View source for 2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup final

{{under construction}}
{{Infobox football match
| title = 2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup final
| event = [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup]]
| team1 = [[Akach national football team|Akach]]
| team1association = {{flagicon|Akach|size=30px}}
| team1score = 4
| team2 = [[Ukotrium national football team|Ukotrium (UEC)]]
| team2association = {{flagicon|Ukotrium|size=30px}}
| team2score = 2
| date = {{start date|2023|7|16|df=y}}
| stadium = [[Estadio Olímpico Luis Rivera]]
| city = [[Mérida, Yucatan|Mérida]]
| man_of_the_match1a = [[Laëtitia Tatah]] (Akach)
| referee = Mardhia Breac (Sörslúth)
| attendance = 75,000
| previous = [[2022 Comrades Cup final|2022]]
| next = [[2024 Comrades Cup final|2024]]
}}

The '''2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup final''' was a [[wikipedia:association football|football]] match that took place on 16 July 2023 at [[Estadio Olímpico Luis Rivera]] in [[Mérida, Yucatan|Mérida]], [[Yucatan]] to determine the [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup]] champion. [[Akach national football team|Akach]] defeated [[Ukotrium national football team|Ukotrium (UEC)]] 4-2, to claim their first title.

==Background==
The two teams had only met once before, in the [[2022 DSAFF Frost Cup]], with Ukotrium eliminating Akach in the quarter finals, after a penalty shootout.

{{Football box
|date         = 4 January 2022
|time         = 20:00
|report       = 
|team1        = {{fb-rt|Ukotrium}}
|score        = 1–1
|team2        = {{fb|Akach}}
|goals1       = [[Bastjan Schieda|Schieda]] {{goal|28}}
|goals2       = [[Marie Douis|Douis]] {{goal|55}}
|penalties1   = 
* Trenciant {{pengoal}}
* Guillot {{pengoal}}
* Scheida {{pengoal}}
* Tipene {{pengoal}}
|penalties2   = 
* {{pengoal}} Coquet
* {{penmiss}} Sagnier
* {{pengoal}} Ennui
* {{penmiss}} Ayache
|penaltyscore = 4–2
|stadium      = {{flagicon|Nordustra}}&nbsp;[[FlekkerhI ArenA]], [[Varstrum, Nōrdustrā|Varstrum]] [[Nōrdustrā]]
|attendance   = {{formatnum:21248}}
|referee      = {{flagicon|UFS Mexico}}&nbsp;Lilia Rodriguez
}}

===Returning players===
As the matches were just six months apart, there was substantial overlap in the squads for both nations. 

Sixteen Akach players were in the squad for the Frost Cup tie, with seven of them starting the quarter final. For Ukotrium, the entire squad of twenty-three was identical to the one named at the 2022 Frost Cup. 

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Returning from !! Team !! Type !! Players
|-
| rowspan=5 | [[2022 DSAFF Frost Cup|2022 Frost Cup]] || rowspan=3 | Akach
| Starters (7) || Sébastien Marcel, Makan Adams, Kenza Ayache, Moussa Sagnier, Yannick Coquet, Marie Douis, Friday Ennui
|-
| Subs (1) || Thibault Janvion
|-
| in Squad (8) || April Baca, Kenneth Janis, Yoann Lutic, Johan Strappe, Sophie M'Barek, Maryan Hamidouche, Pascal Marcel, Avery Robertson
|-
| rowspan=2 | Ukotrium 
| Starters || 
|-
| in Squad || 
|}

