We already know the result of all the final qualifying rounds of the Playoff for promotion from Second to First Federation. 10 teams played two games, back and forth, to decide which five would become part of the third category of Spanish football. Finally, these are the clubs that have managed to win promotion: Barakaldo, Zamora, Marbella, Betis Deportivo and Yeclano Deportivo.
Orihuela CF 3-3 Barakaldo
First leg: Orihuela 3-1 Barakaldo
Second leg: Barakaldo 2-0 Orihuela
Orihuela had achieved the most comfortable victory in the first leg of the last round of the Playoff for promotion to the First Federation. 3-1 with goals from Juanma García and two from Revilla. He Municipal Los Arcos had played his role as ‘footballer number 12’, but there was still the return and it was not going to be easy. Much less against a Barakaldo who had just had a more than remarkable season, finishing in second position in their group and fighting the entire season with the Bilbao Athletic for first place.
There was no room for a pin in Lasesarre. There was confidence in the comeback on the part of the Basque fans. Even more so when, in the seventh minute, Pedernales opened the scoring for the locals. Barakaldo entered the tie and insisted on several occasions. In the 63rd minute, Borja García tied the score at threea result with which the clash would go to extra time.
In the extra 30 minutes the tension could be palpable. Orihuela saw up to five yellow cards in this period. One of them, in the 110th minute, was going to result in a red card for Marc, who had already been substituted and was on the bench. The result did not change when the final 120 minutes were reached. The tie was tied in number of goals, but, as Barakaldo is better positioned in the regular league (second) than Orihuela (fourth), The Gualdinegros were the winners and achieved promotion without the need to go to penalties..
This is Barakaldo’s second consecutive promotion, since last season they had also managed to rise from Third Federation to Second Federation.
Zamora CF 2-1 UD Sanse
First leg: Zamora CF 1-1 UD Sanse
Second leg: UD Sanse 0-1 Zamora CF
Zamora and Sanse left everything open for the second leg. After a 1-1 draw, thanks to Pareja’s goal in the 83rd minute of the first leg for those from San Sebastián de los Reyes, the Matapiñonera Stadium was going to decide which of the two would be promoted.
With the support of their fans, the locals tried several times through lateral crosses during the first half. The game went into half-time goalless and Sanse tried again after the restart. But, in the 59th minute, Luis Rivas was the one who scored the first and final goal of the game. Luis Rivas made Zamora a foot and a half in the First Federation. The Madrid team did not want to give up and had a very clear shot with 10 minutes remaining. Binke crashed the ball into the post and, in this way, his team’s last chances to tie disappeared.
With the final whistle, Zamora confirmed its promotion. After finishing in third position in Group I in the Second Federation and, first eliminating Sant Andreu and now Sanse, they are already a bronze category team in our football.
Marbella FC 2-0 UD Logroñés
First leg: Marbella FC 1-0 UD Logroñés
Second leg: UD Logroñés 0-1 Marbella FC
Marbella had done their homework in the first leg against Logroñés thanks to a solitary goal from Aitor Puñal in the 44th minute. But the most complicated thing remained: visit a stadium like Las Gaunas, where, in addition, more than 14,000 seats had been sold of Rioja fans who dreamed of turning the tie around.
The match started off tight, with no clear chances for either team. They both came out with great respect, trying to make as few mistakes as possible. At first it was Logroñés who tried to impose their game, but, in the 36th minute, Marbella gave the first scare when Dago scored in an illegal position. The Andalusians wanted to take control of the match, but the break came with no goals on the scoreboard.
After the break, Codina attempted a shot that Marbella goalkeeper Lejárraga had to deflect. But, despite the good start of the locals in the second half, It was the visitors who widened the overall difference. Dago, again, scored. This time the goal was valid, so Marbella had a two-goal lead. It could have been three when, in the 89th minute, Harper hit the post.
Marbella finally won the match 0-1 and the tie 0-2 and was the third team confirmed to be promoted to the First Federation.
Betis Deportivo 2-1 Pontevedra
First leg: Betis Deportivo 1-0 Pontevedra
Second leg: Pontevedra 1-1 Betis Deportivo
Betis Deportivo had defeated Pontevedra under the expectant gaze of a stage like Benito Villamarín. The young man’s great goal Jesus Rodriguez18 years old, was enough to go to Pontevedra with an advantage.
In the hours before the match, negative news for the green and white team was announced. Mawuili, one of the fittest players this season, who had scored nine goals as a midfielder, was not going to be in the return. A serious tear in the cruciate ligament would prevent him from playing until the end of January 2025.
With this adversity, Betis Deportivo was looking for a victory so they could dedicate it to the Ghanaian footballer.
The match went goalless until the 74th minute, when, again, Jesús Rodríguez was in charge of putting the Beticos ahead. Two fundamental goals in two games for Jesús, who, in addition to being the standout name of the tie, had already scored 10 goals previously this season. Pontevedra, despite the difficulty of overcoming the tie, continued trying. A goal from Rufo in the 87th minute gave the Galicians one last option to seek extra time. Finally, the match ended 1-1 and Betis Deportivo achieved promotion.
Numancia 3-3 Yeclano Deportivo
First leg: Numancia 2-1 Yeclano Deportivo
Second leg: Yeclano Deportivo 2-1 Numancia
The last game of the Playoff finals was the one between Numancia and Yeclano Deportivo.
Everything that could go wrong for Numancia in this final stretch of the season ended up going wrong. In the first leg of the Playoff, they took the lead with two goals. But, Serpeta, in the 41st minute, closed the gap on a scoreboard that would no longer move.
In the return more of the same. The Sorianos took the lead first with a goal from Carlos González in the 19th minute. Sato, in the 40th minute, closed the gap for Yeclano. The Yecla team would push in the second half and would be able to turn the game around with Serpeta’s goal, author of the solitary goal of the first leg for his team. At 2-1, the match went to extra time, but, as has been usual in all extra times of this Playoff, the score was not going to change.
Thus Yeclano achieved promotion, due to having been better positioned in the league (second place) than Numancia (third place). The drama for Numancia comes when we remember what the last day of the League was like. They were leaders and visited the Cacereño countryside. The pursuers, Gimástica Segoviana and UD Sanse, were two points behind. Finally, both won and Numancia lost the decisive match 5-0, remaining in third place in the table against all odds. Today, despite the tie in the tie, they are not promoted due to that third place. They will have to wait one more year while Yeclano is already celebrating a great promotion in style.
