ANSPI: Ambrit 6-2 Real Muratella

Ambrit's team salute a packed stadium before tonight's match

Ambrit got back to winning ways tonight at Ambrit Stadium and posted a valuable 6-2 win that lifts them into second place in Girone B table (classifica here).
Pietro scored the first goal after just one minute, turning nicely and shooting with his right foot into the opposite corner. He followed up with a second just two minutes later, rising majestically to nod home a Filippo corner.
Ambrit just wouldn't allow the visitors to settle. Ludovico was everywhere in defence and, after eight minutes, Ambrit struck again when Joell finished a neat passing move to make it 3-0. Fair play to Real though; they rallied and made it 3-1 before the first interval.
In the second period, Ambrit's defence was tested and came through with flying colours. Ale and Elias were quick to the ball and quick to clear the danger and Eric made a couple of vital saves.

Eric lunches himself to the right to make another vital save

Joell then copied Pietro, popping up to score his second goal from a well-delivered Ale corner (see video).
Ambrit began the last period with a 4-1 lead and Filippo crowned another excellent midfield performance with his team's fifth goal. Real managed to pull another one back but Nikos shot home from a Giacomo pass near the end to make it 6-2.

Ambrit November Tournament: GRADE 6 CAPTURES FIRST PLACE!

On the road to victory: Ambrit before their second game

Ambrit's Grade 6 team played with skill and determination today and were rewarded with the Winners' trophy.
They began on the front-foot with a convincing 4-1 win against SGBIS, denying their opponents any time and space and taking advantage of all the opportunities that came their way.
The L-E-G defence was solid as a rock and Alex harried and hustled constantly in the middle. Julian and Alioune held the fort until Daniel arrived. Goals from Daniel (2), Alex and a brilliant free kick from Gavyn who piloted the ball into the top corner from 20 meters out!
A derby win against Grade 5 confirmed the team's good moment of form, this time the goals coming from Alex (2), Lorenzo and Daniel.
The last group game was against Castelli, who had also won their first two matches. Ambrit, knowing that they would face the same team later in the final, used this game to study their opponents. They sat back, allowed Castelli to control the game and settled for a 1-2 defeat (scorer: Alex).

A confident Alex shakes hands with the Castelli captain before the final

Ambrit then lined out for the final knowing they had to overturn the result in the group game. This time, they changed their tactics and put Castelli under pressure from the start. Then, as Castelli made a rare foray into Ambrit territory, Gavyn gave away an unnecessary foul on the left and Castelli scored from the resulting free kick. Now Ambrit found themselves 1-0 down again.
At this stage, heads might have dropped, but Captain Alex wasn't about to let that happen! Ambrit redoubled their efforts and equalised when Gavyn scored his second free kick goal of the day, floating a beautifully-judged ball over the goalkeeper's head.
Buoyed by this, Ambrit pinned down Castelli in their own half and Daniel's well-taken brace of goals put his side 3-1 up with seven minutes left to play. With Ambrit now tiring, Castelli came back into the game. They pulled one goal back but Ambrit held on for a fully-deserved victory!
 

The Winning Team

 Ambrit's grade 5 team (right), up against older opponents today, gave a good account of themselves and made all of their opponents work hard for every point. Their best game of the day came against SGBIS, where Pietro's equaliser (he scored four goals today!) opened up the possibility of a first victory of the morning but the team had to settle for a narrow 2-1 defeat.




GRADE 3 & GRADE 4
In a very competitive and even tournament, the third graders beat the eventual finalists - SGBIS A - and collected 6 points; the fourth graders won the Ambrit derby and also collected 6 points. 

RESULTS
Ambrit 3 - SGBIS A   2-0
Ambrit 3 - SGBIS B   3-1
Ambrit 3 - Castelli      1-2
Ambrit 3 - Ambrit 4    2-4
Ambrit 4 - Castelli      0-2
Ambrit 4 - SGBIS B   2-1
Ambrit 4 - SGBIS A   0-4

Roma 4 - 0 Ajax

Con un rotondo 4-0 e con una prova convincente la Roma di Spalletti batte l'Ajax e si qualifica meritatamente per la finale contro il fortissimo Manchester United di Mourinho.
Che la Roma fosse l'antagonista principale dei Red Devils lo si era capito già ieri, ma oggi la squadra è sembrata ancor più compatta e convinta dei propri mezzi: Chiara ed Helena come barriera difensiva, centrocampo affidato a Matilde e Annie, attacco guidato dal bomber Mia, da oggi al vertice della classifica marcatori. Poco hanno potuto le Olandesi, sorrette nel primo tempo dalla buona prova tra i pali di Allison; ma nel secondo tempo - complice la necessità di ottenere a tutti i costi la vittoria - la squadra si è sbilanciata, offrendo il fianco alle ripartenze di Mia e compagne.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH POINTS
Mia 4, Allison 3, Matilde 2, Chiara 2, Helena 2, Selina 2, Annie, Gaia Z 1, Donya 1, Gea 1.

