Academy Matchday #8 - Another Matchday, Another Round of Surprises

[dsr1338]

The Academy League delivered another set of exciting games, with a mix of expected results, shocking performances, and a goal fest that stole the show. Some teams proved their consistency, while others showed they might not be pushovers after all. Let’s get into the action.

---

Victoria Falls  1:1  Sydney City  

No surprises here, both teams went toe-to-toe from start to finish. Sydney City struck first with a 17th minute goal from Mike Rup, but Victoria Falls responded in the 48th minute through Jouzas Kupinas.Victoria Falls had a slight edge in performance, but it wasn’t enough to secure the win. In the end, a draw was the fair result. Jouzas Kupinas took home. Player of the Match honors with a solid 7.9 rating.

Atletico  3:5  Istanbul

If there’s one thing Istanbul knows how to do, it’s put on a show. This was the game of the nigh - eight goals, a comeback, and a veteran captain leading by example.

Atletico looked like they had it in the bag early on. Dalbhi Barr scored in the 6th minute, followed by Gustavo Brazil doubling the lead in the 16th. But Istanbul wasn’t going down that easily. Stefan Davidović pulled one back in the 22nd minute, and just two minutes later, captain Vinnie Jones leveled it at 2:2.

The second half promised more of the same, and it delivered. Atletico briefly took the lead again through Alexis Ramos in the 55th, but then Istanbul turned up the heat. Vinnie Jones grabbed his second in the 73rd minute, Karl Haase’s unfortunate own goal in the 81st minute handed Istanbul the lead, and Predrag Dobric sealed the win with a header in the 84th.

A wild 5:3 victory, with Vinnie Jones proving that age is just a number, taking Player of the Match honors with an impressive 8.7 rating. Istanbul continues to be must watch football.

 
Stockholm  1:1  Jakarta

This should have been an easy win for Stockholm, but Jakarta had other plans. The underdogs struck first through Dom Patterson in the 7th minute and held on until the 40th, when Niklas Jorgensen equalized for Stockholm.

Despite Jakarta dominating possession with 68%, Stockholm had almost twice as many shots (15 vs 8), making this a strange yet balanced game. Neither team managed to break the deadlock in the second half, and it ended 1:1.

Niklas Jorgensen’s goal and overall performance earned him Player of the Match with an 8.3 rating, but Jakarta left the field with a point and a lot of respect.

Adowa Accra  4:2  Port Royal

The last match of the night didn’t disappoint. Adowa Accra came out firing, with Cade Power opening the scoring. Port Royal responded quickly with a Bread Lasso goal in the 20th minute, but that was as close as they got.

Dippy Dip put Adowa Accra back in front in the 28th minute, Cade Power added another in the 38th, and Cesare Pinkman made it 4:1 in stoppage time (45+4’). With a comfortable lead going into the second half, Adowa Accra controlled the rest of the game.

Port Royal’s Sam Albinson managed to pull one back in the 64th minute, but it wasn’t enough. Adowa Accra walked away with a 4:2 win, and Cade Power deservedly took Player of the Match (and possibly Player of the Matchday) with a stellar 9.0 rating.

---

And with that, here’s the league table after this matchday: