Villajoyosa 0 Horadada 2

Seventeen year old Brit Lewis came off the bench to secure the points for Horadada as he bagged the first Horadada goal of his fledgling football career. After the Reds had taken the lead through an early own goal they had to soak up long periods of Villa pressure before, with just 2 minutes of play remaining,  Lewis met an Alfonso cross to lift Horadada into second, within two points of league leader Elche, as the players now embark on a well deserved three week break.

This was as close a match of table toppers as the Preferente could provide this weekend  with Villajoyosa going into the game in second place and Horadada in third. Both clubs had achieved three wins out of their last four starts but with ground and crowd advantage the Villa looked marginal favourites to pick up the points.

The first half however provided a rather different affair with the Reds by far the better of the two sides. A 1-0 interval lead was secured by Horadada from a deflected own goal as early as the 8^th minute and as they walked off at half time the visitors must have regretted that the margin was not greater.

 Vardan had been the main culprit for wasting opportunities with 2 or 3 although Paco really should have done better on the half hour with only the keeper to beat. As he failed to make up his mind, Angel, the Villa keeper, quickly reached out and pulled the ball off the strikers toe.

The second period mirrored the first although, as the game entered the final quarter, Alberto had to be at his very best in the Horadada goal. With the home side increasing their pressure with wave after wave of attack Campillo was a rock in defence and the  visitors were able to maintain their clean sheet. They nevertheless breathed a common sigh of relief when Lewis hit the back of the Villa net from just inside the box to secure the points for Horadada.

Lewis gets is first goal for Reds

Horadada CF 4 Albatera CF 0

Despite the relative similarity in their records and their league positions anyone going to this fixture at the Pilar Deportiva would have anticipated a very tight game. And for the first 15 minutes, until the Reds opened the scoring that is, both sides created a couple of decent opportunities.

Horadada were without two of their regular strike force, Ensa, suspended, and Vardan, who picked up an injury at Pinoso last week, so the thought of a hatful of goals was probably not uppermost in the home supporters minds but how wrong we all proved to be.

Two goals from Paco Robles were sandwiched in between strikes from Jose Maria and Mario and there could have been so many more. Indeed after their opening flurry Albatera showed very little spirit until the final quarter by which time the game had been put to bed by the home side. The points were in the bag.

This was a very impressive performance from Horadada who went ahead on 15 minutes after Jose Maria met a cross from Javi who had worked his way down the left. He stabbed home his 3rd goal of the season through a crowd of legs to put the home side in front.

Paco Robles then picked up two in quick succession, both coming down a similar route to the first. He worked hard to keep pace with the Javi who  broke at speed down the left on 40 minutes. A wonderful cross made it easy for Paco to double Horadada’s lead. Five minutes later the effort required was rather less as he met another fine cross from my man of the match Javi with what turned out to be an easy tap in. And so the interval arrived with Horadada three in front.

Despite Horadada’s dominance we had to wait until midway through the second period to see their 4^th. The provider was…you’ve guessed it…Javi on the left, and as Mario met his cross at the far post there was only going to be one outcome.  Horadada 4 Albatera 0.

Lewis looked lively during the final quarter when he came on for Paco Robles and could have extended the Reds lead with his very first touch. Unfortunately the upright came to the keepers rescue as Lewis continues to look for his first Horadada goal.

The only blots and an otherwise perfect landscape, a couple of unnecessary bookings which wont help the Horadada card count. But the points most certainly will as the Reds now sit in 3^rd place, on the tails of their next opponents Villajoyosa. With a week off that game will be played on the 18^th December.

Kevin Reardon The Leader

Pinoso CF 1 Horadada CF 4

Christian saves for the Reds

Horadada got back to winning ways at Pinoso on Saturday who have now lost 3 consecutive games for the first time in four years. But as the players went in to face a heated dialogue from manager Pedreno at the interval if anyone were to have predicted a 4-1 final scoreline it would surely have been the other way.

Indeed the Reds could well have been 3 or 4 down as they trudged off the field at that stage of the game with Luis Blanco, Line and Jose Maria all missing gilt edge chances in the opening period, none more so than leading scorer Line who, on the half hour, simply had to lob Cristian just inside his box.  Fortunately for Horadada his effort was far too weak and tamely landed in the hands of the isolated and rather fortunate keeper.

The second period started with much of the same. Apart from a thunderous shot from Robles, that clattered back in to play off the Pinoso upright the Reds had little to cheer and quite deservedly went a goal behind on the hour mark after Borja Antillaque had been given far too much space down the left. But then as the travelling fans began to despair Pedreno once again worked his magic. Quique was replaced by Javi who immediately made his mark on the game.

