Semseo and sports activities

Last Friday, November 27, the traditional Friday sports foosball tournament was held at the Stiga club. In the overall standings, the Sem Seo team (Igor Gratie / Sergey Besedin) took the win, the duo “Serega” finished second, and “Van der gol” completed the podium.

The top three teams received cash prizes as a proportion of the total entry pool (30% for 1st place, 20% for 2nd, 10% for 3rd). As usual, the best players were named in several categories:

Best Forward: Valery Bodarev (“Van der gol”)

Best Defender: Igor Gratie (Sem Seo)

Audience Award: Alexander Kharchenko (“Van der gol”)

Comeback of the Day: “Sem Seo” (for beating “Sergei and Tatiana” after trailing 1:5, 1:3)

Sem Seo – “Serega” 2:1 (1:5, 5:3, 5:3)

“Van der gol” – “Sergei and Tatiana” 2:0 (5:3, 5:3)

The doubles teams had never played together in these pairings before. For some, the changes worked; for others, not so much—details below.

In the opening round, the refreshed “Sem Seo,” with Sergey Besedin debuting as a striker, faced “Serega,” where Maxim Pogrebnichenko played defense for the first time. Early on, the “SEOs” had no answer. A hot-handed Sergey Sliva in attack and the versatility of Maxim Pogrebnichenko, capable in both defense and offense, brought them the first set 5:1. In set two the “SEOs” led 2:0 thanks to a Besedin brace, but Sliva replied with two of his own, 2:2. After another exchange to 3:3, two fine long-range shots from defender Igor Gratie sealed it 5:3 for Sem Seo. The decider was again tight; at 4:3 Besedin beat both defender and keeper with a slick move to give his team their first win and three points.

In the other match, newcomers Sergey Drachinskiy and his girlfriend Tatiana Gorobei, playing as “Sergei and Tatiana,” met the regular medalists “Van der gol.” Had “Van der gol” fielded their best lineup, the rookies would have had little chance, but illness kept defender Anton Kolomiychuk out and debutant Alexander Kharchenko stepped in. The match was fairly even, but in the key moments one of Moldova’s top forwards, Valery Bodarev, made the difference, and “Van der gol” took both sets 5:3, 5:3.

Round 2

Sem Seo – “Sergei and Tatiana” 2:0 (5:3, 5:1)

“Serega” – “Van der gol” 2:0 (5:1, 5:4)

In the marquee game, “Serega” faced “Van der gol.” After losing to Sem Seo, Sliva and Pogrebnichenko didn’t want back-to-back defeats and grabbed the first set 5:1. The second was closer—“Van der gol” leveled to 4:4 and nearly forced a third, but “Serega” capitalized on Kharchenko’s inexperience and edged it 5:4.

In the other match, Sem Seo handled “Sergei and Tatiana” comfortably. They even experimented by swapping lines, sending defender Igor Gratie up front—unusual for him. It didn’t alter the outcome: 5:3, 5:1—an “experience and class” win.

Round 3

“Van der gol” – “Sem Seo” 2:0 (5:3, 5:3)

“Serega” – “Sergei and Tatiana” 2:0 (5:2, 5:4)

The last matches of the first leg left three teams on two wins and one loss. Only “Sergei and Tatiana,” beaten 2:5, 4:5 by “Serega,” were out of the title race; the other three had equal chances. That was possible because “Van der gol” sprung a minor upset by defeating the previously unbeaten Sem Seo. To stay in gold contention, Bodarev and Kharchenko had to beat the “SEOs”—and, surprisingly, did.

Kharchenko improved visibly in defense minute by minute, and Bodarev was ruthlessly efficient, finishing about every second chance. Some underestimation by the “SEOs” also played a role; thinking the hardest part was behind them, they assumed they’d “walk it,” and lost both sets 3:5, 3:5.

Round 4

“Serega” – Sem Seo 1:2 (0:5, 5:2, 3:5)

“Sergei and Tatiana” – “Van der gol” 1:2 (5:4, 2:5, 3:5)

Round 4 kicked off the second leg. Stung by the previous loss, Sem Seo crushed “Serega” 5:0 in set one. In set two the “SEOs” stumbled again: two own goals and poor finishing—Sliva and Pogrebnichenko punished them 5:2. As in the first leg, it came down to set three. Knowing a second straight loss would severely hurt their title hopes, Gratie and Besedin put in a model performance, never trailing, and won 5:3.

