Recap
The upper final series of the first division continues in the week that started with two matches, when SJK Akatemia travels as a guest of both league leaders. First, it will face first-placed Ekenas as a guest on Wednesday, and second-placed Gnistan on Sunday. SJK Akatemia has a busy week ahead, because in addition to the two First Division games, it will also travel to Pietarsaari in the final round of Kolmonen on Saturday as a guest of FF Jaro’s U23 team. However, the games have gone well so far, as Kolmonen’s team has already secured the group win and promotion to Kakkonen.
In front of this match coach Grieve said: “We still have three matches to play, and we will certainly bring more players from our second team, because they had a great season there. Thus, we give them experience already now, and build on the success of this season to create new success in next season’s Ykkonen“. There are minor and major injuries in the team, while some key players are included in the first team like 19-year-old defender Ibrahim Cissé and Babacar Fati.
Ekenas is in a really strong mood at the moment, as there are no less than ten consecutive wins and twelve games in a row without losses. The previous loss was at the end of June when TPS was better by 3-1 in Turku. The Catalan coach Gabriel Xatart returned to the helm of the Tammisaari team. With the Barcelona style of play with big possession of the ball, they are extremely dangerous even on counterattacks, having the best defense in the league. In the July transfer window, Ekenas strengthened its team even more when Tiemoko Fofana (Haka) and returnee Lucas Kaufmann (Honka) arrived from the Veikkausliiga. The Ivorian striker Fofana has already managed to score four times and Kaufmann is a big piece in the structure of the game. They really invested in their team and they have a real foreign legion, whose only goal is to get into the Veikkausliiga.
All in all, this should be a convincing win for the home side.