Football: in Regional 1, Le Grau-du-Roi ensures the essentials

Les Graulens ont su mettre un dernier coup de rein avant de partir en vacances. MIDI LIBRE – JERÔME MORIN

In a delayed match of the 7th day of R1, Le Grau-du-Roi, at home, beat Frontignan (2-1) and ends the year on a good note.

Without playing the match of its season, Saturday evening, Le Grau-du-Roi offered enough, against Frontignan, to win (2-1), take the leader's chair – while waiting for the result, this Sunday, of Montpellier Atlas in Saint-Estève – and go on vacation with a light heart.

''Honestly, it was a trap match, noted Gard striker Akram El Mardi, passer and scorer, after this success. Even if the performance was not good, we remember the victory.''

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Frontignan reduced to ten in the 38th minute

In this delayed match of the 7th day, Marion and Peredes' men therefore managed to escape the trap of the poorly ranked Frontignan, a decimated team, which arrived in the Gard with only four regular starters at kick-off and quite a few U20s. The objective, on the Hérault side, quickly seemed quite clear: to scrape together a point… or even three on a misunderstanding.

After a first half hour where Grau had the ball and Frontignan had rare transition situations, not always well exploited, a fact of play was going to complicate the task, already quite complex, of the visitors.

The referee Mr. Barrier considered Delport's tackle on Mouzaoui too virulent and sent off the Hérault defender (38th), which left his team with ten men for more than half-time.

El Mardi scores his 9th goal in R1

A few minutes were enough for Graulens to take advantage. In added time, Abbou, with his head, received a cross from El Mardi, which was knocked down along the goal line (1-0, 45th + 2).

This same El Mardi, at the end of a one-two initiated with Mouazoui, scored his 9th goal in R1 and put Grau out of reach just after the hour mark (2-0, 63rd). At the very end of the match, the well-felt thirty-meter lob from Frontignan's Herry changed nothing (2-1, 90th + 1).

The technical sheet

LE GRAU-DU-ROI: 2
FRONTIGNAN: 1
Stade Michel Mézy.
Half-time: 1-0.
Referee: Quentin Barrier.
Goals for Grau-du-Roi: Abbou (45th +2), El Mardi (63rd).
Goal for Frontignan: Herry (90th +1).
Warnings for Grau-du-Roi: Zaidan (45th +1), Braik (59th).
Warnings for Frontignan: Fofana (7th), Cameler (57th), Minarro (79th).
Expulsion at Frontignan: Delport (38th).