Nuno Lopes on Sporting's place in the CERS Cup quarter-finals

Nuno Lopes was understandably pleased with his side's attitude in the CERS Cup this weekend, turning in a 19-3 win despite already holding a massive lead from the first-leg in Cronenberg.

“We were really strong. We started well and we didn't slow up. We scored five or six really early quite easily. It is normal that the game then slows down a bit with so many changes. The most important thing was the win for the squad and for our fans, who were out there with us again", said the Alvalade roller hockey coach, adding a word on his objectives in the competition: "We believe we can turn in wins, especially after already winning the Super Cup this season. We want to finish as high up the league as possible and to focus on the CERS Cup. We will play against Hockey Sarzana next, which will be hard, but it will be decided in Lisbon and that is important."

Poka on his side's win against Cronenberg

Poka scored the first in Sporting's dominating CERS Cup win this weekend against Cronenberg. Speaking at the final whistle, the Alvalade star proved happy with the final result.

“We played well. We knew that it wouldn't be a really testing game, but we had to show respect for our opponent all the same, which means not just messing around. We scored a lot of goals and that is important", said Poka, before reflecting on Nuno Lopes' squad rotation during the encounter: "It gives us confidence. We all had pretty much the same amount of time playing, which is important. Now we have some important battles coming up, but it is good that we are all on the same level. We are just two steps away from the CERS Cup final and we want to win it again."

Sporting mount up massive 36-8 CERS Cup aggregate

After already putting the tie to bed in the CERS Cup first-leg in Germany with a 17-5 win, Sporting breezed through the second-leg this Saturday afternoon against Cronenberg with a dominating 19-3 win, securing a place in the quarter-finals.

Poka opened the scoring with an effort from range in the 5th minute, before Molet tried to pull the Germans level with a shot that ended up wide of the mark. With the final outcome all but decided in the first-leg, Sporting had the enviable task of trying to tally up an even higher aggregate score and Losna (7') and Poka (8') were happy to oblige with two more early goals. It was all one-way stuff and after Cacau made it 4-0 and could have struck again, but Soriano managed to block his shot on the line.

Although the team from Alvalade were comfortably in the driving seat, Poka put in a particularly fierce performance and again struck in the 12th and 14th minute after some good link-up play with Cacau. With the scoreboard already reading 6-0, Nuno Lopes took the opportunity to ring the changes and the pace of the encounter slowed. Luís Viana was awarded a penalty, but was unable to convert. Both Centeno and João Pinto could have hit the seventh, but the next goal was made to wait until the 19th minute, when Centeno capitalised after Figueira failed from a decent opportunity. There was still time for Vester to pull a goal back for Cronenberg before half-time, although the place in the CERS Cup quarter-finals was really only a matter of time in coming.

The second-half brought a new avalanche of attacking play and Viana made it 8-1 in the 26th minute, before Cacau struck two minutes later after some smart individual play. Huvelmann reduced the difference to 9-2 with a shot from range, but it did little to get the visitors back into the action and Luís Viana brought up 12-2 after a pass from Poka in the 38th minute. Just seconds later, Cacau made it 13-2 after a pass from Viana and Borkei scored for Cronenberg.

The best way to truly show respect for your opponent is by giving them the result the deserve and Sporting were happy to oblige. Losna struck with a powerful shot across goal in the 39th minute (14-3), before João Pinto, Figueira, Losna and Cacau all rounded off the final aggregate score of 36-8.

Cacau ahead of CERS Cup second-leg against Cronenberg

Sporting will host Cronenberg this weekend, in the second-leg of the CERS Cup last-16. While the team from Alvalade tallied up an impressive 12-goal advantage in the first-leg (17-5), Cacau warned that his side will still need to keep their composure.

“We will show respect for Cronenberg and the best way to do that is to play as if we lost or dew the first-leg. We want another win and we want to play well", said the Brazilian international in a pre-match press conference, continuing: "I didn't know that it was Sporting's 10th best win ever in Europe, but we want to do better now. It isn't easy to play in Germany, but we played really well and we want to repeat that at home now."

Sporting-Cronenberg will get underway at 16h00 on Sunday, in Mafria's SC Livramento Arena. The match will be broadcast live and exclusive on Sporting TV.

Sporting obliterate opposition in CERS Cup first-leg

Sporting are well and truly in the driving seat in the CERS Cup last-16 first-leg against the German side Cronenberg. While the almost unbelievable final score of 5-17 gives Sporting the enviable task of closing out the tie in the return leg in Lisbon, it was not enough to beat the European record which was also set by Sporting back in 1984, with a 33-1 win over Sporting Gujan Mestras.

The final score really tells the tale of the tape. After seven minutes of probing up front, Luís Viana converted from the penalty spot to trigger the avalanche. André Centeno was next to strike in the 10th minute after being set up by Tuco, before Molet reduced the deficit for the hosts three minutes later. However, the goal was little more than a consolation for the Germans, as Sporting smartly went about building a 6-1 lead at the break through Cacau (15’), Viana (17’), Tuco (18’) and Poka (20’).