From an Ensa free kick out wide on the right the midfielder bore into the Pinoso area feeding a clever pass through to Campillo. At his second attempt, from a tight angle, the Horadada skipper buried a shot into the roof of the net to get the visitors back on level terms. Four minutes later another through ball from Javi into the path of Ensa saw the Gambian striker chip the advancing Raul Poveda take an unlikely lead.

But at this stage they still couldn’t believe their luck and as Pinoso went on the assault Obama had to clear off his line when Line shot through a mass of legs.  As the ball broke upfield Robles cleared across the halfway line to Alberto Roble only for the forward to surge toward the Pinosa area. An intelligent interchange with Ensa then saw the Gambian power his 2^nd, and Horadada’s 3^rd, past the stunned Raul Poveda.

As Jose Maria and Lewis joined the fray during the closing minutes Horadada were not quite finished. And it was another dual effort between Ensa, and on this occasion, the hard working Mario.  With the two beating the Pinoso rearguard it looked as though they would get in each others way, but then Mario exquisitely sidestepped the keeper to hit Horadada’s 4^th and put the game firmly beyond the reach of the hosts who, at this stage, after controlling large measures of the game, really must have felt absolutely shellshocked.

But as the Pinoso Club President said as he warmly shook the hands of a number of Horadada supporters at the end of this entertaining match, “Football is a game you play with your brain. Today we failed the exam.”

Kevin Reardon, The Leader

Horadada CF 0 Hercules CF 2

Ensa returns for the reds

Hercules emerged victorious at the Ikomar Stadium as Horadada’s suffered their second consecutive home defeat and their third in four games.

The visitors went ahead in the 75th minute through centre forward Garrido. The same player secured the points for Hercules with his second a couple of minutes into added time.

Horadada boss Pedreno made four changes from last Sunday’s victory at Alguena. In addition to the inclusion of goalkeeper Cristian, fit again trio Ensa, Campillo and Obama were all added to the side and looking much more confident than in recent weeks the Reds got off to a decent start.

Ensa looked very sharp up front and with Mario and Vardan supplying from out on the flanks we were all hoping for goalscoring return from the Gambian striker. Unfortunately despite a promising beginning the service had all but petered out by midway through the half.

Hercules made just change from the 3-1 loss to Elche, with striker Gonzalez Robles not even named as a substitute and former Illicitano defender Pajares the man promoted to the team.

The home side went close from Mario in the seventh minute after Vardan put over a cross from the left, perhaps their best chance of an otherwise barren first half. At the other end Estivariz hit a tame shot at Cristian before Vicente headed over from close range.

The second period saw marginally better chances with both Ensa and vardan going close for the home side. Montesino glanced a header onto a post for Hercules before Garrido hit the forst of his two following a poor Campillo clearance. His shot was hit into the ground from the edge of the box before cruelly looping over the head of the Horadada keeper.

As the home side then pushed forward it looked as they had drawn level when both Sirera and Domenech were forced to clear off the line from Lewis and Jose Maria. But with a break toward the very end of the game Garrida was able to pick his spot when the defence failed to pick him up on the edge of the Horadada box.

Although the scoreline is a little cruel on Horadada the visitors were marginally the better side and probably shaded the game.

Kevin Reardon The Leader

Jose Maria was handed the Captains armband

CF Alguena 1 Horadada 3

Following two successive defeats the Reds went into Sunday’s game against bottom side Alguena knowing that nothing less than a win would satisfy their disheartened fans, despite being forced to field an extremely weakened team. Without Campillo, Ensa, Carlos, Obama and of course inspirational skipper Ruben, there were starts for Alberto in goal, Lewis and new boy Ortiz, although the latter was on the field for just six minutes before being forced to take his leave with a groin injury.

Jose Maria was handed the captains armband and what a good choice it proved to be as the Presidente’s son encouraged his players to a convincing 3-1 win.

With little between the two sides during the opening half hour, it took the Reds fully 30 minutes before they started putting any real moves together. But as they gradually developed an understanding a good build up saw Kike latch on to a decent though ball to put the visitors in front just prior to the half time whistle.

The second period saw a far more confident Horadada as they took the game to a very poor Alguena side who seem be rather deservedly anchored to the bottom of the league table. On this sort of form they are unlikely so see any change in the very near future and when Vardan extended the Horadada lead midway through the second period the only question on most people’s mind was the margin of the Horadada victory.

A third goal came for the Reds ten minutes later when Javi finished off an excellent move from close range and then with the referee reaching for his final whistle Horadada’s Antonio gifted the home side a consolation when a wayward free kick was deflected in off his shoulder.

Next week the Reds are at home to Hercules B and, despite Sunday’s comfortable win, will need to step up a gear if they are to extend their run against the Alicante outfit.