It was a fully tuned FCH team that on Friday evening took to the home pitch in pouring rain, and then tore Skovshoved apart with a full 7-0 over the following 90 minutes.
Only a little over a minute had been played when FC Helsingør won a free kick on the edge of the box. Nicolas Mortensen took it quickly, and completely fooled the Skovshoved defense with his pass to Jeppe Kjær, who lifted the ball into the goal. But unfortunately Kjær was just on the wrong side of the offside line, and the referee raised his arm to signal the infringement.
But Skovshoved had been warned, and three minutes later Jeppe Kjær really got on the scoreboard. Jonas Henriksen got the ball on the right side of the pitch and delivered a perfect cross to Kjær's forehead at the far post. Kjær headed the ball powerfully and unstoppably into the net past Skovshoved's goalkeeper.
1-0 FC Helsingør
Already after seven minutes FCH were 2-0. Daniel Norouzi took a corner, and Nicolas Mortensen rose above everyone and headed the ball safely home.
2-0 FC Helsingør
And sure enough, another goal was scored three minutes later. Another corner, and another FCH player got up highest. This time it was Nikolaj Hansen who outjumped the opposition and headed the ball in with his forehead.
3-0 FC Helsingør
When we reached the 14 minute, Jeppe Kjær thought it was time to try his luck with a shot again. He sent the ball toward the far post, past the goalkeeper, and the ball hit the inside of the post, danced on the line, struck the opposite post, and went in.
4-0 FC Helsingør
The goals did not immediately make FCH relax, and Anders Holst, Kjær, Lucas Haren and Mortensen swarmed around Skovshoved's goal for the next five minutes or so. Haren had a good effort from the edge of the six-yard box that forced the goalkeeper into a fine save, and Jeppe Kjær also got off a couple of shots, though they did not beat Skovshoved's keeper.
After that, the half went into a somewhat calmer phase. The ball was moved down into midfield, and FCH played it around calmly while waiting for openings to appear. Skovshoved sat deep and recovered from the cold shower the first quarter had been.
Skovshoved had great difficulty playing through the disciplined FCH lines, and they did not have many signs of chances in the first half hour. Just before we reached the 30 minute, however, a Skovshoved player rose highest to a cross into the box and laid it off to a teammate. But the box was packed with both friends and foes, and the FCH defense blocked the finish in two attempts, so it never really became dangerous.
Skovshoved pulled all 11 men back into their own half for the rest of the first half, and the FC Helsingør players calmly played the ball around. But just before the break Anders Holst would no longer be outdone by his colleagues. Jonas Henriksen delivered a good cross from the right, and an FCH player rose and headed at goal. The goalkeeper saved the header, but the ball fell to Holst, who tucked it away right by the post
5-0 FC Helsingør
We did not get much more action in the first half, and FC Helsingør could go into the break with a convincing 5-0 on the scoreboard.
It was Skovshoved who got the first big chance of the second half after a few minutes of play. After a layoff and a bit of confusion in the FCH defense, a Skovshoved player suddenly found himself very free in the box, and he tried to poke it in with his toe, but overdid the finish and the ball went just past the goal.
In the 50 minute Lucas Haren shook off his marker and drove into the box on the right side. He finished from a tight angle, but the Skovshoved goalkeeper made the angle small and saved the shot. Good chance for Haren.
But four minutes later FCH hammered another nail into Skovshoved's coffin. From a position just above midfield Anders Holst played a perfect through ball to Jeppe Kjær, who cut into the box. Instead of shooting, he unselfishly laid the ball square into the center to Nicolas Mortensen, who could confidently put it away in the Skovshoved goal. Lovely goal!
6-0 FC Helsingør
After 65 minutes Nicolas Mortensen received a super ball at his feet from Anders Holst, perfectly played beyond Skovshoved's fullback. Mortensen drove into the box, and the goalkeeper came out and blocked him. Mortensen went to the ground and appealed insistently for a penalty, but the referee waved play on. Mortensen was off balance, but the referee probably judged that half a second had gone by too long before he went down.
But four minutes later Jeppe Kjær completed his hat-trick when the ball dropped at his feet after another Jonas Henriksen cross. Kjær ruthlessly smashed the ball into the roof of the net and scored his third goal of the day.
7-0 FC Helsingør
After 77 minutes Skovshoved finally bit back in earnest for the first time in the half. A good raid up the left side was turned into a hard, low cross into the Helsingør box, and Nikolaj Hansen had to go down and slide on the soaking wet pitch to block the cross from the nose of a Skovshoved attacker, who would otherwise have been one-on-one with Christoffer Petersen in the six-yard box. Good intervention by Nicolaj Hansen.
A few minutes later Nicolas Mortensen had the ball in the net again, when the Skovshoved goalkeeper dropped the ball at Mortensen's feet after a duel in the box, but the referee judged that Jeppe Kjær had gone in too hard in the challenge and blew for a foul.
In the 83 minute Skovshoved had an excellent long-range effort from just 25 meters, but otherwise there was a long time between the moments when the visitors threatened the FCH box in the closing stages, where it was clearly visible that FCH had the physical and mental edge.
One minute before full time Frederik Bay played in a beautifully curled cross over three men, but inside Nicolas Mortensen just could not quite reach the ball. But symptomatic of the day, FCH pushed for one more goal right at the very end.
The 648 soaks but festive spectators got no more for their money, but a 7-0 victory is not something you see every day.
FCH: Petersen, Bay, Holm, Hansen, Henriksen, Holst (71’ Olsen) Norouzi (47’ Just) F. Christensen, Haren (60’ Lange), Kjær, Mortensen
Photo: Claus Birch, clausbirch.dk
