Weather conditions were fairly good for football at the stadium today. The following players took the field: Perono Garoffo - Tihanyvári, Lityński, Vreeburg - De Abrantes, Urtizberea, Mastroianni, Schäding, Magnus - Usme, Neacşu.

Starters: Germanakos - Webb, Hutter - Ferzan, Thach, Keng Chuan, An Keng, Khairul - Chitre, Ze Han, Reece.

The teams had chosen different formations for the match. The home team, G.E.S., went for a 3-5-2, while Grilled Birds has decided to play a 2-5-3 lineup. It was an obvious ambition of Grilled to play a wide game with their supernatural (14) ability to attack down the wings. G.E.S. fans held their breath as Andrei Neacşu gallivanted down the left side. He successfully avoided all challenges and fired home the go-ahead goal for 1 - 0! Coming through the middle Damian Hutter almost scored the equalizer for Grilled after 18 minutes, but Stefano Perono Garoffo made an excellent save, tipping the awkward swerving shot past the post. After more pushing and shoving than a pack of helicopter moms trying to get the last appointment for their snowflakes to see the Easter Bunny, Grilled's Joe Reece finally got himself booked for a foul. Egemen Dinçer Ferzan made a run for the goal 36 minutes into the game but the home team's left side was too well defended and the attack fizzled out. It was obvious that Grilled had instructions to attack on the wings instead of in the middle. A cross coming in on the right hand side left Chad Thach alone in front of the goal after 37 minutes but his shot wasn't taken well. 1 - 0 was the halftime score. Grilled did a good job holding on to the ball, with 55 percent of possession. We'll be back after these interminable commercial messages.

The crowd was amused as Damian Hutter of Grilled used a few interesting tricks and dribbles to get into the penalty box. The finish by Joe Reece wasn't very amusing, however, and the score was unchanged. A free kick just outside of the visitors' penalty area after 49 minutes could have resulted in another goal, but Dimitris Germanakos got a hand out and tipped the ball over the bar. With 56 minutes played, the visitors almost leveled the score. Chan Ze Han shot a hard curved free kick, but it struck the post. 61 minutes had passed when G.E.S. put themselves up 2 - 0 after the visiting defenders lost the ball to Norbert Vreeburg, who came up from the left and proceeded to easily go around the goalkeeper and knock the ball home. As the 70 minute mark approached, the G.E.S. manager decided it was time for a substitution. Óscar Javier Usme reluctantly made way for José Antonio Rojas. As Óscar Javier Usme left the field, the coach signaled to Klaus-Rüdiger Magnus to start taking the set pieces that occurred. With the clock showing 70 minutes, the fourth official held up the substitution board. Norbert Vreeburg looked to see that it was his number in red, so he made his way over to the sideline and swapped out for Óscar Forcades, though he would have liked to continue. Coming in from the right, Carmelo De Abrantes almost managed to score another goal for G.E.S., but his header was kept out by the lightning fast reflexes of the visiting keeper. After 77 minutes, G.E.S. began to show their lack of experience and they threatened to wilt under the heavy pressure from their opposition. 80 minutes into the game, G.E.S. wanted to bring some new energy to their game. Carmelo De Abrantes gave Ciro Redondo a quick hug as he left the field. After 80 minutes, the Grilled coach wanted to see a new face on the field, waving Chan Ze Han off. Kalki Parvathaneni took his place. With Chan Ze Han no longer on the field, Gilbert Webb was the new set pieces taker. Gilbert Webb was handed the Grilled captain's armband. The crowd roared its approval when Stefano Perono Garoffo somehow managed to block what seemed to be a certain goal by Grilled's Gandhik Chitre 80 minutes into the match. With 81 minutes played, Egemen Dinçer Ferzan had a fantastic opportunity to reply but his shot from the middle nicked the post and went out. 85 minutes into the match, the referee signaled for a Grilled substitution. Mohsen El Khateeb came on for Damian Hutter. The match ends 2 - 0. Looks like Nate Silver was right again - his prediction that Grilled would have 57 percent possession in this half was spot on!

Bernardino Urtizberea performed admirably for G.E.S.. You can tell it was nickel beer night yesterday at the local bar because Óscar Forcades seemed to stumble all over the pitch. Most important Grilled player was Lim An Keng. Speaking of stinking up the place, Gilbert Webb sure smelled like the bottom of Batman's shoe after a night of crimefighting in Gotham.