Puntarenas, Alajuela Tie in Tough Match
by Rod Hughes
As La Nacion sportwriter Arnoldo Rivera described it, both Alajuela and Puntarenas rushed out on the pitch at Puntarenas’s Lito Perez stadium with far more spirit than science, both breathing fire. It was a see-saw battle for a 2-2 result. At least no spectator dozed off lest he miss part of the action.
Arthin Rooper opened scoring for Puntarenas at minute 18 on a pass from veteran Andy Herron. it was not before a few minutes before the half was over that Ignacio Aguilar tied it when Ignacio Quintanilla centered the ball. In the second half, Aguilar took Cristian Montero’s pass for his second goal of the day to put Alajuela ahead 2-1 At minute 59, Dario Delgado tied it with an assist from Dave Myrie. Then the game settled down to a battle of battering ram attacks on the defenses of both teams.
As the sportwriter put it, both Alajuela’s midfielder Quintanilla (despite his assist) and Puntarena´s Josimar Arias failed to set up their team´s attacks so more movement than plan prevented either team from dominating.
Carmelita, Liberia Tie 3-3
Much the same situation prevailed at Carlos Alavardo Stadium where an error by Felix Garcia resulted in a self-inflicted goal by Liberia at minute 18. It seemed that Carmelita might run away with the match when O. Gonzalez made it 2′0 at minute 27. Then William Sunsing made two goals for Luberia in nine minutes to close the half.
Santana put Carmelita up again in the second half but Liberia´s Gamboa tied it.While Liberia is tied for second place in Group B, carmelita has been plague with a lack of pooints putting the club at the bottom of Goup A, so even one point for the tie is appreciated.
Perez Zeledon 1, Cartago 0
The southern zone club has been surprisingly strong this year, leading Group B with 12 points, although Alajuela and Liberia are breathing down their necks with 11. But Sunday´s match showed why Perez Zeledon is such a power—they know how to win the close ones.
Wilmer Lopez did not enter the match until early in the second half but he made the winning goal, telling the newspaper Al Dia he made it to celebrate his newly-arrived baby..Hapless Cartago, right down there with University of Costa Rica in the standings, on the road that leads straight to the Secon Division, did not celebrate.
Standings as of Today
Saprissa is running away with the Frist Division with five wins, one tie and 16 points in Group A with Heredia and San Carlos way back with 11 points and Puntarenas, UCR and Carmelita trailing in that order, the latter with only a solitary point
Things are a bit more balanced in Group B with Perez Zeledon leading with 12, followed one point back by Alajuela and Libera and Brujas within whispering distance with 10. Santos and Cartago follow.
Saturday: Saprissa 2, Santos 1
If Santos had not slept so soundly in the first half, they might have frightened the rabid purple clad fans at Ricardo Saprissa Stadium. But they allowed Armando Alonso to score after only 15 minutes of play. In the second half, Cristian Carrilllo tied it up and Saprissa knew it was in a match. But Alejando Alpizar, Saprissa’s big gun this year with five big ones already, blasted in the winning goal.
Brujas Blank San Carlos, 2-0
Brujas, a club from Escazu that plays its games in Desamparados because its home town has no stadium (real estate is a bit too steep there to build one) showed that homelessness is not necessarily a curse. On the other hand, Saturday.s match showed it may make them a little rough, as is shown by the fact that they ended up two men short because of expulsions, Kraesher Mook and Daniel Jimenez.
Despite a numerical advantage, San Carlos was unable to stem the tide. First came a penalty goal by Alejandro Sequiera and Berny Wright put the finishing touches on the victory in the second half. (We’ll see how Brujas fares, playing the next game without two starting players. Gentlemen, control yourselves!)