Suspense right to the end

The league phase of the Challenge Crédit Agricole U17 continued this Sunday in Plougonvelin. And it lived up to all its promises!
SC Braga got off to a flying start yesterday with two wins from two games, but they gave themselves a scare by losing to Dutch side Stars of Tomorrow Breda (0-1). The defending champions bounced back strongly to defeat Stade Brestois. Trailing 2-1 to the Finisterians, the Portuguese scored twice in quick succession. Thanks to their three wins, they their ticket to the semi-finals.
Among the Breton clubs, only one team came out on top: FC Lorient. 3 wins, 1 draw and top spot in the league phase standings. It all came down to the final match and the Merlus’ 4-0 victory over a strong Sparta Rotterdam side. Impressive all season in the
Stade Malherbe Caen were equally impressive on Sunday. They won both their games by the narrowest of margins (against Stade Brestois and Stars ofTomorrow Breda).
Frustrated by two draws the day before, Brazil’s Ceará SC snatched their place in the semi-finals in the final match. Having beaten Sparta Rotterdam 1-0 earlier in the day, they went on to defeat FC Porto 2-0 at the end of the day. With this victory, they eject Olympique Lyonnais from the last four thanks to a better goal-average (+3 against +2).
Geographical parity will therefore be respected for the semi-finals: 2 French clubs and two foreign clubs will attempt to bring the cup home.
From 10 o’clock onwards and the start of the matches, the public flocked to Plougonvelin to enjoy some hard-fought matches (there were far fewer draws than the day before).
Boosted by what was at stake and the desire to qualify for the finals, the teams put on a great show. The day was punctuated by Brazilian music blasting from the speakers of the Ceará SC players, the Breton sun that warmed some faces and the coming and going of spectators between the three pitches.
In the Paysages d’Iroise U15 Challenge, neighbouring Plouzané AC have been invited to join the big boys in the quarter-finals. They will be joined by Le Havre AC, EA Guingamp and Stade Brestois, among others. The quarter-finals start at 10am on Monday.
So wake up, drink a cup of coffee, pack your sun cream and sunglasses and come and enjoy the great spectacle that the two Challenges have to offer!