A valuable victory in the North, the adventure continues in the Gambardella Cup!

At Mont-Houy, the venue for the eighth round of the Coupe Gambardella, the match promised to be an intense duel. Valenciennes, leaders of their group in both the U17 and U19 National leagues, approached the match with the determination to reach the quarter-finals, a stage of the competition the northern team has not reached since 2013. Boosted by their victory over Brest, William Stanger's defending champions are aiming for another win, driven by their desire to keep possession away from home.

Without a period of observation, the Bretons were the first to pose a threat, but the home side reacted quickly. The stakes did not overshadow the game. Both teams tried to make the difference with long periods of possession, and it was at the end of a lightning attack that SRFC opened the scoring. Mohamed Chebbi, who likes to accelerate down his wing, found himself in a good position and caused chaos in the northern defence before striking with precision to open the scoring. Rennes led at half-time (0-1).

Captain Lomet to validate qualification

The second half began in much the same vein. The home side pushed hard to get back into the game, but were unable to break down the Rennes defence. The Bretons defended patiently and effectively, launching quick counter-attacks. In the 78th minute, Ruben Lomet, wearing the captain's armband, rose highest to meet a well-struck free kick from out wide and doubled the lead (0-2). Thâo Mouapa showed his quality in defence to thwart another opposition attack. SRFC held firm and secured their place in the quarter-finals.