Roma 1 - 2 Manchester United

All'Ambrit Stadium il Manchester consolida il primato in classifica, pur con una certa fatica, sconfiggendo la Roma per 2 a 1, con reti di Lucrezia e Beatriz; di una strepitosa Mia il momentaneo pareggio. Il match ha offerto dei buoni spunti di riflessione, con alcune giocate di pregio e una grande foga agonistica; tecnicamente tuttavia le squadre femminili stanno mostrando dei limiti nel controllo di palla e nell'impostazione dell'azione di gioco.
Ora le Romane dovranno difendersi dall'attacco dell'Ajax, domani, per avere la chance di accedere alla finale.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH POINTS:
Mia 6, Lucrezia 3, Matilde 3, Saya 2, Beatriz 1, Helena 1, Michelle 1, Chiara 1.

Chelsea 4-2 Barcelona

A shocked crowd left Ambrit Stadium today wondering how Chelsea, until now without a point, could have beaten the Spanish Champions, hot favourites for the Autumn title.
Alioune opened the scoring in today's match, turning teh ball past Louis at the far post. Anthony made it 2-0 when Francesco played him through but then Tommaso rallied his team with a couple of extra dribbling runs, the second of which led to a corner. From the resulting kick, Senai headed in.
Ascanio equalised before half time and it seemed that Chelsea might have run out of steam.
But Conte revved up his team during the interval and they dominated the opening exchanges again. Alessandro drove a fine left-foot shot across the goal and, in the dying seconds, Jacopo sealed the victory.

This result leaves Barcelona level on points with Bayern and PSG. Barcelona proceed to the final on head-to-head results (they beat both Bayern and PSG) and they will face Bayern (who drew with PSG but have a superior goal difference). 
PSG will dispute the Third Place final with Juventus.

BEST PLAYER POINTS: Anthony 6, Edo J 3, Francesco C 3, Tommaso 2, Ale Z 2, Michele 1, Gavyn 1, Elias1, Alioune 1, Peter 1

Yellow cards: Riccardo, Senai

Wed Nov 30, 3rd PLACE FINAL: PSG vs Juventus
Fri Dec 02, FINAL: Barcelona vs Bayern

ANSPI: Ambrit 2-6 Santos

After their win last week, Ambrit's players came crashing back to earth today, losing to a well-prepared Santos.
Their bigger opponents (!) got off to a flying start and Eric was kept busy early on: he made four fantastic saves in the first few minutes but then, when he clawed away a fifth attempt, the ball fell to an opponent and it was 1-0 to the visitors.
Nikos and Joell pushed forward when they could and gave the opposing defence lots to think about. Two more saves by Eric and some stout defending by Ale and Elias saw Ambrit safely to the first break, trailing by just one goal.
Joell went between the sticks for the second period and he was tested too! He beat away the first two shots but then Santos doubled their lead with a goal that was a photocopy of the first one.
But Ambrit fought back!
Man-of-the-Match Pietro was quicker to the ball when it mattered and he bundled in a goal for Ambrit: 2-1.

Ambrit's Man of the Match

The resurgence was short-lived though and Santos made it 4-1 before the second break.
But Ambrit came out for the last period and gave their supporters at Ambrit Stadium something to cheer about! When they might have thrown in the towel, our players instead got stuck into the game and really looked like they might turn it around, exemplified by Ludovico who stopped a dangerous Santos attack with a great last-ditch tackle. Pietro almost scored in the 3rd minute but then, in the 4th minute, he did! Filippo threaded a beautiful pass through the Santos defence and Pietro banged it home.
Ambrit continued to fight right to the death. Giacomo and Filippo might easily have added a couple of goals but it was Santos who scored on the break to seal what was, in the end, a deserved victory.

