05/06/2011
A perfect ten makes it the icing on the cake
 The tenth consecutive championship is right in place at Dragão. This Saturday, the FC Porto Império Bonança team beat Oliveirense by 5-1, assuring its tenth consecutive national title, an unprecedented feat within the most prominent team sports in Portugal. It was truly the icing on the cake on what has proved to be a truly fantastic season for the club.
The Dragons, who went into the final round level on points with Benfica (79 points), were well aware that a win would guarantee the title, owing to the two victories in the direct confrontations. With the pavilion jam-packed with enthusiastic supporters, the blue-and-white team took the game initiative and left no room for the opponent. Pedro Gil scored twice, with the other goals being scored by Reinaldo Ventura, Pedro Moreira and Gonçalo Suíssas.
The first part ended up being especially tactical, with Oliveirense rather tight defensively and exploring the counter-attack, a method through which the team were able to bring about some dangerous shots. The opposing goalkeeper, Domingos Pinho, played very well, being primarily the reason for the fact that FC Porto only managed to take the lead late in the first-half. At 10 minutes, the goalkeeper saved a direct free hit from Reinaldo Ventura, as a result of a foul on Pedro Gil.
FC Porto took the lead at the 23rd minute, following a penalty from Reinaldo Ventura, after André Azevedo saw his stick stuck in the penalty area. Even before half-time, the blue-and-white striker had another penalty, but failed to score.
The second-half started off well for FC Porto: Reinaldo Ventura assisted Pedro Moreira, who, when confronted with the goal at the 27th minute, didn’t waste the opportunity. The next instant, Tó Neves reduced the score to 2-1. The Dra gons responded well to the opponent’s goal, having had a number of scoring opportunities, namely through Gonçalo Suíssas. The striker would actually score at the 32nd minute.
The tenth consecutive win was looming but there was still time to build up the score. Pedro Gil scored twice, the first a free-kick awarded after Oliveirense’s tenth foul, and the second goal was scored from a rebound of a shot that hit the goalpost. After the final whistle, there were plenty reasons to celebrate and FC Porto lost no opportunity to vent their joy at a remarkable feat, even more so with the championship having been disputed until the very end.
It may be appropriate to evoke the extraordinary turnaround achieved on Calendária’s rink, where FC Porto was losing by 3-1 with less than two minutes remaining on the clock. The 4-3 victory, concerning the 22nd round, turned out to be decisive, clearly demonstrating the great spirit of this team.
MATCH REPORT
FC Porto Império Bonança-Oliveirense, 5-1
National championship, 30th round
4 June 2011
Dragão Caixa Pavillion, Porto
Attendance: 2.162 spectators
Referees: Luís Peixoto (Lisboa), Joaquim Carpelho (Setúbal) and Luís Barbosa (Setúbal)
FC PORTO: Edo Bosch (g.k.), André Azevedo, Reinaldo Ventura, Pedro Gil and Pedro Moreira
Also played: Filipe Santos «cap.», Emanuel Garcia and Gonçalo Suíssas
Coach: Franklim Pais
OLIVEIRENSE: Domingos Pinho (g.k.), Nuno Resende, Tó Neves, Diogo Silva «cap.» and Tó Silva
Also played: Tiago Santos, Nuno Araújo, Nelson Pereira, Francisco Silva and Diogo Almeida (g.k.)
Coach: Tó Neves
At half-time: 1-0
Scorers: Reinaldo Ventura (23m, pen.), Pedro Moreira (27m), Tó Neves (28m), Gonçalo Suíssas (32m) and Pedro Gil (38m and 44m)
Bookings: blue card to Tiago Santos (10m) |
