21:21: Full time. A fair result, Racing were clearly the better team, but there are of course ‘what if?’ questions. kokko should have scored, racing shouldn’t have scored so early, but this is a Finnish club in Europe. They could have gven Austria Vienna a going over, but unfortunately they drew the Spanish club that is taking this UEFA Cup business extremely serious. The 500 odd Racing fans are celebrating in front of the photographers, and now chanting ‘Honka’. Sickeningly sweet, and the Honka fans respond with ‘Racing’. It’s hard not to have your heart warmed just a little bit.
21:19: The referee seems content to give a free-kick to the defending team whenever either side crosses the halfway line. Maybe he’s a bit drowsy too.
21:18: The Racing fans are singing a nice song, with scarves aloft and swaying. It’s lulling me gently to sleep.
21:10: The game’s a little bit sterile right now, Honka seem to miss Vuorinen’s physical presence a little bit and the referee is getting quite niggly. Otaru just chased down a full back, won a throw, then from the resulting play was flagged offside.
21:07: the referee gives a foul against little John Weckström, supposedly for jumping in with his studs. This guy’s supposed to be from Scotland, they get bonuses for them in the SPL.
21:03: Massive respect for Racing’s decision to forego advertising on their shirts. This is a proper football club that knows how to behave on their first European campaign in 93 years.
20:55: Booking for Pablo Pinillos for clattering Otaru, free kick from Koskela doesn’t beat the first man. Kokko is booked for diving when the ball comes back in, a very harsh decision. Might not finish with 22 players on the pitch, this one.
20:52: Jalasto breaks down the right and fizzes over a cross, but it evades Weckström and Kokko. Honka look slightly more tired than you’d hope at this stage of the game, which doesn’t bode well given that they’ve used all their substitutes.
The clock has stopped working at Finnair Stadium: Exposito heads just wide, and substitution time again. koskela and Otaru on for Honka, not sure who went off.
20:37: Cynical foul from Bernard, and a free kick to Honka. Curled in by Weckström but Rodriguez claims comfortably. Plus points of my new position: I can’t hear the GOLGOLGOL commentators, and am a bit closer to the pitch. Minuses: There are 4 (four) Tv cameras in front of me. They are not filming for Finnish TV.
20:35: Weckström set clear, but Rodriquez is quick out of his goal and makes a sliding tackle outside the box.
20:30: Second half starts, Bana Lehkosuo makes the change suggested earlier. Had to search for a place with a power point, as not all press seats have them here, but now I have electricity and we should be alright till full time.
20:15: Half-time. Not too bad, apart from the first 5 minutes, so we have a goalfest to look forward to in the second half. Suggested substitutions from the bloke behind me include Weckström to come on for Vuorinen, as Hermanni doesn’t seem to have the temperament for European football and might well get a second yellow. I’m inclined to agree.
20:14: Crunching tackles from Jalasto put Serrano in his place. He’s getting into the game more after a somewhat shaky start.
20:12: Unbelievable miss from Kokko after a cross from Jalasto. The move wast started by Perovuo with a great crossfield ball.
20:10: pereira misses a one-on-one. He’s really giving Honka a chance tonight.
20:08: Wicked free-kick from Santander, flashed back across goal, but Honka somehow scramble it clear.
20:06: Vuorinen gets booked for clattering the right back. The Scottish referee is very dramatic, and now inexplicably gives a corner to Racing. I’m sure the shipping forecast is fascinating, Sepi.
20:05: Honka fan Jonathan Pereira skies from two yards out. Hahahaha.
20:04: Maybe I was wrong. Vuorinen gets a bit of afters from Cesar Gonzalez, who is booked. He’s an awkward fucker, is Vuorinen, and if he can irritate these defenders they might make some mistakes…
20:00: Honka need to gte more men forward to support Vuorinen, who looks like he might deck on or two Racing defenders if they keep kicking him. he rather unwisely squares up to Ivan Marcano in front of the linesman. As i write, Honka win a corner, but an offside is given because somebody (not sure who) tries to get a touch from an offside position.
19:52: Sepi: the crowd are all still here, thankfully. There is a roof, however ineffectual, and it is absoutely pissing it down outside. On the brightdside, Honka seem more comfortable now and are at least retaining posession. As I type Vuorinen is set free down the left and wins a throw-in, but the move breaks down thanks to the linesman’s flag. I’m pretty sure Honka will win 3-1 with a second half Hakanpää hat-trick, so why would anyone leave?
19:46: Kokko wins the ball in the middle, tris to put Vuorinen clear but the ball bounces into touch. Plastic pitches are shit.