PSG 6-1 Chelsea

Another defeat for a demoralised Chelsea and PSG give themselves a slim chance to reach the final, if Barcelona should fail to beat Chelsea in the last game.
Manfredi's recent scoring vein continues and he had his team 2-0 up by half time. Jacopo made a couple of good saves from Nathan and Nico to keep the scoreline respectable.
The French Champions continued to dominate in the second half. Nathan made it 3-0, Manfredi completed his hat-trick and then Julian took over, scoring two goals and making some vital interventions and some good passes. Julian's double was split by Anthony's consolation goal.
BEST PLAYER POINTS: Julian 5, Manfredi 4, Elias 3, Niko 2, Filippo 2, Nathan 2, Anthony 1, Alessandro 1, Pietu 1

BOYS SOCCER: St George's 0-3 Ambrit

Following their 6-1 triumph at Ambrit Stadium two weeks ago, Ambrit completed a double win in their Autumn challenge series against St George's with a comfortable victory at the Cassia venue today.
Goals from Edo J, and Manfredi (2). More details to follow...!

For the first 10 minutes of the match, not much happened until Manfredi scored a lovely half volley (you could hear it smack the net!) but the goal was disallowed. Then a really long clearance from Ascanio found Manfredi in the penalty box; his pass set up Edo J and Edo nailed it into the top corner. 

Gavin almost scored with a deflected shot but the goalkeeper made a lucky save and Manfredi scored the goal that ended the match.

Ambrit Team: Ascanio, Thomas, Edo J, Federico, Taro, Jerry, Peter, Giuseppe, Theo, Manfredi, Gavyn

Barcelona 1-0 Bayern Munich

A narrow victory today for the Spanish Champions throws the championship wide open going into the final two matches. A point in their last game against Chelsea will be enough to see Barcelona through to the final and Bayern will join them unless PSG can beat Chelsea by 10 goals in their last game.
A dour first half today ended 0-0 and the second half was largely devoid of chances too. After six minutes of the second half though, a promising Catalan attack resulted in Tiberio making a good save from an Edo P shot. When Tiberio came out to clear the resulting loose ball, he met a determined Michele who was strong enough in the tackle to beat the hapless 'keeper and tap the ball home for the only, decisive goal of the game.
BEST PLAYER POINTS: Alex 5, Edo P 3, Senai 3, Michele 2, Gavyn 2, Gabriele 2, Aden 2, Tiberio 1, Ascanio 1

Saturday 12 November: Ambrit Win First Match in ANSPI League!

Ambrit's Primary School team won their opener in this year's ANSPI league.

San Girolamo 1-5 Ambrit 
(Scorers: Pietro 2, Giacomo, Alessandro, Filippo)

See also 'ANSPI' page on this blog for Full Results and Classification (updated every Thursday)

Saturday 12 November: Ambrit Win First Matches in RISA League

Ambrit came racing out of the traps for the first round of the RISA league and they won both of their matches against AOSR.
In the first match against 'AOSR 1', Daniel opened the scoring after just 1 minute, giving us a glimpse of the energetic, alert play that would give his team attacking options all morning.
The lead lasted only 3 minutes though, a quick AOSR attack bringing them an equaliser.
Anthony then forced a save from the goalkeeper, Daniel shot over from close range and then he hit the bar with an acrobatic affort from the left. But a goal was on the way...!
It arrived when Daniel played Anthony through with a well-weighted pass and Anthony scored.
Again though, the lead was short-lived and AOSR equalised 2' later.
Ambrit kept pouring forward and, on the 16th minute, Lorenzo shimmied his marker and shot in from a narrow angle: 3-2!
The last 9 minutes were tense and either team might have scored but then, as the crowd looked on anxiously, Daniel settled the nerves with another well taken goal to produce a final score of Ambrit 4-2 AOSR - a win made possible by a good team effort and some selfless defence by Elias, Gavyn and Louis.

In the second match, Ambrit were caught cold and went 1-0 down after two minutes when AOSR scored from a long free kick. After 6 minutes, Anthony pounced on a loose ball and slammed home a lovely equaliser and Daniel made it 2-1 just 1 minute later.
Their opponents were now reeling and Anthony then slid a beautiful pass through two defenders to take advantage of Daniel's movement and it was 3-1 after 8 minutes! Riccardo's pass to Daniel opened up a chance to make it 4-1 but
then the game settled down as AOSR played themselves back into it. The visitors were awarded a freee kick on minute 15 and their number 11 - an excellent player - drilled it in to make it 3-2. But Ambrit were in not in the mood to allow their opponents a foothold and the re-introduction of Ascanio in defence gave them a platform to move forward with confidence. Daniel and Thomas whacked in two more goals to make it 5-2 after 23 minutes. However the action was not over and AOSR gave their hosts a fright with two late goals to give a final score of Ambrit 5-4 AOSR.