==Route to the final==
===Akach===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;margin-left:1em;float:right;clear:right;min-width:226px"
|+ Akach's route to the final
|-
!scope="col"|
!scope="col"| Opponent
!scope="col"| Result
|- style="border-top:2px solid black"
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|1|First group match}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Cat Army}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Group E|1–1]]
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|2|Second group match}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Yucatan}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Group E|2–1]]
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|3|Third group match}}
| align="left"|{{fb|UFS Mexico}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Group E|2–2]]
|- style="border-top:2px solid black"
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|R16|Round of 16}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Levonen}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Round of 16|1–0]]
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|QF|Quarter-final}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Talamia}}
| {{longitem|[[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Quarter-finals|1–1]] {{aet}}<br />{{pso|4–3}}}}
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|SF|Semi-Final}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Hortizo}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Semi-finals|1–0]]
|}
Drawn in Group E alongside co-hosts {{nft|Yucatan}}, and reigning Frost Cup champions {{nft|UFS Mexico}}, Akach looked to be in the "[[w:Group of death|group of death]]" for the tournament. An opening draw against {{nft|Cat Army}} &ndash; lowest ranked side in the group &ndash; looked bad for the ''Odum te okeala'', as they struggled to mount many meaningful attacks. Aside the seventeenth minute opener from [[Kody Theus]], Akach barely threatened the opposition, managing just two more attempts on target for the remainder of the match. They would put on a much more impressive display in their second game, however, with [[Laëtitia Tatah]] making her first start for the national team. The opening goal would come from [[Kenza Ayache]], marauding forward to fire [[Yannick Coquet]]'s layoff into the top left corner on twenty-three minutes. Yucatan's [[Sara Rodríguez]] shot narrowly wide shortly before the end of the half, while Tatah would force three smart saves from [[Vidar Traustanen]] in the intervening minutes. [[Angélica Valadez]] would tie things up early in the second half, but Tatah would put Akach back in front a little after the one hour mark, with [[Sébastien Marcel]] pulling off a string of saves to secure the win. In their final group game, Akach played out a somewhat fortunate 2-2 draw with UFS Mexico &ndash; given that their opponents largely controlled possession and forced some good saves from Marcel &ndash; twice coming from behind to secure a point and progression to the knockout stage. 

In the round of sixteen, Akach played out a cagey 1-0 win over {{nft|Levonen}}, courtesy of a 74th minute winner from Kenza Ayache, setting up a quarter final clash with reigning Comrades Cup champions and one of the tournament favourites: {{nft|Talamia}}. The two teams had played out a 1-1 draw in a friendly prior to the tournament, and they proved to be equal yet again. Another Tatah goal gave Akach the lead after just fifteen minutes, but [[Thaskema Apopatos]] levelled things on fifty-one minutes. Despite Kody Theus missing a one-on-one and Ayache needing to make a crucial goal line clearance in the last few minutes, Akach held on for extra time. Both teams slowed down toward the end, content to let penalties settle the tie, and they did. Marcel saved attempts from both [[Arees Sus]] and [[Lignus Fonè]], sending Akach through to the semi finals. The semi finals were, again, a cagey affair, with both sides doing well to stifle the other's attacks. Ultimately, it was a [[Thibault Janvion]] free kick in the sixty-second minute that won it, putting the ''Lions'' in the final.

===Ukotrium (UEC)===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;margin-left:1em;float:right;clear:right;min-width:226px"
|+ Ukotrium's route to the final
|-
!scope="col"|
!scope="col"| Opponent
!scope="col"| Result
|- style="border-top:2px solid black"
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|1|First group match}}
| align="left"|{{fb|New Ordiel Kalibleland}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Group E|1–0]]
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|2|Second group match}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Nachturne}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Group E|2–0]]
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|3|Third group match}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Hithridge}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Group E|0-1]]
|- style="border-top:2px solid black"
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|R16|Round of 16}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Osreton}}
| {{longitem|[[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Round of 16|1–1]] {{aet}}<br />{{pso|4-3}}}}
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|QF|Quarter-final}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Lannistter}}
| {{longitem|[[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Quarter-finals|2–2]] {{aet}}<br />{{pso|4–2}}}}
|-
!scope="row" style="text-align:center"|{{abbr|SF|Semi-Final}}
| align="left"|{{fb|Yucatan}}
| [[2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup#Semi-finals|1–0]]
|}



==Match==

===Summary===

===Details===
{{Football box
|date       = 4 January 2022
|time       = 20:00
|report     = 
|team1      = {{fb-rt|Akach}}
|score      = 4–2
|team2      = {{fb|Ukotrium}}
|goals1     = 
* [[Kody Theus|Theus]] {{goal|25}}
* [[Yannick Coquet|Coquet]] {{goal|54}}
* [[Kenza Ayache|Ayache]] {{goal|83}}
* [[Laëtitia Tatah|Tatah]] {{goal|90+2}}
|goals2     = 
* [[Bastjan Scheida|Scheida]] {{goal|41}}
* [[Takis Zannallis|Zannallis]] {{goal|72}}
|stadium    = {{flagicon|Yucatan}}&nbsp;[[Estadio Olímpico Luis Rivera]], [[Mérida, Yucatan|Mérida]] [[Yucatan]]
|attendance = {{formatnum:75000}}
|referee    = {{flagicon|Sörslúth}}&nbsp;Mardhia Breac
}}

{| width=92%
|-
| <center>[[Image:Akach home front 2023.png|200px]]<br /><strong>Akach</strong></center>
| <center>[[Image:Ukotrium home kit 2023.jpg|200px]]<br /><strong>Ukotrium (UEC)</strong></center>
|}