Unbelievably, a total of 15 goals were scored in the second-half: Molet made it 6-2 (1’), Luís Viana responded with 7-2 (3’), Molet again netted (6’), Cacau struck to make it 8-3 (9’), Molet once again responded (11’), but then Sporting absolutely raced away with it courtesy of Losna (13’) and Luís Viana (14’ and 15’), Poka (19’ and 25’), Centeno (19’), Ricardo Figueira (21’) and Losna (22’ and 23’).

João Pinto ahead of the visit to Cronenberg

While Alvalade vice-captain João Pinto is expecting a tough challenge from the German side Cronenberg in the CERS Cup, the Sporting roller hockey star highlighted the importance of a good result in the first-leg.

“We still don't know a lot about Cronenberg, but we know that they are a quality side and that it is hard to play at their place, especially because of the type of surface they play on. We will have to train on it before the match. It is a really soft court, but that can't act as an excuse for us. We want to win this and bring a good result back to Lisbon. We respect our opponent, but we are the holders of this trophy and we want to start off on the right foot on our way to winning it again", opened João Pinto, adding: "Playing in the CERS Cup again brings extra motivation. It is a great feeling, because of what we did last season."

Cronenberg-Sporting will get underway at 19h00GMT on Saturday the 12th of December, in the Wuppertal Arena, Germany.

Bruno de Carvalho's reaction after Barcelona win

Bruno de Carvalho returned from Luxemburg just in time to watch Sporting secure a memorable 2-0 win over Barcelona this Saturday night, in the Roller Hockey Continental Cup.

“It was great. This kind of spirit is really important for the club. We are a strong team and this year our objective is to win in every sport. People still doubt it, but we showed what we can do here today. Like Nuno Lopes said, nothing is won yet, but it was worth the effort to get here and see these magnificent fans. We have our feet firmly planted and we know that nothing is won yet, but we can’t overlook the watch that we beat Barcelona 2-0 tonight. That is the Sporting that we want”, said the Sporting president in an interview with Sporting TV, adding: “We showed we can beat the best in the world in any sport.”

Cacau and Tuco on Sporting's win over Barcelona

Sporting’s two goal scorers against Barcelona took a moment to speak with the press at the final whistle on Saturday night.

“We played really well. We knew what we would have to do if we wanted to win this. This was just the first-half, but we have started well. We were strong and we achieved our objective of being in with a fighting chance in Barcelona. They are a side with some of the best players in the world, but today we played as a team”, said Cacau, dedicating the win to his brother.

“It was a good game. However, there are still 50 minutes to go and that is a lot. Barca are a good team and they will fight to turn it around. We have to carry on believing in ourselves, because Barca aren’t going to change anything and they will play for the win”, affirmed Tuco, going on to comment on what was a fierce atmosphere: “I really want to say thank you to the fans. They created a fantastic environment and our opponent felt the pressure.”

Nuno Lopes on his side's win against Barcelona

The Sporting roller hockey coach Nuno Lopes was understandably proud of his side’s 2-0 win over Barcelona this weekend, in the first-leg of the Continental Cup.

“Today was like playing in the old Alvalade arena and that is what we needed. I told the players that they had to fight for the fans, because they deserve it. The lads were brilliant once again and they pulled it off against a great opponent. We were pragmatic, serious and we scored. We are only halfway through, but it is good to beat a team like Barcelona”, said the Alvalade coach at the final whistle, adding: “We haven’t won anything yet, but that shouldn’t stop us celebrating. It was a hard week, but it will only get harder. We have to carry on working hard now to keep making history and you do that with trophies.”

Cacau and Tuco on target in Continental Cup first-leg

Sporting’s roller hockey side once again brushed off the impossible this weekend, this time with a win over the European champions, Barcelona, in the first-leg of the Continental Cup.

The game got off to a lukewarm start, but the same could not be said for the packed stands roaring on the team from Alvalade. Essentially, both sides showed more fear of conceding than willingness to get forward in the opening exchanges, made even more complicated by a surface which was clinging on to the humidity.

Luís Viana hit the post in the 11th minute to give an injection of rhythm to the action, but both defences stood firm when called upon. The deadlock was fair at the break, despite Sporting’s slight advantage late on.

The second-half got off to much of the same, before Cacau struck 11 minutes in with a touch following a shot by Ricardo Figueira that nearly lifted the roof off the arena!

Trailing, Barcelona reacted as expected, pushing high up the court. However, the Spanish giants continued to struggle against an absolute rock of a Sporting defence. Pablo Álvarez and Panadero did test Girão in the Sporting goal, but he was in his usual world beating form and looked unlikely to be beaten. The team from Alvalade battled through the attacking storm and Tuco eventually gave his side breathing room with a strike in the 47th minute after a brilliant break away down the left to secure the win.

Sporting now will travel to Barcelona for the return leg on the 17th of this month.