Eyenisei faced Rostov in the Vysshaya Liga regular season on Friday, and the visitors took all three points with a 2-1 victory. The result leaves both sides in the lower half of the table after 17 rounds. «To be fair», the away side had already shown they could compete away from home this campaign.
P. Malayeva turned the ball into her own net in the 37th minute, giving Rostov the lead. «And here's the thing», it was a moment that changed the tempo without either side doing much to prevent it. The home side had not conceded in their previous match, so this was a sudden shift.
V. Zarubina doubled the advantage four minutes later, finishing from close range after a loose pass. «By then», Rostov were already thinking about closing out the game rather than chasing another. The home defence had not yet adjusted to the pace of the visitors. It was a goal that came from a moment of hesitation. The home side had not scored in their last two matches before this point.
G. Geybieva added a second own goal in the 44th minute, making it 1-2 and ending any hope of a comeback. «Ended a barren spell» for Rostov, who had not scored in five consecutive matches before this point. The home side had not yet found a way to respond.
The home side made several changes after the break, starting with A. Nizamutdinova and V. Zarubina on the hour mark. E. Stanovova, O. Shcherbinina, K. Vasilyeva and K. Isupova followed in quick succession before the final whistle. E. Kostareva picked up a yellow card in stoppage time, the only booking of the match.
There were no red cards in the match, though Rostov carried one yellow card at the final whistle. The home side had not conceded a red card all season, while the visitors had picked up one in this match. «To be fair», the statistics did not tell the full story of how the game unfolded.
Rostov moved to 14 points in eleventh place, while Yenisei remained in thirteenth with three. The result will make life awkward for both sides as the season progresses. «To be fair», the visitors had finally ended their scoring drought after five consecutive matches without a goal.