In the other match, the debutants won their first set of the tournament, 5:4 over “Van der gol,” but couldn’t sustain it and lost the next two sets 2:5, 3:5. With that win—and “Serega’s” loss—“Van der gol” moved into first place for the first time.

Round 5

“Sergei and Tatiana” – Sem Seo 1:2 (5:1, 4:5, 2:5)

“Van der gol” – “Serega” 1:2 (3:5, 5:0, 1:5)

Round 5 nearly produced the biggest upset. Gaining confidence, Drachinskiy and Gorobei capitalized on another lapse from Sem Seo and won set one 5:1. In set two they led 3:1 and were close to their first match win! At 4:4, after two rockets from Drachinskiy, the post saved Sem Seo twice, and the favorites finally squeezed it out 5:4. In the decider the rookies had no more chances—“SEOs” allowed only two goals and closed it 5:2, which became the tournament’s most hard-fought comeback.

Good news also arrived for Sem Seo from the adjacent table, where “Van der gol” lost for the second time to “Serega” (3:5, 5:0, 1:5). That put Sem Seo top of the group before the final round.

Round 6

Sem Seo – “Van der gol” 2:0 (3:5, 5:1, 5:2)

“Sergei and Tatiana” – “Serega” 1:2 (5:2, 1:5, 2:5)

The title hinged on Sem Seo vs “Van der gol.” A 2:0 win for “Van der gol” would crown Bodarev and Kharchenko. A 1:2 loss for Sem Seo would hand first place to “Serega.” Any win for the “SEOs” kept them champions.

The round began with “Sergei and Tatiana” winning the first set again (5:2) but, as had become tradition, losing the next two (1:5, 2:5). Thus, the rookies won all three of their opening sets in the second leg, yet never secured a match victory. After their win, Sliva and Pogrebnichenko went to cheer “Van der gol,” who gave them hope by taking the first set off Sem Seo—making it three straight set wins versus the “SEOs” counting the first leg.

From the start, “Van der gol” seized the initiative and led 3:0. Bodarev kept up his incredible conversion with three goals from five attempts, and Kharchenko read all of Besedin’s moves and shots, exposing the simplicity of his central attempts.

Refocusing, the “SEOs” cut it to 3:4 but couldn’t level and lost 3:5. However, that was as far as “Van der gol” could go. Realizing defeat would undo all their work, the future champions gave no quarter and dominated the next two sets (5:1, 5:2), scoring from both attack and backline.

Final standings of the qualifying phase of the friendly tournament “Born in November”:

#	Team	MP	W	L	SETS	Pts
1	SEM SEO	6	5	1	12-6	16
2	SEREGA	6	4	2	10-5	14
3	VAN DER GOL	6	3	3	7-7	12
4	SERGEI AND TATIANA	6	0	6	3-12	6

— The tougher the situation, the sweeter it is to find a way out. In four of six matches we lost the first set, but we found our focus, came back, and won. If you play your game no matter what and stay true to yourself, success will come.

Sergey Sliva, “Serega” defender:

— As I said last time, we needed a good defender. Today I finally got to play with Max (Maxim Pogrebnichenko) on the same team, and we achieved a solid result. We’ll keep working to get up to second place.

Valery Bodarev, “Van der gol” forward:

— Two defenders I’m used to playing with couldn’t come due to illness, so I had to find an urgent replacement and play with Sasha (Alexander Kharchenko), who was at his first tournament. Even so, we could have grabbed second or even first—luck just wasn’t with us. In the key moment “Serega” scored unbelievable goals, which kept us from finishing higher than third.

Sergey Drachinskiy, “Sergei and Tatiana” forward:

— I lived in Italy for a while and learned to play there. I’m a forward, but I don’t have a strong defender, so I played with my girlfriend. Her level isn’t yet enough for tournaments. After three matches we improved and even won the first set in each game, which I already consider a good achievement.