Yednyst take Ukraine to amateur finals

Yednyst Plysky AMA have become the third Ukrainian club to reach the UEFA Regions' Cup finals in four editions, beating Moldova's Ialoveni AMA 2-0 on the final day to come out on top in Intermediary round Group 8 of Europe's leading amateur tournament.

Second-half goals from substitute Roman Lytvyn and Vadim Tarykin settled a tight section in the home side's favour, with coach Serhiy Bakun concluding: "Our only aim was to win this group and I'm very happy we managed it. We were pretty good throughout the tournament and I think we deserved to win. The last match was the toughest, but the players showed character and were rewarded."

Bakun certainly had reason to be satisfied overall, with his side scoring 15 goals and conceding none in their three fixtures. They kicked off with a 5-0 defeat of Azerbaijan's Chevik AMA, and continued with an 8-0 demolition of Latvian outfit Flaminko/RFS, with the 24-year-old Tarykin scoring a hat-trick, and strike partner Artur Tverdosvkiy chiming in with two more.

Ialoveni emerged as the hosts' only meaningful competitors by winning their first two fixtures. Midfielder Andrei Dogot, 21, struck in added time to earn them a 1-0 win against Flaminko/RFS, and registered the first of their two goals in a 2-0 victory against Chevik on the second matchday, Vitalie Borta claiming the second. That left them and Yednyst level on six points.

In pouring rain at the Yednist' stadium, both sides battled hard in the decider, but the arrival of substitute Lytvyn at the break turned the tide in the more attack-minded side's favour. He scored after 68 minutes with Tarykin missing a penalty but scoring his side's second from the rebound. Flaminko/RFS beat Chevik 4-1 to claim third place.