Сайт арбітрів Київщини продовжує свою рубрику – «Подорожні нотатки від Філа», у якій англієць Філ Хоуден, закоханий у аматорський футбол нашого регіону, ділиться своїми враженнями від побаченого.
Кілька слів про самого Філа. Він футбольний фанат із Йорка, що на півночі Англії. Також є арбітром із крикету. Одна з його пристрастей – український футбол усіх рівнів, за яким він спостерігає в нашій країні вже 24 роки. Він спостерігав за приблизно 400 іграми в Україні, також подорожує по Європі за національною збірною й бачив наживо кожну гру «жовто-синіх» на великих турнірах. Нещодавній локдаун надихнув його дослідити футбол Київської області та відвідати багато нових місць, де є аматорський футбол. Наразі Філ проживає в Києві, куди повернувся з Британії у вересні минулого року.
FROM THE SIDELINES (23/05/21)
Ukraine is a great place to be at this time of year, and the weather was absolutely glorious over the weekend with the leaves on the trees a lovely shade of green, and the sun beating down on the local population who have shed their coats and adorned themselves with their summer outfits.
So, what better thing to do with your Saturday than to take a trip outside of Kyiv to one of the beautiful places in Kyiv Oblast. My choice this weekend was Mykhailivka-Rubezhivka, a picturesque little settlement to the west of the capital that always gives you a warm welcome.
The match on offer was home side Sokil against Dengoff Denyhivka in the Kyiv Oblast Premier League at Shkilniy Stadium, a truly mouth-watering prospect with Sokil in excellent form and Dengoff one of the strongest opponents you can face at this level.
I arrived early to enjoy a bit of the sunshine and managed to take a look at the exterior of the stunning Church of St Michael the Archangel to get myself in the mood for the football. If you have never visited Mykhailivka-Rubezhivka I would highly recommend spending some time there.
Down at the stadium the players were warming up and it has to be said that the venue is now a very impressive place to watch football. The pitch is in great condition and the facilities for spectators really are excellent. Clearly a lot of hard work has been done in upgrading the ground and everything is sparkling clean and immaculate. It really is a stadium to be proud of.
So, with the stage set, the two sides kicked off under the tutelage of referee Alex Titov, assisted by Roman Buryak and Bohdan Kadenko. With many Covid restrictions eased in recent weeks, a good crowd turned up to watch and they were to be rewarded with an excellent game of football.
Sokil fired out of the blocks and dominated the opening exchanges. Dengoff seem rattled at the strength of the home side’s determination to get off to a good start and took a long time to settle into the game. Sokil’s good early play saw them take a deserved lead when a dangerous ball into the box pinged off unfortunate Dengoff player Yaroslav Gavrylyuk and looped over his keeper into the net.
In complete control, it is difficult to explain what happened next to Sokil when what seemed like an iron grip on the game became a total capitulation after the 41st minute. By half-time, the visitors had turned the match on its head. First Pavlo Datsyuk forced home an equaliser from close range after the ball had ricocheted off the crossbar, then Dengoff star man Serhiy Tretyak fired his side into an unlikely lead on the stroke of half-time.
The second half was an absolute procession of glorious football played by the men from Denyhivka, and even the introduction of talented striker Adama Sek could not change the outcome for the yellows. It was a fine display of pass and move football, one of the best I have seen this season.
On 65 minutes, Tretyak grabbed his second goal of the game, his seventh in the league so far this season, and Sokil were in big trouble. The white tide kept rolling in as Kostyantyn Zaharchenko added a fourth goal and, to add insult to injury, Sokil then gave away a penalty which Gavrylyuk smashed into to net, the memory of his own goal fading away into the ether.
So, a 5-1 win for Dengoff who now sit nicely positioned in fourth in the league table behind leaders Druzhba Mirivka, Nyva Buzova and Juniors Shpitky. For Sokil, down in a disappointing ninth place with a painful goal difference of minus five, what looked so promising turned into a dreadful afternoon. However, looking on the bright side, they have some very talented players and, with a few tweaks here and there, they will soon bounce back.
It was an excellent refereeing performance yet again from Alex Titov, who I have now seen officiate on several occasions. His smooth running of the game and his friendly but firm approach really seem to resonate with the players. His penalty decision was a particular moment to mention, managing to spot that the foul had taken place just inside the area, and getting the award absolutely spot on. He brings his higher level experience to really benefit the quality of the amateur game which is great to see, and I know there are a few other very experienced referees on the circuit who do this. It makes a huge contribution not only to the standard of play, but also helps develop young officials, and this is magnificent.
Unfortunately, this week I was unable to attend any games in the Kyiv Oblast First League as it was my duty as a football supporter to attend the long-awaited return of CSKA Kyiv to their legendary home at Povritroflotskiy Prospekt, which was an incredible occasion of emotion, colour and romance.
However, despite not participating in any fixtures, I did note that SC Hatne only managed a 2-2 draw against FK Borodyanka and had Ivan Kryvosheyenko to thank for rescuing them from 2-0 down with a second half brace. Interestingly, fellow pacesetters Vertikal Obukhiv made no such slip ups against Kristal Yahotyn with a 2-1 victory. This puts them two points clear at the top after eight rounds of matches and throws the gauntlet down in what is shaping up to be a thrilling battle.
So, not only is the weather in Ukraine hotting up as we head deep into summer – so is the football!