. They kept it tight at the back and so we reached half-time at 0-0. In the second half it was FC Dad who made the initial breakthrough and it was Ben McNamee who was having a great tournament who put his team ahead. It was McNamee's fourth of the tournament.

There was then a cheer as big as the goal when Graham Dodds made a huge save to keep his team ahead. Cruz Del Sur A through everything at FC Dad as they tried to get on level terms. There was some frantic defending as some “anywhere will do” clearances were deployed. There was tension and rising temperatures as desperate tackles went flying in. Cruz Del Sur A thought they had a penalty but the decision was given just outside the box.

It was valiant backs to the wall stuff from FC Dad and they managed to see the game out to reach their first ever Cup Semi-Final.

For Cruz Del Sur A it was a shock exit and a glorious opportunity to reach a first Cup Semi-Final had gone. We hope despite the defeat it will be valuable experience for their next appearance.

 
 
 

Quarter-Final three saw FK Prienai Lithuania take on CAP FC. BUILDers had made a hugely impressive debut winning Group B and remaining unbeaten to date with 3 win and 2 draws. They were the first team to represent Lithuania in our tournaments and were trailblazing for their nation.

CAP FC had also enjoyed a very good morning. They began with a win over the 2013 Mallorca Fives winners and were unbeaten with 2 wins and 3 draws. They were perhaps a surprise package given their tribulations in getting here and having to add in loan signings on the morning of the tournament. It made their performance all the more impressive.

FK Prienai Lithuania had only conceded twice in five goals this morning but their back line was breached for the third time when Richard Beet put CAP FC 1-0 up. It was his fourth goal of the day and arguably his most important.

The pressure was now on the Lithuanian team and they needed at least the one goal to stay in this tournament. The next goal of the game went to CAP FC though as Patrick Townson doubled his team's lead. The goal in each half secured the win for CAP FC and ensured their safe passage to the Semi-Finals.

We had to say farewell to FK Prienai Lithuania and we would like to thank them for making the journey to the tournament from Kaunas. It was an honour to host you.

 
 
 

The final Quarter-Final was Leilupe versus Drunken DisAudley. Leilupe had the best record of all the teams in the group phase. They won Group D with a 100% record and the best goal difference of all teams with +14. They scored 18 goals and conceded just 4. It would be a brave man to bet against Leilupe in this one.

Drunken DisAudley could not be discounted though – they qualified from the Group C with just one defeat and 4 wins. They had 14 goals for and 7 against. They would be the under-dogs in this game but had every chance of going through. In their one previous eurofootballfives.com appearance they exited at this exact same stage going down 4-0 to Water Boy.

The first half was a close contest with three goals to enjoy. It was Leilupe that lead by the odd goal at the break. After the break it was a little one way traffic as Leilupe eased away from their opponents. 2-1 became 3-1 which became 4-1 and ultimately became 7-1. It was a stunning performance from Leilupe.

They shared the goals around with Miguel Ferreira grabbing a hat-trick and there was two each for Helder Goncalves and Miguel Fontes. These three were in the goals in the topscorer charts with Helder Goncalves (7), Miguel Fontes (7) and Miguel Ferreira (6).

Gareth Thomas scored his sixth of the tournament but sadly for him and his team it would be Drunken DisAudley's last goal of the tournament here in Riga. We trust we will see Drunken DisAudley again in the future and it will be third time lucky for getting beyond the Cup QF stage.

 
 
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