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Uruguay: Unfashionable Rampla thrash Nacional [Tue Sep 20th, 2005]
Unfashionable side Rampla Juniors thrashed Torneo Especial champions Nacional 3-0 in a match corresponding to the fourth round of the Torneo Apertura at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo.
Rampla Juniors came into the match in joint last position, while a win would have given Nacional leadership of the Apertura.
In the 37th minute Brazilian midfielder Marco Garcia put Rampla ahead when he beat Nacional goalkeeper Jorge Bava with a powerful shot that flew into the left post.
Nacional could have levelled the score in the 49th minute when they were awarded a penalty, but Gabriel Alvez’s spot-kick struck the crossbar.
Carlos Aguiar doubled Rampla’s lead in the 58th minute with a breathtaking strike. Aguiar curled a ball into the right angle of the goal from an almost impossible position.
Nacional came alive after Rampla’s second goal, and created some good opportunities to pull one back. Gabriel Alvez tried to make up for his earlier penalty miss, but had a powerful drive saved by Rampla goalkeeper and former Nacional reserve Jimmy Schmidt.
Pedro Gonzalez sealed the victory two minutes from time, when he slotted in a spot-kick after the second attempt. He blasted his first attempt straight into Bava, but referee Gustavo Siegler made him retake it after he felt Bava had moved off the line.
Gonzalez made no mistake with the second, drilling it past a hapless Bava, and the defender burst into tears, signifying what the result meant to him and his teammates.
The victory sparked wild scenes among the 2,000 Rampla Juniors fans in the stadium, who made the long trip from the Cerro.
Uruguayan champions Danubio had no such trouble and scored two second half goals to defeat Fenix 2-0 for their second consecutive victory in the Apertura.
Richard Pellejero opened the scoring in the 59th minute when he slotted in from close range after Fenix goalkeeper Ignacio De Leon spilled a Pablo Lima free kick from the left. Juan Salgueiro added the second just six minutes later, when he sensationally curled a ball into the right angle of the goal from just outside the box.
The other matches finished in goalless draws, as Plaza Colonia held Liverpool at the Estadio Suppici, and Defensor shared the spoils with Wanderers at the Estadio Luis Franzini.
Apertura Results: Round 4
Sunday
Rampla Juniors 3-0 Nacional
Fenix 0-2 Danubio
Plaza Colonia 0-0 Liverpool
Defensor Sporting 0-0 Wanderers
Saturday
Cerro 0-0 Penarol
Rocha FC 1-1 Tacuarembo
Deportivo Colonia 3-2 Miramar Misiones
Paysandu FC 0-1 Rentistas
Cerrito 0-0 River Plate
Gregory Sica
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