Late drama sends Cyprus through
Sunday, January 11, 2004
Article summary
Cyprus have earned a place in the qualifying round of the UEFA European Futsal Championship.
Article body
Poliviou the hero
The Cypriots were up against hosts Albania and England in the round-robin event held at the Flamurtari Hall in Vlore. The decisive result came in the last fixture between Cyprus and Albania when a Costas Poliviou goal for the visiting side earned them a 1-1 draw and progression by virtue of a better goal difference.
Hopes shattered
The Albanians had started brightly, earning an 8-6 victory against England. Ani Mullaj led the way with a hat-trick but it was late strikes from Gerdi Spahiu and two-goal Armant Damo that ultimately put paid to English hopes. Debutants England had performed well in their first competitive national-team fixture with Louis Axcell scoring a hat-trick.
Cyprus in charge
England were to be denied in their second fixture as well. They lost 8-4 to Cyprus, goals from Ben Walker and Dan Wood in the last five minutes giving the scoreline some respectability. The Cypriots were in charge from the first minute when Marios Lambrou converted and, with Poliviou scoring twice, were never in danger of defeat.
Dell upbeat
That meant England were definitely unable to top the group, a disappointing end to their first campaign. However, manager Graeme Dell was not too downhearted. "I am very confident that England could have a great future in this game," he said. "In fairness, we didn't expect to qualify but what was important was that we took part."
Late drama
Albania and Cyprus were both confident they could secure victory in their decisive meeting, with the former to be urged on by thousands of supporters. It was an extremely close contest but Mullaj gave the fans plenty to cheer in the 30th minute with the opening goal. As time wore on, it looked as if the Albanians were going to make it through only for Poliviou's late intervention.
Next stage
Cyprus will now go into Group 3 in the qualifying round starting later this month. The mini-tournament will be held in Andorra, with the hosts joined by Portugal and Moldova. The finals will be held in the Czech Republic in February 2005.