Real Mallorca went a healthy eight points clear at the top of Segunda B Group III after a hard-fought 2-1 win against Valencia Mestalla on a bright and breezy Sunday lunchtime. Out of the 80 sides in Segunda B, Mallorca are the only team unbeaten. After two consecutive draws, Mallorca left it until the 89th minute to get back to winning ways. Alex Lopez scored a brilliant goal to give the Palma side a fully deserved three points, although at times they struggled to stamp their authority on the game.
The islanders started with a spring in their step and came close through Abdon Prats and Lopez early doors. Coach Vicente Moreno had made changes from Wednesday's 1-1 draw against Hercules. Pol Roige made his first start for over a month down the right wing and he was the instigator of Mallorca's opener after 20 minutes, unselfishly pulling the ball back across the goal to set up Abdon Prats for his seventh strike of the season. The Arta-born striker went on to have a tempestuous game, culminating in his sending-off (from the bench) near the end.
There's no doubt the impeccable playing surface in the Son Moix helps Mallorca's style of play as they took the game by the scruff of the neck as half time arrived. After the break, Valencia somehow got back into the mix, then out of nothing and totally against the run of play they pulled level. Defender Centelles got to the touchline, crossed the ball and Alberto Gil unmarked made it 1-1. You could have heard a pin drop when that went in.
By this time another twitchy referee, Martinez Montalban from Murcia, began to lose control. The game got very scrappy and the referee reached the stage when he didn't bother putting his cards in his pocket and carried them in his hand. Players were being booked left, right and centre and it looked like Mallorca needed a change of personnel to freshen things up. On came Giner, Sabater and Cedric as the stadium clocks showed time was running out. There were some incredible goalmouth scrambles as Mallorca seemed fated not to get the winner. Then in the 70th minute the referee turned down a clear handball in the area from a Valencia defender as the Son Moix faithful were getting very frustrated, especially with the referee's ineptitude.
Wave after wave of Mallorca attacks came to nothing and a third successive draw looked on the cards. Then with normal time almost up, Alex Lopez got the ball on the edge of the area, spun round and hit a left foot screamer past Valencia's Cristian Rivero to put the fans into raptures. That was a goal fit for any La Liga side. The board went up - four minutes to be added on then everything kicked off. The referee had lost his grip completely as Valencia had a player sent off.
There were all sorts of off-the-ball incidents going on and Abdon Prats (Prats by name, Prats by nature!) got himself red-carded for protesting from the bench. Having already received his fifth yellow card and then a red, he'll miss our next two games, away at Lleida and then the big one here in Palma against Elche the following weekend.
Our goakeeper Manolo Reira tends to get too easily involved in incidents that happen 50 metres from his goal. He dashed almost to the halfway line near the end to start pushing and shoving Valencia players, receiving a yellow card for his interference and is close to suspension.