TEAM: Ascanio (C), Louis, Gavyn, Elias, Lorenzo, Anthony, Thomas, Daniel, Riccardo

See also 'RISA League 2016-17' page on this blog for Full Results and Classification

Bayern Munich 4-4 Paris St. Germain

Ambrit Stadium rocked today as two of the IM's top sides battled it out in an amazing match that really was a game of two halves.
The re-entry of captain Pietu seemed to add a real edge to the French Champions' play and they looked dangerous from the off.
After the opening exchanges which saw Bayern dominate possession but PSG threaten on the break, it was in-form Manfredi who slid in the opener at the far post.
Nathan made it 2-0 with a thunderbolt from the right and Manfredi made it 3-0 early in the second half when he was on hand as usual to take advantage of a loose ball in the opponents box. When Nico made it 4-0, the neutrals were feeling sorry for Bayern and hoping for the final whistle.
But things were about to change!
Gabriele's strike from outside the box was not hit cleanly but it somehow got past Filippo in goal (a pity: he had just made a fantastic save a minute earlier). What seemed to be just a consolation goal turned out, however, to be the spark that lit the Germans' comeback fire.
Andrea picked up a loose ball outside the penalty area and, when everybody was expecting a pass, he took aim and fired it past Filippo: 4-2 and an unlikly comeback was suddenly more possible.
PSG were now suddenly unable to string their passes together and Bayern continued to press. One attack followed another and, with just three minutes left on the clock, Alex hammered in another goal to make it 4-3.
By now the crowd was totally captivated and most of them were urging on Gabriele and his team to a fourth goal. Aden almost supplied it but then Gabriele did and, at the final whistle, Bayern celebrated their point while Paris rued the two that were lost.
BEST PLAYER POINTS: Gabriele 5, Andrea 4, Gustav 3, Manfredi 3, Nathan 3, Tiberio 2, Alex 2, Aden 1, Nico 1, Lorenzo 1, Filippo 1, Pietu 1, Tristano 1

Manchester United 2 - 0 Ajax

Un match che forse significa l'addio definitivo dell'Ajax alla qualificazione per la finale di questo primo Intramural 2016/2017. La doppietta di Beatriz, infatti porta i diavoli rossi a 7 punti, con la qualificazione ormai in tasca, mentre all'Ajax serve un vittoria netta contro la Roma. In campo si sono viste buone cose, specialmente tra i pali, dove Michelle e Lea hanno fatto buona guardia. Buona prestazione anche per Lucrezia, Allison e Leila.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH POINTS:
Beatriz 6, Lea 4, Michelle 3, Lucrezia 3, Allison 2, Leila 1, Virginia 1, Selina 1.

Wed Nov 9th: Ambrit Boys 6-1 St George's

It was a good game against St.Georges. 

The Ambrit team underestimated them at the beginning because of their size and, as a result, the visitors were the first to place the ball in the net off a foul by Francesco C. 

Taro quickly responded by scoring the equalizing goal with an amazing shot into the bottom corner and Ambrit subsequently scored another 5 goals, defeating them 6-1. 

Manfredi scored three goals with an amazing shot in the bottom corner and a short range tap in from an excellent cross. Nathan used his amazing skills and dribbled the whole team two or three times and was eventually rewarded with an amazing goal off his left foot. Edo J finished off a brave but outplayed St. Georges team with the final goal of the game.

It was Ambrit's first game and the team has made a very positive start to the season; their coach was proud of them. (Giuseppe & Aden)

Barcelona 2 - 2 Juventus

Un match frizzante ed equilibrato tra due squadre pari in classifica e pari - oggi - sul campo. Il Barca parte bene e sembra dominare, ma il primo tempo finisce a reti inviolate, grazie a una buona fase di contenimento di Giuseppe e Taro in mezzo la campo. Ad inizio ripresa però vengono fuori le doti tecniche dei Catalani: fraseggio Tommaso-EdoP e cross basso di quest'ultimo che Tommy deve solo spingere in rete. Nemmeno il tempo di festeggiare e la Juve pareggia: corner di Giuseppe e tacco volante di Taro, che inganna il portiere e finisce al di là della linea. Tutto da rifare.
A due minuti dal termine ecco la sorpresa: nuovo angolo e nuovo gol per la Juventus (accese le proteste del Barca per un secondo pallone in campo), doppietta personale per Taro. Anche qui la reazione non tarda a farsi attendere e il Barcelona pareggia i conti allo scadere con una bella azione personale di Tommaso, abile nel dribbling e nella conclusione.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH POINTS:
Tommaso 5, Edo P. 4, Giuseppe 4, Taro 3, AleN. 2,  Michele 1, Gavyn 1, Federico 1.