Raimondi, el hombre del partido. By Steve.

RAIMONDI: YOUR-A-GUY FOR US 

FC CARTAGENA - 3 RECREATIVO HUELVA - 1 

BY STEVE HIBBERD 

New signing Raimondi, a 6' 5", 27 year old striker from Montevideo, Uruguay, became an instant goalscoring hero at Cartagonova stadium last Saturday evening. Replacing the recently released Goiria (aka Gloria), Raimondi made his debut in place of injured Chamorro, whilst Juanma replaced suspended Reina in goal, for the last of div 2a first round matches against mid table Recreativo Huelva. A scrappy 1st half belonged to the home side, who should have scored after 70 secs, when a cross by Lafuente was headed just wide by Alvaro. Next it was Collantes who came close, when his shot from the edge of the box missed the target. 

On 35 mins, from a similar position, Collantes went one better and placed the ball just inside keeper Manu's near post, to give his side a half time lead. Surprisingly, up to now, only Cartagena defender Torres had found his way into ref Miranda's notebook for an innocous foul, whereas the visitors had been 'putting it about' all game! Manolo became the first Andalucian player to be shown a yellow card on 65 mins, for tugging back Collantes, which also led to a 2nd goal for Cartagena. Although the free kick was blocked, the rebound fell to Lafuente, who crossed into the goal area, for Raimondi to stoop before placing a firm header past a helpless Manu. Lafuente for Cartagena, and Alamo for Huelva, were booked, as the game stepped up a gear in terms of excitement. On 69 mins, central defender Paz put in a last ditch tackle to prevent a dangerous move, then from the very next manoeuvre, his side made it 3-0. 

A defensive mix up, allowed Collantes to find himself in a 1 on 1 situation with Manu, in which the diminutive midfielder cum striker calmly stroked the ball home. Recreativo did get a consolation goal on 75 mins, through a free header by Villar. At the death Huelva could have stole a point, when first, keeper Juanma saved well at the foot of his post, then they had a 'goal' disallowed for offside. This win now lifts Cartagena out of the relegation zone, and gives new manager Carlos Rios his 2nd win in 3 games (7 points from 9). Next week, it's a visit to Galician side Deportivo, who although they lost at Cartagena, are now top of div 2a. This game will be shown live on tv, on Sun 29 Jan, ko 4pm.