Fundacion Lara Deportiva beat Samora B 2-0 in the Segunda Division on Wednesday night, a result that tightened the gap at the summit. The visitors moved within three points of the leaders while the hosts dropped further from the play-off places. It was not a game that promised much, but the visitors took what they came for.
The trouble began early enough to change the complexion of things. Samora B went down to ten men after seven minutes, and the red card stayed on the board for the rest of the match. To be fair, the visitors did not panic. They kept their shape and waited for the chance to punish the deficit.
The opening goal came at the half-hour mark. A. Flores finished off a move that had gone through the visitors' thirds without fuss, and the home side had to start chasing the game properly. And here's the thing about playing with a man down — you cannot press as high, you cannot win the ball back quickly. Samora B sat deeper and hoped to survive.
The second goal arrived in the seventy-ninth minute, courtesy of J. Rondon, and that was enough to put the tie beyond doubt. By then the visitors had worked a short corner and pinned them back, and the home side came for a cross they never reached. The academy graduate marked his first start with a goal, and the visitors had one foot in the next round of whatever comes after this stage.
Samora B remain fifth on thirty-four points from twenty-five games, nine wins and seven draws. The visitors sit second after twenty-six matches with forty-seven points, thirteen victories and eight draws. The table has barely moved for anyone except those two sides, and the gap at the top is closing.