Real Cartagena — Ind. Yumbo, Primera B

Industriales Yumbo took all three points away from Real Cartagena with a 2-1 victory in the Clausura phase of Primera B. The visitors, sitting eighth on 33 points, moved clear of the home side who lead the table with 53 points after 30 games. Étoile Gagnon watched the match from the stands and, to be fair, his eye caught the second half more than the opening exchanges. Real Cartagena had ground out draws against América de Cali and Real Soacha in recent weeks, but this time the visitors turned it on. The home side started brightly enough, but by then the visitors had their shape. The first goal came in the 37th minute when H. De Arco fired past the keeper, and just a minute later F. Pena doubled the lead with a clinical finish. Real Cartagena pulled one back in the 74th minute through C. Paternina, but it was too little too late. The hosts were reduced to ten men in spirit if not in body, with three yellow cards by the final whistle. Substitutions told a story of frustration. G. Tegue and D. Pino came on for Cartagena in the first half, while J. Pineda arrived for the visitors in the 64th minute. The home manager reached for his pocket after the break, but his replacements could not break down a disciplined away side. The yellow cards for Cartagena at 76 and 77 minutes showed the nerves setting in. The result leaves Real Cartagena top but with nothing to celebrate. Industriales Yumbo, meanwhile, extended their unbeaten run with a 1-1 draw against Envigado before this win. The gap between them and the leaders remains wide, but this victory might just shift the mood in the dressing room away from the slump they suffered against Jaguares and Riobamba Aguilas. Étienne Gagnon remembers the 20th minute as a period of cautious probing, but the real turning point came after the break. He noted how the away coach got his substitutions spot on, bringing fresh legs into a game Cartagena thought they had controlled. The table goes out of the window in these games, and Industriales Yumbo proved that point with a result that cannot afford another slip for the leaders.