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A
POOR attendance of barely 100 saw CD Javea
record their eighth victory at home against
struggling Picassent CF and extend their
unbeaten run at home to 12 games. The rojiblancos
left it late, snatching maximum points in
the last few minutes after Picassent CF
took an unlikely lead early in the second-half.
A penalty dispatched confidentially by substitute
Javi was followed two minutes later by a
deserved winner from the young midfielder
to drop more misery on the visitors, embroiled
in a relegation battle that they are unlikely
to survive in the remaining few weeks of
the season. For CD Javea, the season
is all but over bar playing for an improved position
in the league table; the rojiblancos
finished in ninth spot last season.
Pre-match
heavy rain, an important home game for Valencia
CF and the lure of a dramatic FA Cup
semi-final combined to reduce the attendance
to one of the lowest for a long time. Those
loyal aficionados who did make the
effort endured a desperately poor first-half.
Picassent CF, seven points adrift of safety
before this game, could boast the poorest
defensive record in the group and had been
crushed 4-0 at home to an otherwise mediocre
side from Torrent CF the previous game.
The rojiblancos
had been finding the net on a regular basis
in recent weeks - aside from the miserable
defeat at Guadassuar CF in Jornada 28 -
and with both Onieva and Scott eager to
add to their season's tally, those who gathered
in small groups in the stand might have
arrived expecting a few goals. But, like
the visit of bottom club EMFU L'Alcudia
back in December, the goal-feast would not
arrive,
CD
Javea started with purpose and Onieva should
have done better with an effort after just
five minutes when he superbly preempted
a lobbed pass from Scott but his effort
was blasted woefully high of the goal, albeit
under pressure from the advancing goalkeeper.
Picassent looked ragged but drove forward
with purpose at times and might have
taken the lead as early as the 10th minute
when Ximo beat the offside but blasted his
shot-cum-cross across the face of the goal
and into touch on the far side for a throw-in
to Javea. After a quarter of an hour Scott
and Onieva combined well again when the
former flicked a high ball through to the
Benidorm man who chipped the ball over
the keeper but his effort was cleared off
the line by Hector. Five minutes from
half-time Dani might have done better with
rare chance for the midfielder but he fired
his shot well wide of the goal.
Javea
should have had the game sewn up midway
through the second-half but instead found
themselves trailing by a goal from Jose
Pascual who superbly fired a free-kick from
the far left-hand side of the area over
the defensive wall and beyond goalkeeper
Ruiberriz, the ball nestling in the bottom
right-hand corner of the net. It was much
against the run of play, only Picassent's
third attempt on goal against a dozen from
Javea yet, for their quiet determination
in midfield, one could accept that the visitors
might have deserved it. Coach Kenny Brown
reacted by bringing on Juanito for Scott,
the latter thumping the back of the dugout
in frustration. The rojiblancos
piled into their opponents and forced a
succession of corners, the third of which,
taken by Dani, struck the bar. Minutes
later substitute Javi drove a powerful effort
inches wide from just outside the area.
If
the first-half was a dull fair, the second
period saw plenty of action, mainly from
the home side. On 71 minutes Javea might
have had reasonable grounds of a penalty
when an effort from Youshoupha appeared
to strike an arm in the area. Two minutes
later Carlos Carbonell drove a free-kick
from 30 yards through the wall but the ball
crashed heavily into the chest of the keeper
who managed to clear before collapsing to
the ground in obvious agony. Ten minutes
from time Onieva side-footed an effort just
wide after some great work from David Ivars
on the flanks. And then, two minutes from
time, a real chance to equalise when the
rojiblancos
were awarded a penalty for hand-ball in
the area and substitute Javi drove the ball
home with confidence to make it 1-1.
But
it was not over just yet. With seconds remaining,
Onieva broke free in midfield and charged
forward towards goal. The keeper sprinted
to the edge of his area and Onieva attempted
to take the ball around the custodian but
appeared to lose control for a moment and
the chance appeared to be lost. But the
striker noticed Javi on the far side and
crossed the ball to the midfielder who tapped
home from close range to apparently clinch
maximum points. Picassent were enraged,
claiming a wide array of offences from offside
to foul-play but the referee awarded the
goal and handed out a succession of yellow
cards to several opposition players who
crowded around him on the far side of the
pitch. Seconds later he brought the game
to a close.
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