{| width="100%"
| valign="top" width="40%"|
{| style="font-size:90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"
|-
! width=25| !! width=25|
|-
|GK ||'''1''' || [[Sébastien Marcel]]
|-
|LB ||'''16'''|| [[Gabrielle Ndiaye]]           
|-
|CB ||'''4''' || [[Makan Adams]]                
|-
|CB ||'''17'''|| [[Charly Boutella]]
|-
|RB ||'''3''' || [[Kenza Ayache]]               
|-
|CM ||'''6''' || [[Moussa Sagnier]]             ||            || {{suboff|78}}
|-
|CM ||'''8''' || [[Yannick Coquet]] {{capt|af}} 
|-
|AM ||'''10'''|| [[Thibault Janvion]]           
|-
|LW ||'''11'''|| [[Marie Douis]]
|-
|RW ||'''13'''|| [[Friday Ennui]]               ||            || {{suboff|63}}
|-
|CF ||'''9''' || [[Kody Theus]]
|-
|colspan=3|'''Substitutes:'''
|-
|RB ||'''2''' || [[April Baca]]
|-
|CB ||'''5''' || [[Kenneth Janis]]
|-
|RW ||'''7''' || [[Yoann Lutic]]
|-
|GK ||'''12'''|| Johan Strappe
|-
|ST ||'''14'''|| Sophie M'Barek
|-
|DF ||'''15'''|| Apollos Onana
|-
|MD ||'''18'''|| Élodie Boumedienne         ||           || {{subon|78}}
|-
|LW ||'''19'''|| Jean-Emmanuel Boisseau     
|-
|DM ||'''20'''|| Ziemowit Golitsyn
|-
|CM ||'''21'''|| Maryan Hamidouche
|-
|CM ||'''22'''|| Pascal Marcel
|-
|ST ||'''23'''|| Marc Kaghat
|-
|CM ||'''24'''|| Avery Robertson
|-
|GK ||'''25'''|| Mathieu Ouane
|-
|RW ||'''26'''|| [[Laëtitia Tatah]]             ||           || {{subon|63}}
|-
|colspan=3|'''Manager:'''
|-
|colspan=3|{{flagicon|Akach}}&nbsp;[[Henri Bocandé]]
|}
|valign="top"|
{{Location map many | FootballLineup
| width   = 400
| float   = none
| caption = 2023 DSAFF Comrades Cup final; starting lineups
| mark1   = AKC_H_GK.png | mark1size  = 30 | pos1  = bottom | lat1_deg  = 30  | lon1_deg  = 90  | label1  = Marcel
| mark2   = AKC_H.png    | mark2size  = 30 | pos2  = bottom | lat2_deg  = 60  | lon2_deg  = 20  | label2  = Ayache
| mark3   = AKC_H.png    | mark3size  = 30 | pos3  = bottom | lat3_deg  = 60  | lon3_deg  = 60  | label3  = Adams
| mark4   = AKC_H.png    | mark4size  = 30 | pos4  = bottom | lat4_deg  = 60  | lon4_deg  = 120 | label4  = Boutella
| mark5   = AKC_H.png    | mark5size  = 30 | pos5  = bottom | lat5_deg  = 60  | lon5_deg  = 160 | label5  = Ndiaye
| mark6   = AKC_H.png    | mark6size  = 30 | pos6  = bottom | lat6_deg  = 100 | lon6_deg  = 90  | label6  = Sagnier
| mark7   = AKC_H.png    | mark7size  = 30 | pos7  = bottom | lat7_deg  = 120 | lon7_deg  = 60  | label7  = Coquet (c)
| mark8   = AKC_H.png    | mark8size  = 30 | pos8  = bottom | lat8_deg  = 120 | lon8_deg  = 120 | label8  = Janvion
| mark9   = AKC_H.png    | mark9size  = 30 | pos9  = bottom | lat9_deg  = 150 | lon9_deg  = 20  | label9  = Ennui
| mark10  = AKC_H.png    | mark10size = 30 | pos10 = bottom | lat10_deg = 160 | lon10_deg = 90  | label10 = Theus
| mark11  = AKC_H.png    | mark11size = 30 | pos11 = bottom | lat11_deg = 150 | lon11_deg = 160 | label11 = Douis
| mark12  = UEC_H_GK.png | mark12size = 30 | pos12 = bottom | lat12_deg = 330 | lon12_deg = 90  | label12 = Natale
| mark13  = UEC_H.png    | mark13size = 30 | pos13 = bottom | lat13_deg = 290 | lon13_deg = 160 | label13 = Macedo
| mark14  = UEC_H.png    | mark14size = 30 | pos14 = bottom | lat14_deg = 290 | lon14_deg = 120 | label14 = Trenciant (c)
| mark15  = UEC_H.png    | mark15size = 30 | pos15 = bottom | lat15_deg = 290 | lon15_deg = 60  | label15 = Rakena
| mark16  = UEC_H.png    | mark16size = 30 | pos16 = bottom | lat16_deg = 290 | lon16_deg = 20  | label16 = Pinho
| mark17  = UEC_H.png    | mark17size = 30 | pos17 = bottom | lat17_deg = 245 | lon17_deg = 160 | label17 = Leyton
| mark18  = UEC_H.png    | mark18size = 30 | pos18 = bottom | lat18_deg = 245 | lon18_deg = 120 | label18 = De Lucca
| mark19  = UEC_H.png    | mark19size = 30 | pos19 = bottom | lat19_deg = 245 | lon19_deg = 60  | label19 = Guimarāes
| mark20  = UEC_H.png    | mark20size = 30 | pos20 = bottom | lat20_deg = 245 | lon20_deg = 20  | label20 = Figera
| mark21  = UEC_H.png    | mark21size = 30 | pos21 = bottom | lat21_deg = 200 | lon21_deg = 120 | label21 = Scheida
| mark22  = UEC_H.png    | mark22size = 30 | pos22 = bottom | lat22_deg = 200 | lon22_deg = 60  | label22 = Zannallis
}}

