[ SPL News ] What a Beautiful Day

Amigos and Amigas,

The Year of the Dragon may have come to an end, but the SPL is in full swing!

Last Sunday was simply perfect: fantastic weather, pitches in great shape, and referees doing a solid job. Every SPL team was in action — except for the Cowboys, who apparently need four full weeks to celebrate Chinese New Year. The day featured five games, 38 goals, and just a few yellow cards — classic SPL!

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🟦 Flamenkos 6–2 Super 48

Our Japanese friends are looking younger by the week — either they’ve found a secret surgery or they’re simply recruiting younger players. Time to consider renaming to Super 38?

They started strong and quickly took the lead. Although the Flamenkos equalized shortly after, they couldn’t contain the blue wall of Super 48. In the end, Josue was unstoppable, netting a brilliant hat trick! Great to see Josei back on the field, this time as spectator and sponsor, after recovering from knee surgery.

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🔴 ERS 2–5 Pistolera Bulls

Bilgin orchestrated a “coup de France” by flying in Xavier — back from two years in Paris — especially for this game. His expertise in all things French helped Pistolera apply early pressure and dominate throughout.

ERS will be thinking hard about how to turn around their 2013 form… maybe Bilgin can give some tips after his own rough patch in late 2012.

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🐟 Marlins 7–0 Japan

The Marlins used this match to work on their goal difference. Japan struggled physically and couldn’t match the intensity. A clean, fair game — no cards — just straightforward football.

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🦁 Galacticos 0–11 Shanghai Lions

Lions had a slow start, missing several chances and even a rare penalty miss from Joel — he blamed the strong Waigaoqiao wind. The halftime score stood at just 2–0.

In the second half, Galacticos went down to 10 men after an injury, and the Lions capitalized. They picked up the pace and finished strong with a clean 11–0 scoreline. Four clean sheets in a row and firmly on top of the SPL!

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🇧🇷 Gremio 4–1 Shanghai 2000

Perfect conditions in the park had the Brazilians smiling — and they showed their skills. Kercio was on fire with two goals. Gremio were 2–0 up by halftime and finished with a convincing 4–1 win. No cards, just great football!

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🗓 Upcoming Fixtures – March 3rd, 2013

It looks like another perfect weather weekend ahead. Let’s see how the Cowboys bounce back after their extended break. 5 games lined up — the Lions have a bye.

• 10:00–12:00 Cowboys vs. Pistolera Bulls
• 12:00–14:00 ERS vs. Gremio
• 14:00–16:00 Flamenkos vs. Marlins
• 14:00–16:00 Super 48 vs. Japan (at Waigaoqiao)
• 14:00–16:00 Galacticos vs. Shanghai 2000

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🏥 Captains & Coaches — Register Now!

Don’t forget our Sports Injury Workshop hosted by Global HealthCare:

📆 Thursday, March 14
🕖 19:00–20:00
📍 Puxi

We’ll follow with a Captains’ Drink — a great chance to connect, share ideas, and talk about the SPL’s future. Please let us know if you can make it.

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Enjoy the spring football season in Shanghai!

Cheers,
Freek – SPL President, on behalf of the SPL Committee