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Local Football:
Thiagoras 3 v Gortys 1
After only two minutes a cross from Gortys' Kyriakakis found Thaskalakis
whose shot was well saved by Pavlos Agrimanis. A cross by Pavlos Moraitakis
saw Dimitris Karagounis' shot go over the cross bar. Both teams were finding
it hard to get a rhythm going. There was a strong appeal from Gortys in the
37th minute for a penalty, when Kyriakakis was pushed, but it was
denied by the referee. A good run by Pavlos Moraitakis saw him flick the
ball into the net for Thiagoras' first goal. One minute later, a great cross
from Angelos Yiakoumakis saw Karagounis tap the ball in for their second
goal. A good start for Thiagoras in the second half with Karagounis,
Dimitris Somarakis and Yiorgos Yiahnakis all having a shot, and a header by
Moraitakis was well saved by the Gortys goalkeeper. After 55 minutes,
Thiagoras' Alexis Tsagournis was sent off for a clinical foul. Gortys sent a
good ball into the Thiagoras box and scored their first goal.
Frustration crept in and a Gortys player was sent off for fighting
with his own coach and then a solo run by Karagounis saw him make the score
3 – 1. Unfortunately, in the last minute there were insults and threats
thrown by Gortys players and the Thiagoras spectators resulting in a mass
verbal brawl.
The Khronicles
"Man of the Match"
was Pavlos Agrimanos who made several excellent saves and was always there
when needed most.
PAO Gouves 2 v
Metaxohori 0
First attempt at goal fell to Gouves' Vasilios Yalanakis, who shot wide, and
both teams struggled to find some sort of rhythm. Gouves' Konstantinos
Kastellianakis had a good shot but was well saved by Konstantinos Koutsakis.
A 20-metre shot by Yalanakis was just over, and then a good piece of
football from Metaxohori saw Nikos Kokosalis just unable to make contact.
The game was mostly a mid-field battle, but then in the 44th
minute a 40-metre clearance by Xristos Katsaitis into the Metaxohori goal
mouth saw everyone miss it and all watched as the ball bounced into the
goal. In the second half there was a good start by both teams but all shots
were blocked. A run by Kastellianakis saw his cross just out of reach for
Dimitris Nerandzakis, and Gouves were slowly getting the better of
Metaxohori who were finding it hard to break down the Gouves defence.
Kyriakakis broke free and was brought down by the keeper for a penalty which
he took and scored to bring the score to 2 – 0. A foul by Yalanakis just
outside the Gouves penalty area gave Metaxohori a chance but Petros
Kokosalis shot wide. Gouves were well on top in the closing stages with
Elbis Alla and Belithakis both going close with shots.
The Khronicles
"Man of the Match"
is Xristos Katsaitis for a solid performance at the heart of the defence and
for a wonderful goal.
Ice Hockey:
The
national ice hockey team faces a very tough competition when they go to
New Zealand for the World Championships
(Division 111) this month. They will begin the competition with a match
against
Ireland, followed by Mongolia, New
Zealand, Luxembourg
and Turkey.
From these matches the top two teams in the division will be promoted
to Division 111.
Boxing:
The
much-awaited light welter fight between Ricky Hatton of the
UK and Manny Pacquiao of the
Philippines
is set for May 2 at
Las Vegas' MGM Grand Casino. Pacquiao, 30, is
currently regarded as the world's best pound-for-pound fighter, since
beating Oscar de la Hoya last December.
Football:
The
ugly face of football is back with riots in
Iraklion, Thessaloniki
and Corfu with fighting between fans and
the police, damage to cars and property and several arrests. PAOK fans
attacked Olympiakos goalkeeper, Antonis Nikopolidis, who responded with a
flying kick at one of them. PAOK fans even attacked the Olympiakos youth
team, injuring one of the players and the father of another.
On
the verge of relegation to the second division OFI fans attacked players and
officials, ripped up hundreds of seats, and then went on a rampage in Iraklion damaging cars and
property.
Athletics:
Greek long jumper, Elena Kafourou, 22, won a gold medal at the recent NCAA
Indoor Track and Field Championships with a jump of 6.53 metres. "I still
cannot believe it . . . I have trained really hard everyday and it has paid
off" said Kafarou.
Volleyball:
Iraklis reached the final four of the Champions League by beating
Germany's Friedrichshafen 3 – 0. The
Thessaloniki
side will now try for the fifth time to win the elusive title which no Greek
side has ever done. The semi finals will take place in
Prague
on April 4 – 5, where Iraklis will face Iskra Odintsovo from Russia.
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GOUVES YOUNGSTERS
WIN MARTIAL ARTS
The
Gouves Athletic Association Ikaros, sporting 31 athletes, took part in the
Championship Games in the local Inter-Association Exhibitions, which were
organized by the Hellenic Union of Shito Ryu Shukokai Karate Do.
In the
Kumite category for athletes born in 1999, (pictured in the action insert
photo) are from left: second place winner Eleni Tzorbatzaki and placing
first is Despina Koukara.
Pictured in the awards ceremony from left are the first and second place
winners with Coach
Emmanuil Amariotakis.
TWIN WINS FOR TWINS
Apparently as talented with ping pong
paddles as they are with piano keys, the multi-talented 17-year-old
identical twins, Stephanie and
Marianna Kapsetaki of Kokkini Hani, have won medals
in Table Tennis at the Lyceum Inter-Schools Sports Competition, recently
held in Iraklion.
Stephanie (pictured right) took the first place medal,
while sister Marianna won the third place award.
The high school girls, both accomplished classical
pianists, have won many national and international musical awards throughout
the years.
Sport to watch:
OFI and Ergotelis
matches:
April 5: Aris Salonika v OFI: Ergotelis v Panseriakos
April 12: OFI v Ergotelis
April 26: Panathinaikos v OFI: Ergotelis v AEK.
All
matches at 17:00.
(Can it be the great escape for OFI with Thrasyvoulos already relegated. OFI
are in serious trouble along with Panserraikos but having said that
Ergotelis staged a remarkable survival act last year . . . so watch this
space).
Football: World Cup
Qualifiers:
April 1: England V Ukraine:
Greece
v Israel: Holland v FYR Macedonia.
Formula One:
April 3 to 5: Malaysian Grand Prix, Kuala Lumpur
April 17 to 19: Chinese Grand Prix, Shanghai
April 24 to 26: Bahrain
Grand Prix, Sakhir
Ice Hockey: World
Championship 2009:
April 10: Ireland v Greece
16:30
April 11: Greece v Mongolia
13:00
April 13: New Zealand v
Greece
20:00
April 15: Greece v Luxembourg
13:00
April 16: Turkey v Greece 13:00.
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