9 de Julio Rafaela — Bartolomé Mitre, Torneo Federal A

Barlo Mite took all three points from 9 de Julio Rafaela on Saturday evening, winning 1-0 in the Federal Tournament A's Winners Stage. The visitors moved away from trouble while the hosts dropped ground they had built up over the opening weeks. Richard Rodriguez's strike in the fifty-ninth minute proved decisive for a side that had been struggling all season.

To be fair, the match could have swung either way before half-time. A penalty was awarded to the hosts at forty-five minutes and two, but the spot-kick was missed. That miss changed the complexion of the contest, and the visitors held their nerve through the second half.

The hosts picked up a booking at five minutes and added another just before the interval. Barlo Mite collected two yellows — one at forty-five minutes and one, sixty-four — but the discipline never reached the breaking point.

The hosts dominated possession at sixty-four per cent and registered thirteen attacks compared with the visitors' hundred and one, but the numbers tell only part of the story. Ten shots on target yielded nothing until Rodriguez found the net, and the hosts had twelve corners to show for their territorial advantage. By then, the visitors had made their one shot count — and the hosts paid for a sloppy opening.

The result moves Barlo Mite further from the relegation zone while 9 de Julio Rafaela slip in fifth place. The hosts sit on eleven points after seven matches with three wins and two draws, while the visitors remain on four points with only one victory. We had given the home side a fifty-four per cent chance of winning, but the missed penalty and the visitors' clinical finish broke that forecast.