Machine-translated from Hungarian.
We played the first match of the Andersen League semi-finals at home against the Worm Angels from Dunaújváros; this tie is a best-of-three series, with the aim of reaching the final.
Both teams came out with great momentum in the first period, as befitted the stakes, but we got off to a better start: after 12 minutes, Bence Makovics found the back of the visitors’ net, putting us in the lead and scoring the only goal of the period.
We got off to a better start in the second period too; Filipp Nesterov scored Győr’s next goal in the very first minute, and shortly afterwards Bence Marth also found the net with a superb shot. At this point, we almost felt the victory was ours, but unfortunately this mindset came back to haunt us later on. We let control slip from our grasp and were unable to play our own game, a situation which was first exploited by Hamvai in the 36th minute, and then by Gebei 30 seconds before half-time, reducing our lead to a single goal before the break.
We still couldn’t quite find our rhythm in the final third, and our chances kept falling short; then, in the 52nd minute, another Hamvai goal signalled that it was going to be a hard-fought finish. In the final few minutes, we launched several attacks in an attempt to regain the lead, but we were unable to break down the opposition’s defence, so the match went into extra time. Throughout extra time, the visitors were the more dangerous side, which culminated in a goal by Gebei in the 66th minute.
This wasn’t the start we’d hoped for in the semi-final, but there’s no reason to lose heart – we’ll have a chance to level the tie on Saturday in Dunaújváros! Come on, UNI GYŐR ETO!
UNI GYŐR ETO HC vs Worm Angels: 3 – 4 (a.e.t.) (AL85) Goalscorers: **#8 Bence Makovics, #9 Filipp Nesterov, #6 Bence Marth (UNI GYŐR ETO) **#30 Hamvai (2), #77 Gebei (2) (WA)
We’ve put together a selection of the best photos from the match in our gallery:
Photo: Dr Krisztina Németh-Csigai
Fotó: Dr. Németh-Csigai Krisztina