Polonia Warsaw advanced to the next round of the Polish Cup with a 1:0 victory over Górnik Polkowice at the Round of 64 stage on Wednesday. Radosław Dadok's late strike proved decisive in a match where the visitors showed remarkable efficiency despite being outnumbered in territorial terms.
The decisive moment came in the 85th minute when Dadok made his presence felt. Górnik had spent much of the second half pressing forward, but Polonia's defence held firm until that crucial window opened up. One mistake ends it, and Górnik's goalkeeper could only watch as the ball found the net.
The statistics tell an interesting story. Górnik registered 87 attacks to Polonia's 85, but only managed one shot on target while the visitors recorded five. They played the second half a man up at times, pushing for an equaliser, but Polonia cut them open at will when they caught them on the break. By then the damage was done.
Discipline was an issue throughout. S. Kowalczyk received the first booking in the 38th minute, followed by M. Kowalski-Haberek and J. Paszkowski in the 50th and 52nd minutes. Górnik made four changes around the hour mark, bringing on O. Wojciechowski, K. Strzelecki, M. Mroz and D. Vega in search of something different.
Polonia's yellow card count reached three, with another going to their players in the dying moments at 90+3. The visitors had more possession at 55 per cent and won more free kicks, but it was their clinical finishing that separated them. They cannot afford another slip if they want to go further.