Sierra Leone (2) v (8) Czech Republic

By Tim Beissmann

THE CZECHS snagged their first victory of the new table after a flurry of goals in the final minutes sealed an 8-2 win over Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone's danger man Thomas Didymus Kargbo showed his intentions early, throwing his body around and getting in the way of some hard Czech strikes.

The superior skills of Ahmed Juhea Barrie had the Leone's looking switched on and dangerous in the opening minutes, but it was Jan Jasukevic for the Czech Republic who put the first points on the board after team-mates crossed the ball across the pitch to find him in the open.

With one of the tallest players in the competition in goals, Igor Karpis was proving a hard target for Sierra Leone to avoid. However, a low ball from Kargbo snuck through the long legs of the Czech, and levelled it up.

An instant reply by playmaker Martin Zejglic was followed by a late penalty to Barrie, and the half time score of 2-all was representative of the tight contest.

The pace of the Leone's did not fade in the second half, but the physical dominance of the Czechs - one of the tournament's tallest teams - became obvious.

Jasukevic started the damage through a scintillating strike that split two opposition defenders, and was closely followed by two more to Zejglic and Petr Havlik.

The crowd became excited when a series of five volleys flew from one end of the pitch to the other, and ended in a third goal to Jasukevic.

Excellent team play saw the Czechs combining to slam home two more in the closing minutes to secure a solid victory.

Photos: Photoworx