Matchday 12 in Belarus has woken up people who might have given up on the competitive nature of the division.
Eternal champions BATE Borisov dramatically let a two goal advantage slip away, and it is Shakhtyor who took full advantage in the late game.
A week from today, the two will meet in a head-to-head battle for first place.
Vitebsk v BATE Borisov
In leagues where there is a clear favourite who racks up win after win, it is the psychological effect that destroys opponents as much as the quality differences. In Belarus, you can expect exactly this as BATE Borisov goes on a 6 game winning streak. Even a poor start to the season doesn’t make a difference once the eternal champions are on a mission.
Today, a lifeline has been miraculously given to the rest of the league - as BATE amazingly dropped two points, in a dramatic 2-2 draw at Vitebsk. The hosts had a streak of their own, a five-game draw streak, and they were just not going to lose today to the best team in the land.
BATE took a 2-0 lead, after goals in the 14th and 58th minute by Pavel Nekhajchik and Stanislav Dragun respectively, both after poor mistakes by the home goalkeeper. The diversity in the Blue and Yellow’s side’s attack has been well documented, as it is the 5th goal of the season for both.
But the final 10 minutes showed exactly how resilient Vitebsk are: In the 79th minute, Sergey Volkov made it 2-1, and in the 90th minute it was good work on the flank by Diego Carioca which set up substitute Alexander Ksenofontov for a nice turn and finish from close range. 2-2 and a lifeline for the rest of the league.
Shakhtyor Soligorsk v Energetik-BGU
After hearing the result from Vitebsk, the two teams who can still threat top spot met in a direct battle - a chance that doesn’t show up every day, and the hosts were those to take full advantage with a 1-0 win.
The only goal came in the 12th minute, as Belarusian international Vitali Lisakovich scored his 6th goal of the season. Both teams had their chances, but Shakhtyor were more dominant throughout the game and could have finished with a larger scoreline, especially as they hit the woodwork twice.
The most impressive fact about Soligorsk is that they have conceded only three goals all season, and none away from home. Speaking of streaks, theirs is seven games without letting in a goal. Next week they travel to Borisov and play BATE. Can it get any better than that?
In other results:
Smolevichy STI - Gorodeya 4-1
Slutsk - Torpedo BelAZ 1-1
Isloch - Ruh Brest 1-1
Slavia Mozyr - Neman Grodno 1-3
Dinamo Brest - FC Minsk 6-1
Belshina - Dinamo Minsk 0-4
