Poland victory proves insufficient
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
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Greece 1-2 Poland
Poland ended their Group 1 campaign with a comeback win against hosts Greece but it was not enough to secure a final tournament berth.
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Poland ended their UEFA European Under-17 Championship Elite round Group 1 campaign with a comeback win against hosts Greece but it was not enough to secure a final tournament berth in Germany.
Duo denied
Greece led the group by one goal ahead of Switzerland on kick-off, with Poland a point adrift. Things looked good for Greece when Valentinos Vlahos headed them into a ninth-minute lead, but Michał Jończyk equalised not long before the break and converted a penalty 15 minutes from time after goalkeeper Spyridon Papathanasiou fouled Paweł Wszołek. However, Switzerland's 6-0 win against Slovenia meant that Poland's victory was in vain though they did pip Greece to second place.
Greece reaction
Home coach Giorgos Semertzidis said: "It was a bad game, with many mistakes made by all the players. To get anything in football you have to fight and to win. We have not done this. Maybe after an early goal the players believed that the game will be easy."