Southern beat Glory Sky 3-1 in the FA Cup quarter-finals thanks to goals from Marcos de la Espada and a brace from James Ha, while Vas Nuñez‘ goal is the only consolation for Glory Sky.
Glory Sky fielded a couple of changes after last week’s 0-0 draw with R&F. Yoon Dong-hun replaced Lazar Vidic and Chan Cham-hei made a return in the left back position. Keeper Wong Tse-yeung started for the second match, with Oleksii on the bench.
Southern made two changes after last week’s 3-3 thriller with Rangers. Souza replaced James Ha and Leung Tsz-chun replaced Tomoya Uchida as winger. Tse Tak-him continued in goal after his clean-sheet record of 884-minutes was broken by Roberto Fronza’s own goal last week.
Southern’s start was a bit slow, with Glory Sky producing more threat in the first 10 minutes. Everton Camargo’s shot in the 3rd min was blocked. Just a few minutes later he managed to beat Tse Tak-him after dribbling past two Southern defenders, only to be denied by the post. Southern’s high pressing tactics allowed them to dominate the midfield later in the first half and managed to produce a few threatening crosses, but they were all cleared by Miovic and Nuñez. The Aberdeeners also managed a few shots from outside the box, but all well off the mark.
Glory Sky found a few counter attacks, but shots from Yoon in the 22nd minute and Everton’s shot 10 minutes later all failed to find the target. Southern finally got the answer to their domination in injury time, when after a corner Marcos de la Espada’s header found the back of the net.
Glory Sky pressed higher in the second half, creating a few chances, while Southern opted for a counter attack approach. Everton’s free kick was deflected by the wall and just went wide of the post. A fantastic run from Liu Pui-fung from the left side created a chance for Yu Pui-hong to score, but Tse Tak-him provided a good save to turn it behind.
Southern made the first substitution in the 67th min. Winger James “Bullet” Ha came on for Leung Tse-chun. James Ha and Souza’s pace proved to be a problem for Glory Sky, with Ha scoring a header in the 72nd minute following a cross from Souza, giving the Southerners a two-goal lead.
Glory Sky made two substitutions afterwards, with Lazar Vidic and Cheng Siu-kwan coming on for Lee Gil-hoon and Tsui Wang-kit. They managed to reduce the deficit by half with a header from Nuñez following a corner by Chan Cham-hei. Glory Sky continued to press for an equaliser but were unable to penetrate Southern’s defence.
Southern sealed the victory again in injury time with a close-range shot from James Ha after a beautiful assist by de Souza. Glory Sky-keeper Wong Tse-yeung touched the ball, but he was only able to deflect it to the bar from where it went straight into the net. Later on, Glory Sky had another chance to score when substitute Cheng Siu-kwan robbed Diego Garrido inside the box, but his shot went harmlessly over the bar.
Southern: Tse Tak-him [GK], Sham Kwok-fai, Shay Spitz, Lau Hok-ming, Diego Garrido, Dieguito, Leung Tsz-chun [C] (Ha James Stephen Gee, 67 min), Wellingsson De Souza, Hui Wang-fung, Chan Kong-pan (Paul Oliver Ngue, 86 min), Marco de la Espada Martin(Tomoya Uchida, 73 min)
Glory Sky: Wong Tse-yeung[GK], Tsui Wang-kit (Cheng Siu-kwan, 72 min), Yoon Dong-hun, Mirko Teodorovic [C], Lee Gil-hoon (Lazar Vidic, 72 min), Liu Pui-fung, Chan Cham-hei, Igor Miovic (Lau Tsz-kin, 78 min), Vas Nuñez, Everton Camargo, Yu Pui-hong
