Kamikawa Up to the Task as Ecuador Shines in Gelsenkirchen

The second match of the tournament, like the first, was virtually free of controversy as Japanese referee Toru Kamikawa officiated Ecuador’s solid 2 - nil triumph over Poland. Like his colleague in the earlier victory by Germany, Kamikawa asserted his presence when necessary - issuing three well-deserved cautions in total - but otherwise letting the players take care of business on the pitch.

Each team earned a caution in the opening period - one to Ecuadorean defender Hurtado for clattering into an opponent and then later Polish striker Ebi Smolarek came in late when challenging for the ball. The third caution, in the 70th minute, was for Ecuador’s Mendez, who prevented Poland from taking a quick free kick. You’ll recall a Costa Rican player was also cautioned for the same thing, which I applaud. Hopefully this will keep players mindful of the fact that they’re in Germany to play football and not to play silly games.

Ecuador’s opener in the 24th minute was a close-range header by Carlos Tenorio after it had been flicked on from a throw-in. Their second, in the 80th, was the result of a poorly played offside trap which lead to a score by Augustin Delgado. As always, it was a very close decision, but this time the assistant ref got it right.

Poland hit the woodwork twice in the final ten minutes, but never did manage to break through despite having more possession than the victorious South Americans. So now it looks like Germany and Ecuador will be battling for supremacy in Group A when they meet on June 20th.

Kudos to Elizondo and Kamikawa for their contributions on Day 1 and hopefully we’ll have more of the same from the refs AND the players in the days and weeks to come.

Until next time…

peace,
ac