LANZAROTE 3 CF UNIÓN PUERTO 0
LANZAROTE 3 CF UNIÓN PUERTO 0 17th Jan 2016
The Rojillos have now gone 32 home games without defeat and are just one home game away of equalling their best home form since the mid 90¨s.
This may not have been Lanzarote at their best and the score does not paint the whole picture. The Fuerteventura side fought well but to be fair only had one good chance to score whereas Lanzarote made the most of the few opportunities that came their way.
The stats don’t lie. The league’s top scorers, one defeat all season, stunning home form has all led Lanzarote to top spot and are clear of second placed Las Palma B side by six points, though one rival SD Tenisca has a game in hand which could reduce it to four points.
The newly promoted opponents have struggled in this higher category but with two wins and a draw in their last three games they have moved out of the relegation positions.
With Louis Kennedy suspended and Brad Cockerill out with injury there was still a British person on the pitch. Ex Lanzarote player Ryan Macphee had moved over from Lanzarote to the Fuerteventura side a month previous. Last week Ryan scored the final goal in their 3-2 win to move them out of the danger zone.
In just the 7th minute the visitors were made to pay for their lack of concentration. Centre back Francis Hernández lost his marker from a Toñito corner and rose superbly to meet the ball with the full force of his forehead sending the ball rocketing into the top right hand corner to give Lanzarote a 1-0 lead.
In the 17th minute Rojillos striker Javi Melián was put through the centre and finished off in exquisite style only for the linesman to raise his flag in what must have been a very close decision.
The visitors then began showing their rejuvenated spirit over recent weeks closing down Lanzarote and winning possession and in the 20th minute almost profited on an error from defender Fran Gil.
Goalkeeper Agoney fed the ball out to the Lanzarote centre back which probably wasn’t a good idea as he was quickly put under pressure, on trying to clear his lines the normally reliable defender miscued and gifted the ball to Fuerteventura striker Aaron. Fortunately for Lanzarote and especially for the red faced defender, Agoney cleared the danger by blocking the shot.
The remainder of the first half was quite poor for Lanzarote as they were being bossed around by a superior midfield though Unión Puerto were always going to struggle against a side that has conceded just three goals in their last nine matches.
It was fortunate the weather, once again and as it has done most of this winter was superb because the crowd could at least enjoy the winter sunshine with an ever so slight breeze rather than the opening 20 minutes of this second half.
Neither side created much but in the 72nd minute defender Raúl Hernandez was first to meet a low Toñito dipping corner and neatly placed his header wide of the Fuerteventura keeper and inside the left hand corner. The relief on the crowd and players was evident with this second goal cushion.
Striker Mauri, never one to give up on any cause and always alert broke through in added on time and comfortably slotted the ball home to gloss the scoring with a 3-0 win.
Next week Lanzarote have an extremely difficult match away to Villa Santa Brígida. The Gran Canarian side have spent many seasons in the league above (Segunda B) and are in fourth spot trailing Lanzarote by seven points. Winger Louis Kennedy will return from suspension and should feel confident of a recall with the form he has been in lately.
Midfielder Brad Cockerill underwent cruciate ligament surgery on his knee in Las Palmas earlier in the week and is now beginning his road to recovery. As seen in the featured photo the talented midfielder is looking good and I believe there will be a great chance of seeing the British boy playing again this season.
GOALS
1-0 min 6 Francis Hernández
2-0 min 72 Raúl Hernández
3-0 min 91 Mauri
