The tournament held in Żmigród was not among the easiest in the history of this squad. Just one training session during the week and another one the day before the match against Opolski ZPN. Plenty of new faces in the squad. However, what the coaching staff devised to get through this stage of the competition worked—and at certain moments worked perfectly.
– Despite the short time we had to train with the team, the players did an excellent job of carrying out our defensive plan, said after the second match, Grzegorz Borowy, assistant coach of the Lower Silesia squad. – In the match against Śląski ZPN, we created attacking overloads precisely in the areas where we wanted to, he said.
Opolski held to a draw, Śląski routed
Lower Silesia had to beat Śląski ZPN to continue playing. Earlier, the draw with Opolski ZPN, together with Sunday’s opponents’ victory in the Śląsk versus Opolskie match, meant that a draw would have sent Sunday’s opponents through. However, the Lower Silesian players quickly disabused them of that hope.
Two goals on Sunday came from set pieces. As early as the 8th minute, the opposing goalkeeper had no chance after a header by Mikołaj Łazarowicz (Słowianin Wolibórz). After a throw-in and a flick-on by one of his teammates, Daniel Ziółkowski (Łużyce Lubań) increased the lead in the 40th minute with an acrobatic shot. It is worth noting that Daniel Ziółkowski is a Bolesławiec native and a former player of BKS Bolesławiec—editor’s note).
Dawid Bąk put the opponents away before halftime. He received an excellent ball from Adrian Puchała (both Barycz Sułów). Earlier, thanks to good pressing, Alan Madej (Orzeł Ząbkowice Śląskie) took it away from the opponents. The instructions given to the players before the match worked perfectly in this situation.
Gallery (3)
After the break, the Lower Silesians controlled the course of play. Śląski ZPN’s only goal was scored by Kamil Sadowski (Słowianin Wolibórz), the same player who had scored both an own goal and a goal for his team in the match against Opolski ZPN.
– I think I hit him in the head— Marcin Gąsiorowski (Łużyce Lubań), the Lower Silesia goalkeeper, admitted after the match, trying to take the blame away from his teammate.
Opponents unable to beat Gąsiorowski
Goalkeeper Marcin Gąsiorowski has been putting in outstanding performances for the Lower Silesia squad; since the tournament in San Marino, he has been a dependable presence for the team. In the match against Opolski ZPN, he also saved his team from defeat several times.
The considerably rejuvenated Lower Silesia squad rose to the occasion. Young players Alan Madej and Olivier Łabiak (Górnik Wałbrzych) harried the opponents, while Oskar Majbroda (Piast Żmigród) caused havoc in the opposition defense with long throw-ins.
The players took the first step in maintaining Lower Silesia’s remarkable domestic streak—no one has been able to find a way past the Lower Silesians for more than 11 years.
The national finals will be held after the spring round of the 2025/2026 season. In the other macroregional qualifiers, Kujawsko-Pomorski and Małopolski ZPN recorded victories. Podkarpacki ZPN could complete the field of four finalists if a resolution is adopted concerning the promotion of the second-placed team with the best record in the mini-table of the three tournaments played.