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by Robert "Pennywise" Gray

Insmouth continued the hectic run of tough fixtures with a Campeonato Série A home clash with league leaders and reigning champions Red Onions (3). It was just yesterday manager bigtyksen_2nd masterminded a 1-0 win over Cheetahs in the Brazilian Cup Quarter-final. The tactical superiority Red Onions enjoyed was so overwhelming Insmouth barely had a shot in the game.

Insmouth Gazette pundits expected an even affair and gave Insmouth small advantage because of the home effect. 3 of them backed us to win, 6 expected a draw and 1 gave Red Onions the nod for all 3 points.

Derry Sewers couldn't pack a capacity crowd because of the overinflated ticket price and only attracted an audience of 9,110.

Insmouth abandoned the 5-4-1 formation that caused our downfall in the cup fixture and instead utilized our typical 4-5-1. Keeper Giacomo Feriani (58.) was asked to play on the left side of defense and striker Cian Jaggar (56) took a right winger role.

Red Onions banked on their usual 5-3-2 formation and once again picked a starting 11 brimming with quality. Although they had trouble with the extended squad and were only able to name two goalkeepers on their bench.

As in the previous match between the two teams, Insmouth enjoyed a slight advantage in attack and matched Red Onions in goal, but were inferior in defense and midfield.

The match was a much more even affair than the previous derby. Insmouth were determined to avenge the defeat and wash away memories of the shameful performance in front of their fans. It showed in a gritty midfield display that didn't allow Red Onions to take control over proceedings like they did before.

The visitors were taken aback by our aggressive approach and their sweeper Joao Paulo Veloso (60) was nearly caught napping by Leo Furtado. Veloso brought him down to avoid losing the ball in a neuralgic position and was lucky to get away with a yellow for it.

6' - Yellow Card! Joao Paulo Veloso (Red Onions)

The early booking forced the visitors to reconsider their gameplan and they changed into a more defensive-minded shape. It worked well enough to close any space and didn't allow Insmouth players time on the ball.

Red Onions' pragmatic approach started to work even better after the initial home momentum wore off. The visitors were the more dangerous team and often managed to conclude their attacks with dangerous shots from striker Ian Jacobs (67).

Insmouth relied a bit more on long range efforts but this time Leo Furtado was much more involved and often linked well with those behind him.

The first half lived up to the derby expectations but disappointed for the lack of goals.

Cheetahs couldn't repeat the early pressure in the second half. Red Onions had adapted well to our style and looked intent on securing a strategic draw. It was the kind of match that could be resolved by individual mistakes and that's exactly what happened.

On the brink of the hour mark Insmouth DM Lyapo Adelaja saw Furtado expecting a pass on the offside line and hooped a speculative ball towards him. For some reason Red Onions keeper Dener Álvares (75) rushed out and prevented his defenders from handling the situation. Furtado beat the keeper to the ball and simply tuck the ball in the net!

60' - GOAL!!! 1-0 - Leo Furtado (Lyapo Adelaja assist)

The opener was a serious blow for the opposition. Red Onions tried to react but were unable to maintain the intensity levels from before the break. They were also conceding too many fouls in the middle.

Insmouth looked to capitalize on that by introducing a couple players off the bench. Young hole player Ottah Okoro and midfielder Ellhard Gos came in to replace Giacomo Feriani and Cian Jaggar.

70' - Substitution (Insmouth Cheetahs): RM Cian Jaggar (56) off; defensive midfielder Ellhard Gos (47) on

71' - Substitution (Insmouth Cheetahs): LB Giacomo Feriani (58.) off; hole player Ottah Okoro (31) on

Red Onions were in a difficult situation with no field players available on their bench and had to struggle on with fatigue.

It was easy to see the cup games yesterday had taken their toll on them, too. Striker Ian Jacobs who was so lively before the break was now desperately late for most balls and eventually caught the foot of a defender, getting himself booked.

72' - Yellow Card! Ian Jacobs (Red Onions)

Insmouth piled further pressure by maintaining aggressive high line and closing down in midfield. We conceded a lot of fouls ourselves and it cost Adelaja a yellow card, too, but it was a part of the big plan for the game.

74' - Yellow Card! Lyapo Adelaja (Insmouth Cheetahs)

We looked desperately out of our depth and our players often left the impression of headless chickens in the cup game. But in this match Insmouth had learnt their lesson and delivered a game plan that left Red Onions without enough fuel in the tank to press for an equalizer in the final fifteen minutes.

Of course their lack of bench players contributed. But the visitors had so much quality in the first eleven they were more than capable of punishing every single mistake. Luckily Cheetahs made none.

There was even time for sub player Ellhard Gos to show glimpses of his talent with a beautiful through ball to Leo Furtado near the death. The pass was so accurate Furtado didn't need a controlling touch before unleashing it home to put an end to any hopes Red Onions had to salvage a draw!

89' - GOAL!!! 2-0 - Leo Furtado (Ellhard Gos assist)

This proved the final intriguing moment of the game. After a single minute of added time the referee blew the whistle and Insmouth fans could start celebrating sweet revenge after the crushing cup loss yesterday!

Final score: Insmouth Cheetahs (4) - Red Onions (3) 2-0 (Leo Furtado 60, 89)
Man of the Match: Leo Furtado (Insmouth Cheetahs)

Campeonato Série A Match Day 13 results:

The Rockets (21) - Peregrinos (7) 1-2
Alexandra County (38.) - Rattus Rattus 2nd (267) 2-0

Thanks to the derby win Insmouth leapfrogged champions Red Onions and now sit top of the league table joint on points with Peregrinos (but with better goal difference). Red Onions are now down to third. Alexandra County took advantage of the home loss suffered by The Rockets in the other contender derby and climbed up to 5th. Homeboyz suffered a surprise loss but retained their 4th position:

1. Insmouth...........__ 35 31-5
2. Peregrinos............. 35 27-8
3. Red Onions............ 33 31-5
4. Homeboyz FC.._____ 29 26-9
5. Alexandra Countyw 28 23-10
6. The Rockets....____ 25 21-10

Insmouth Gazette Pundits

Time for our pundits section. With just three matches to predict and two of them - tough title contender derbies, there weren't many points available but some of our specialists still managed to earn a little juice. New leader andyoz retains his first position by a fragile 1 point lead ahead of colins70. In third wally has made the position his own and ironpsycho is now 3 point behind. Let's see how the leaderboard looks after Match Day 13:

1. andyoz.........__ 161pts
2. colins70............160pts
3. wally............__ 134pts
4. ironpsycho....__ 131pts
5. scotty1962..___ 123pts
6. mackfishy......._ 118pts
7. jpjjpj............... 116pts
7. AberdeenAngels 116pts
9. lawtons11.....__ 108pts
10. Tstuff......____ 102pts
11. aknight2000..... 87pts
12. ozzymac........... 78pts
13. Njidda..........__ 35pts
14. taoheedovic_ww 33pts
15. tellofrosh........_ 27pts

Tomorrow is Match Day 14 and there are even more intriguing matches, plus another contender derby for our pundits to predict:

Peregrinos (7) - Insmouth Cheetahs (4)
Red Onions (3) - Carvetii FC (181)
Qingnianlu City (106) - Alexandra County (38.)
Cf Craiovitza (443) - The Rockets (21)