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Press
Press releases from Ultimate League
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Losses in league and cup end VNU run
Viking North Utsire's fifteen-match unbeaten run in all competitions stretching back to early December was finally snapped on Monday this week in a frustrating 2-1 loss at Frästäppa. The visitors began the game 6th in Division 1a, four places behind Viking, but managed to take the lead with the only shot of the first half -- marvellously-named striker Zeb Kreb forcing the ball past Lucas Ranvik after 27 minutes. Viking fought back and squared up an evenly-contested encounter through Krister Hovland's 62nd-minute strike, only to get sucker-punched by Robert Vallin's speculative 93rd-minute effort that beat Ranvik all ends up and handed the Utsirans a first loss since matchday 2, eight weeks previously.
That was the worst possible lead-in to a daunting challenge in the seventh round of the Ultimate League Cup on Friday, a last-16 collision with defending champions and Double-winners Bucksgrove. Last term the holders swept all before them in both competitions, ending a league hoodoo for manager Pansarkloss who never managed to lift that trophy with his great former side The Outcasts but reinforcing his reputation as Cup king with his fifth total time winning the ULC. And although they have lost touch somewhat with undefeated top-flight leaders Partizan Belgretna, who only narrowly held off VNU for the Div 1a title a season ago, they are in good shape to hand their boss the Cup trophy yet again. An outclassed Viking battled manfully and held out for nearly the whole of regular time, but were eventually undone by Torleiv Samba's 75th-minute freekick past 24-year-old Ranvik, ending the Norsemen's participation one round earlier than last season.
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