Warwick Men’s Futsal defeated on the opening day of Varsity

On what was an historic opening night for Coventry University, Team Warwick fell to a shock defeat in the men’s futsal, losing 10-7 amid a terse atmosphere at the Sports and Wellness Hub. 

As the atmosphere mounted ahead of what was expected to be a routine win for the hosts, the opening minutes of the match flowed in opposition to the script. Coventry University started on the front foot, building attacking plays from deep with a sense of poise and precision few expected in the build-up. 

The visitors, who compete several divisions below Team Warwick’s Midlands Division 1A, opened the scoring through tricky attacker Elton Pereira, who capitalised upon a loose pass deep inside Warwick’s half to slot the ball home with ease. Just a few moments later, Issac Au was on hand to fire a low strike from range beyond the reach of Chandraker in the Warwick net. 

Lopes’ efforts were snuffed-out by Au

Miguel Lopes got Warwick on the board prior to the first time out of the match, but Lopes’ efforts were snuffed-out by Au – who once again broke into space to fire a delicious strike low into the net. In the final action of the first half, Afonso Da Silva weaved between two Warwick defenders to give Coventry a resounding lead going into the break. 

Unfortunately for the home crowd, the Bear’s second-half performance was no great improvement. Harry Young’s equalised with a wonderful effort from the halfway line shortly after the break for Warwick, but the game spiralled out of control as tensions frayed at the Sports and Wellness Hub.

Coventry dealt with climbing tensions, with scuffles breaking out across the pitch, far better than Warwick, putting the game beyond the hosts’ reach in the closing minutes when a deflected Afonso Da Silva shot crept beyond the reach of Chandraker.

Despite earning numerous opportunities to wrestle control of the game from Coventry, Team Warwick failed to reach the levels expected

Warwick’s best moment of the night came in the dying embers of the match, as Seva Kozlov beat three Coventry players off the dribble and fired a piledriver into the bottom left corner. A brave, relentless commitment to the press, however, was the difference, as Coventry University romped to a 10-7 victory.