|valign="top" width="50%"|
{| style="font-size:90%;margin:auto" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"
|-
!width=25| !!width=25|
|-
|GK ||'''1''' || [[Marcell Natale]]
|-
|LB ||'''2''' || [[Manoela Pinho]]           
|-
|CB ||'''21'''|| [[Marju Trenciant]] {{capt|af}}                 
|-
|CB ||'''3''' || [[Oraora Rakena]]
|-
|RB ||'''15'''|| [[Nelson Macedo]]               
|-
|LM ||'''7''' || [[Feliċ Figera]]
|-
|CM ||'''17'''|| [[Patrizju De Lucca]] 
|-
|CM ||'''10'''|| [[Liana Guimarāes]]           
|-
|RM ||'''11'''|| [[Xoān Leyton]]
|-
|LF ||'''19'''|| [[Bastjan Scheida]]
|-
|RF ||'''22'''|| [[Takis Zannallis]]
|-
|colspan=3|'''Substitutes:'''
|-
|CM ||'''4''' || Marinho Bandeira
|-
|CB ||'''5''' || Caetana Freitas
|-
|RB ||'''6''' || Bieita Caldas
|-
|CM ||'''8''' || Rokku Guillot
|-
|ST ||'''9''' || [[Hakara Tipene]]
|-
|GK ||'''12'''|| Beltaine Bayona
|-
|LB ||'''13'''|| Marcelo Aponte
|-
|RM ||'''14'''|| Mārcia Cruz
|-
|CB ||'''16'''|| Hemi Tamihana
|-
|ST ||'''18'''|| Manos Maropoulos
|-
|LM ||'''20'''|| Ventura Godoy
|-
|GK ||'''23'''|| Isaac Mones
|-
| &nbsp; || || 
|-
| &nbsp; || || 
|-
| &nbsp; || || 
|-
|colspan=3|'''Manager:'''
|-
|colspan=3|{{flagicon|Ukotrium}}&nbsp;[[Hermione Christea]]
|}
|}

{| style="width:100%;font-size:90%"
|
'''Man of the Match:'''
<br />[[Kody Theus]] (Akach)

'''[[w:Assistant referee (association football)|Assistant referees]]:'''
<br />Chlodowich Aingeal (Sörslúth)
<br />Gushge Clòimh (Sörslúth)
<br />'''[[w:Assistant referee (association football)#Fourth official|Fourth official]]:'''
<br />Polemiste Lofos (Talamia)
<br />'''[[w:Assistant referee (association football)#Fifth official|Fifth official]]:'''
<br />Brabeo Arktos (Talamia)
|style="width:60%;vertical-align:top"|
'''Match rules:'''
*90 minutes.
*30 minutes of extra-time if necessary.
*Penalty shoot-out if still tied.
*Fifteen named eligible substitutes.
*Maximum of five substitutions, made at a maximum of three different times.
|}
==See also==
* [[Akach at the DSAFF Comrades Cup]]
* [[Ukotrium at the DSAFF Comrades Cup]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{Comrades Cup}}
[[Category:Comrades Cup|2023]]
[[Category:Comrades Cup finals|2023]]