It ended in an approved draw when FC Helsingør played the season’s final match on Wednesday evening. Esbjerg went ahead 2-0, but with two goals from Oliver Kjærgaard, FCH turned the match around to 2-2.
After three minutes of play, EFB committed a free kick on Eli Just that was not given. Esbjerg quickly broke the other way, where Mads Larsen sent a ball from the left wing toward the far post, but fortunately the ball went wide of the goal.
But otherwise it was FCH that applied the pressure at the start of the match. The visitors swarmed around the Esbjerg goal, and Eli Just’s and Tonni Adamsen’s dribbles were several times close to becoming dangerous. After eight minutes of play, Mihkel Ainsalu earned a free kick on the edge of the box. But the Estonian himself shot the free kick a meter or so over the goal afterwards.
As the first half progressed, however, EFB got better control of the game and pushed the FCH players further back on the pitch. That created a couple of dangerous situations. The biggest danger came from a free kick on the edge of the box, but as FCH had done ten minutes earlier, EFB also sent the ball well over the goal. All in all, the start of the match was marked by a number of mistakes and bad touches from both teams.
After 25 minutes, Philip Rejnhold lofted a dangerous ball out of his own box and all the way up onto Esbjerg’s half. There Tonni Adamsen brought it down nicely and dribbled past two men before being brought down just outside the box. Oliver Kjærgaard’s free kick was closer to goal than the previous attempts, but still went over.
A few minutes later, EFB’s Patrick Egelund took down a good diagonal ball and moved into the FCH box. Egelund unleashed a cannonball toward goal, but Kevin Stuhr pulled off a good save and tipped the ball out to the side.
Right around the half-hour mark, FC Helsingør had two big chances within a few minutes. First Nicklas Mouritsen sent in a sharp cross between friend and foe after a good counterattack. At the back post, Oliver Kjærgaard came storming in and headed toward goal. But goalkeeper Mads Kikkenborg tipped the ball over the bar with an excellent save. On the ensuing corner, it was very close to Nicolai Geertsen heading it in at the back post, but on the line a saving Esbjerg foot got in the way.
Eight minutes later, FC Helsingør countered. Mouritsen ran deep on the left wing, but did not get it the first time. The chance seemed to have gone to waste when he got it on the second attempt, and the EFB defense was back in position. But Mouritsen laid it off to Tonni Adamsen on the edge of the box, where Adamsen took one touch and sent a venomous shot toward the far post, but unfortunately just wide of the goal.
Three minutes before halftime, FC Helsingør had the ball in the net. Oliver Kjærgaard got away together with Tonni Kjærgaard in a counterattack. On the edge of the box, Kjærgaard played a sharp ball between the two center backs to Adamsen, who put it away confidently. But the linesman had raised his flag, and the goal was disallowed for offside. The slow-motion replay revealed that it was probably a somewhat questionable decision.
Thus the score remained unchanged, and the two teams could go into halftime with 0-0, after a first half with a slight edge to FC Helsingør.
The second half began a little untidily for both teams, and there were few clear chances in the first ten minutes.
But after 53 minutes, the home side put the ball in. Phun Mang cut in from the right side and set up to shoot. At the last moment Frederik Juul got a touch on the ball, but unfortunately sent it in behind to Zean Dalügge, who came through alone. Dalügge calmly slid the ball between Kevin Stuhr’s legs from very close range and into the goal.
1-0 Esbjerg FB
And just two minutes later, Esbjerg extended the lead. The ball was played in triangles out on the left side by Mang and Dalügge and finally sent into the box. It was cleared by the FCH defense, but dropped right down at the feet of Jakob Ankersen, who sent a hard, low rifle-shot of a finish toward goal, and the ball flew in right by the base of the post on the right side.
2-0 Esbjerg FB
FC Helsingør tried to set up counters, but Esbjerg had the upper hand, and just as we passed the hour mark Patrick Egelund hit the post with a long-range effort. It looked as if the home side had taken command.
But a minute later FC Helsingør managed to pull one back. Tonni Adamsen carried the ball forward in a counterattack and played it out to Oliver Kjærgaard on the right. Kjærgaard crossed it into the box, where Ainsalu tried to chest it down. The Esbjerg defense kicked the ball out of the box, but Adamsen regained it outside the box and sent it out to Nicklas Mouritsen, who delivered a sharp cross into the small area. There Oliver Kjærgaard got in front of his marker and sent the ball low into the opposite corner.
2-1 FC Helsingør
And seven minutes later it got even better for Kjærgaard. Substitute Mathias “Mac” Christensen got to the byline and sent in a sharp cross from the end line. Up in front of goal Kjærgaard rose, and two Esbjerg defenders almost got in each other’s way. The ball dropped to Oliver Kjærgaard’s feet, and he buried it confidently past a futilely flailing Kikkenborg.
2-2 FC Helsingør
After 73 minutes, Esbjerg had every opportunity to take the lead again. A good run down the right wing ended with a sharp cross into the box. There it fell somewhat luckily to Mads Borchers, who suddenly stood very free on the left side of the box. Borchers basically just had to put it in, but sent the ball several meters wide of the far corner. Huge chance for the home side, which Borchers squandered in the most shameful way.
In the 83th minute it was FC Helsingør’s turn to miss a huge chance. Lucas Haren pushed up along the touchline on the left side and then cut inside. There he dribbled past two opponents and played a flat pass across the small area. On the opposite side Dalton Wilkins stood completely free in the box, but like his counterpart at the other end, Dalton blasted the ball wide of goal instead of simply putting it in. But after being out for almost a year, it was perhaps understandable if the young New Zealander’s footballing skills were a bit rusty.
In stoppage time it was actually FC Helsingør who pushed for the win, but the Esbjerg players repelled the attempts at chances that there were, despite good actions from both Kjærgaard, Haren and substitute Sebastian Czajkowski.
But no goal came, and then the FCH players could put the finishing touch to a long and fine season with yet another fine away result against a top team in the league.
FCH: K. Ellegaard, N. Mouritsen, H.C. Bonnesen, N. Geertsen, P. Rejnhold (’66 D. Wilkins), F. Juul Christensen, M Ainsalu (‘84. A. Stjernegaard) (’66 M. Christensen), F. Bay (’55 L. Haren), O. Kjærgaard, E. Just, T. Adamsen (’84 S. Czajkowski)
