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LATE PENALTY SALVAGES POINT FOR JAVEA

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Contributor / 2007-03-12 11:36:23

CD JAVEA salvaged a point with a penalty in the dying seconds of a bad-tempered match against Orihuela CF "B" and inched themselves further away from the relegation zone.

A draw was a fair reflection on a game that offered little excitement for 89 minutes but did mark a series of season milestones for the rojiblancos: the first penalty award of the season (subsequently scored by Zorrilla), the first time Javea have scored two goals in a game since October and quite possibly the lowest crowd of the season with barely 250 making the effort to cheer on the lads.

Orihuela B arrived in Javea having recorded just one victory in the last ten games; the rojiblancos had won just once in 16 games but were finding their feet again after just one defeat in the last five games. With such pedigree turning out on the immaculate pitch at the Municipal Stadium, it was no wonder that the attendance was one of the lowest for some time.

The first real effort arrived after 12 minutes when skipper Jose Luis, playing in an unfamiliar forward position, came close to connecting with a five free-kick from Jaunma but the keeper, although initially spilling the ball, did enough to put off his man and collect safely. Chances remained few and far between as the midfield once again turned the match into a skirmish in the centre of the park. Midway through the first half Orihuela's Dario found a way through the home defence but his fierce effort was superbly blocked by custodian Ortolá. However the fans barely had time to finish their appreciation when a scramble on the edge of the area produced a penalty kick for the opposition, the referee Oliver López deciding that Rubén had handled the ball in the melee. Dani confidently struck the ball past Ortolá and the rojiblancos found themselves in familiar territory.

Ortolá needed to be alert just a few minutes later when Orihuela's Raúl charged through on goal and the keeper did well to save at full stretch before recovering quickly to smother a second attempt by Énder who then blasted the ball wide. Javea, boasting two more debutants in striker Sergio López and midfielder José Miguel, needed to get back into the game before extended their advantage and, as the break beckoned, they swept forward to put real pressure on the otherwise unworked defence. With two minutes remaining in the half, a mad goalmouth scramble saw the ball spill out to Costa on the edge of the box and he smashed the ball through the crowd to score his first goal in over three months and, more importantly, haul the rojiblancos level.

In the opening minutes of the second-half, Orihuela's Darío and Javea's Ortolá engaged in a personal battle of wits. The front-man broke free on 52 minutes and looked certain to score before the keeper smothered the effort enough to push the ball wide for a corner. A few minutes later Darío beat a poor attempt at an offside trap and had only the keeper to beat to put Orihuela back into the lead but his effort was saved superbly by Ortolá to warrant another standing ovation from the crowd. On 65 minutes the young custodian pulled another superb save out of the bag, pushing away Dani's 25 yard free-kick, and had more or less secured the man-of-the-match award.

Orihuela's Énder was a real handful down the left-hand side and attracted much light-hearted derision from the home fans. Several times he clashed with Javea's Josele, tackles which livened the sparse crowd in the stands. With twenty minutes remaining, the two crossed swords once again when Josele's tough tackle resulted in Énder smashing into the fencing at the side of the pitch. A melee followed with Zorrilla stepping in a peace-maker but the referee saw enough to hand Josele a direct red for violent conduct and the rojiblancos were reduced to ten men.

The banter with Énder became a lot more passionate and the winger barely touched the ball in the next quarter-of-an-hour as his every touch was met by a chorus of boos and jeers.

Having finally got himself onto the scoresheet, Costa was looking to increase his tally and he had a great chance to give Javea lead on 71 minutes when he had a one-on-one with the keeper, but his confidence failed him and he smashed his effort into the chest of the grateful custodian. The game slipped into a succession of half-chances with Javea's Cristian blasting just wide before Orihuela's Viti missed a golden opportunity to seal the points.

And then, with 89 minutes on the clock, referee López awarded a very dubious free-kick after Sergio López was adjudged to have hauled down his man when it was obvious to everyone else that he was the player who had been fouled. Orihuela's Viti fired home after Ortolá uncharacteristically spilled the free-kick from Dani and the players in yellow charged to their bench to celebrate was they felt was certain to be the winner with Énder making a few not-so-sly gestures towards the home fans. However the excitement was not over yet. As the game moved into added time, Ortolá floated a free-kick into the box from the half-way line, a last-ditch effort to save the game. As the ball bounced amongst a crowd on players, the referee blew his whistle and pointed to the spot.

The Orihuela players were understandably aggrieved and surrounded the official but he was never going to change his mind. Amidst the scuffle, Zorrilla calmly placed the ball on the spot and waited. A minute later calm was restored, albeit temporarily, and the powerful utility player blasted the ball into the net to spark wild celebrations in the stands. Predictably, Orihuela's Énder was the target of much of the celebration, albeit in a light-hearted manner!

Orihuela pushed to try and recover the lead and with the game moving into its last seconds, they won a free-kick on the edge of the area, a harsh decision against the rojiblancos. As the players prepared for the kick, there was a scuffle around the Orihuela bench as the linesman flagged the referee to report what appeared to be abuse coming from the away party. All hell broke loose as officials, players, even the Guardia Civil, tussled on the edge of the pitch. The home fans surrounded the area; something seemed to have been said by the away bench with infuriated them.

In the melee the referee blew full-time and the Orihuela players raced from their free-kick position to surround the referee once again, protesting that they had not had the chance to take the kick. As the home fans celebrated a point which moved them another notch away from the relegation zone, the scramble continued at the mouth of the tunnel. The crowd applauded loudly as the Javea player calmly gathered in the centre circle to acknowledge the support.

Meanwhile the Orihuela players stormed down the tunnel, exchanging various pleasantries with all and sundry, obviously displeased that they had not been able to take advantage of the free-kick. Eventually calm was restored once again and the fans drifted away to the bars around the ground to dissect the afternoon's events. One can never accuse football of being boring in Spain! www.javeamigos.com

CD Javea 2 Orihuela B 2
By Mike Smith

Image: Costa celebrates his first goal for three months.
Photo by Fay Hughes