On Sunday we have again crucial points on the line in a match against AC Darra. I have a feeling this match could be similar to last weekend’s match against FC Tribe. Both Darra and Tribe are based on a group of friends and have been playing in the lower divisions for a number of years. Even though Darra have lost all of their five matches this year, most of them were against the top teams in our subdivision, and they lost three of them by just one goal. Even the overall goal differential of 7-17 is not horrible for a team that has lost all of their five matches in Kutonen.

For TamU-K the objective is quite simple: improve team play and improve defense inside the box, and we should be winners. There’s little doubt that individually our players are more skillful than those of our opponent. In fact, I think this is true against almost any team in this level in Finland. However, FC Tribe showed us that even against very average teams that is not enough if the opponent is disciplined and plays to their strengths. And, even if AC Darra may not sound like a very serious team (darra means hang over), they may very well be a better team than the one that beat us last weekend. Also of note is that they have closer to 30 players in their roster, so their quality may vary from match to match based on who make it to the playing 18.

In the defensive end there is an interesting change, as our highest profile defender Ahmed Lakra is rumored to be unavailable. That is definitely a big loss, but word on the street is that Mika Suonsyrjä will take his position. If this all comes to fruition, it will be very interesting to see how it all affects our play. Mika is our most experienced player and has played center back before, so there is no reason for huge concern about center backs. But how about our midfield? A few options come to mind, but the fact is that without Suonsyrjä our midfield seemed toothless in the earlier match against Pelikassit. On the other hand, I think a few lessons were learned in that match.

The match kicks off at Kaukajärvi on Sunday at 7:15 pm. Kaukajärvi is not ”quite” like Pyynikki, but our matches there nevertheless still have some of the best atmospheres in Finnish football right now. Be there and experience it for yourself!