Dadu at the double for Moldova

Georgia 2-2 Moldova
A late Sergei Dadu penalty earned Moldova a creditable draw against Georgia in Tbilisi today.

Slow start
In a game which failed to spark into life for the first hour, four goals in the final third of the match warmed up the crowd as both teams prepared for more pressing UEFA EURO 2004™ engagements next month.

Ashvetia strike
David Chaladze's header broke the deadlock for the home side after 60 minutes as Moldova's organised rearguard was finally breached. They rallied and scored an equaliser 15 minutes later through substitute Dadu but all their hard work appeared to have been wasted when another substitute, Mikhail Ashvetia, restored Georgia's advantage seven minutes from time.

Penalty kick
The Georgians, who are at home to the Republic of Ireland on 29 March in their next Group 10 qualifier, had barely finished celebrating when the ball was back in their net, prolific FC Sheriff Tiraspol frontman Dadu calmly finishing from the penalty spot for his second goal of the afternoon after Eugeniu Patula had been fouled. Moldova are also in action next month, travelling to Belarus for a Group 3 encounter.