19:41: Honka break through the middle with Kokko, but after a scramble in the box Racing clear. There are no adverts pitchside, probably because they weren’t sold. Big match, this.
19:36: Perovuo makes a hospital pass that nearly lets in Racing again. Honka need to settle.
19:34: Goal for Racing. Nobody following in when a long range piledriver hits the bar, except for Eduardo Bedia. The Spanish commentators could get quite annoying after a while: the word ‘gol’ does not really need repeating that many times.
19:31: Honka have a throw on the right, it breaks to Vuorinen in the box but he puts it wide. Spanish commentators talk VERY VERY LOUDLY.
19:30: The Racing fans are pretty loud, waving scarves their press officer seems to be giving out to everyone. Finnair Stadium’s lack of desks for journalists is causing some difficulties as I attempt to type, but I struggle manfully on. Both teams are in away kits, Honka in black and Racing wearing a Rotherham Unitedesque red shirt-white sleeve combo. Honks are playing towards the South Stand where the Racing fans are congregated, and this is easily the best atmosphere I’ve ever seen at Finnair Stadium.
18:45: The team’s are in:
FC Honka: Tuomas peltonen, Sampo Koskinen, Roope Heilila, Ville Jalasto, Hermanni Vuorinen, Hannu Haarala, Jussi Vasara, Aleksandr Kokko, Rami Hakanpää, Joel Perovuo, Tuomo Turunen.
Subs: Ivan Vargic, Tero Koskelo, Jami Puustinen, John Weckström, Jani Bäckman, Nicholas Otaru, Jaakko Lepola.
Racing Santander: Antonio Rodriguez, Ezequiel Guray, Cesar Gonzalez, Juan Jose Ezposito, Oscar Serrano, Pablo Pinillos, Peter Bernard, Jonathan Pereira, Medmi Lacen, Eduardo Bedia, Ivan Marcano.
Subs: Fabio Coltorti, Laszlo Sepsi,Gonzalo Colsa, Jorge Goncalves, Juan Valera Jose Moraton, Christian Fernandez.
It’s drizzling a bit and pretty cold, but for once the WLAN at Finnair stadium is working properly. Fingers crossed it stays that way. I’ll try to keep you updated with Saltut Elämät, Jokerit-Pittsburgh and all the other vitally important stuff going on today, but to do that I’ll need your help. Email me updates to footballinfinland@gmail.com and I’ll drop them into the text.
You can listen to commentary in Finnish at Radio Suomi, with breaks for the shipping forecast. I’ll be back just before kickoff.
Filed under: Football in Finland archive, Veikkausliiga | Tagged: FC Honka, Racing Santander |
Football in Finland 
How did the crowd react? Are people leaving already?
Makes me sick to listen to Radio Suomi’s broadcast with a bunch of ice fighting matches, some shipping radio and…. once in a while, some uefa cup football.
Thanks Egan, even if I was the only one here 🙂
I was here too!
Just didn’t have anything to add…
But thanks for the commentary.
Will you be doing the same for Inter-Honka on Sunday?
I won’t be there. Juha might, though……
And there were a lot more than you two here, but thanks for commenting anyway.
I’m undecided between HJK-TPS and Inter-Honka. To put it more clearly, my wallet is undecided, but I am trying hard to provide it with the resources that would take me to Helsinki.
Anyway, Yle’s live television coverage pretty much rules out the need for a live blog. But if Gerry’s still in Finland (or if you live here), the game is on Yle TV2 at 3:50 PM.
No, not in Finland.
But I have a small (very small!) interest with Ladbrokes in the destination of the championship, and I will want to know how Inter are doing….
Looks like LiveScore, then.
no way were there only 500 away supporters , what about the reported 2,000 allocated santander tickets? if it was only 500, every one must have had a loudspeaker cos they made more noise then then the 8,500* other fans .
one thing i noticed and found very amusing was how Finnish supporters react to a foul, yellow card , or arguable decision , with a hail of whistles, abuse and loudly proclaimed statements , only to then sit back and let the spanish get on with their singing .
ps: for a la liga team which finished 5th last season,,,they didn’t look THAT much better than Honka .
Gerry, that’s too bad. But as I said, the game is on Finnish TV, so fingers crossed there will be a stream available.
finnbrit, I did not see the game, but that sounds pretty…well, Finnish. At pretty much all Finnish stadia, the people celebrate goals or whistle when they think their team has been hard done by, only to go back walking on the thin line between dreams and reality.’
But I heard both supporter groups were chanting and shouting actively, great!