Confidence and competition for places, two driving forces that can take a football team a long way, and for CD Tenerife things look good on both those fronts after a second 2-0 win in the opening two league games. Rayo Vallecano B came calling to Santa Cruz and like CD Marino last week they looked very average but Tenerife cruised to a comfortable victory with plenty of plus points to enjoy.

Aridane was again outstanding using his bulk and presence to lead the line but there is much more to this player and his deft touch to set up the second goal was a delight to witness. Rayo were a scrappy side relying on crunching challenges instead of skill, Tenerife were a little nervous in defence early on but after Aragoneses had saved from Jorge and Manquillo had put a shot wide CDT took the game to their visitors. Chechu was again hard to mark on the right and the opener came from his move down the right teeing the ball up for Aridane to score after 15 minutes. Loro is now showing his true form and after a defensive howler nearly resulted in an own goal the ball fell to a closely marked Aridane so he back heeled the ball to Loro for an easy finish.

The floodgates could have opened then if the referee had let the game flow, to be fair he was hampered by a slow linesman who seemed to be in another time zone. Chechu did well to ride a crude tackle when cutting in towards the goal but the ref somehow awarded a free kick against him. Llorente was turning defence into attack on the left and Moyano at right back chipped in with a good interception to set up a goal chance only to hear the whistle interrupt his progress.

The second half brought more chances for Tenerife, coach Cervera gave a run out to local youngster Yeray replacing Medina in midfield and he showed some good touches. Jorge for Rayo spurned a great chance chipping high and wide of the home goal and the visitors began to tire in the intense heat. Suso came on for Loro and showed how much he has grown since his early spell with Tenerife, strong and determined he took over the main striking role with Aridane dropping back a little. Cristo Martin had a half chance that the Rayo keeper juggled before holding and Suso skied the ball with the goal open before him.

Abel was the final home sub, on for Martin, and he too slotted in well. Suso used his strength to shrug off a defender and run the ball along the byline before slipping it to Abel whose shot hit the post. If I wanted to be picky I could say that we should have added more goals but 2 wins, 4 goals scored and none conceded will do nicely. Another good team performance with Victor Bravo, Josmar Zambrano and new striker Guillem Marti still to come. The first proper away game next Sunday at Ourense should give a better indication of how we stand in the pecking order.

So many things could have gone wrong for CD Tenerife in this Segunda B opener but a goal in the first 20 seconds settled the nerves and the eventual 2-0 win should help to dispel the pre season doubts that have haunted the fans. New coach Alvaro Cervera has chopped and changed in the warm up games and the squad still has a couple of shirts waiting to be filled. A new striker should be heading in this week but Aridane (above) looked determined to nail down his regular place with a bustling performance and two well taken goals.

This was the first time I have walked to an away game, CD Marino are just 20 minutes from Kirby Towers so there was a strange feeling as I met up with the Armada Sur and some of the other Peñas at Bar 13. It was as near as we could get to our spiritual home The Royal Oak 2 and many memories of our former host Andy mixed with the buzz of getting the league underway. Marino hiked their match day price to 20 euros and that seemed to rile their fans even more than ours, it was like the city of Santa Cruz had relocated for the day as we entered the ground.

Tenerife didn’t hang about, a quick break down the right and a strong cross and Aridane was there to head it in the net. It could have been 2-0 within 10 minutes, the home keeper had to make a diving interception to fist the ball clear. Loro fired wide when it looked easier to score and Marino came into the game and tested Sergio Aragoneses, particularly when forcing a finger tip save after 40 minutes.

The second half brought more scorching sun and a second goal was urgently needed to ensure we didn’t let the lead slip. Loro had a good break but couldn’t quite reach the ball to put in a telling shot. Chechu was probing out wide as new boys Inigo Ross and Cristo Martin impressed with their creative play. Aridane was alert after 65 minutes and gave a home defender the slip before racing through to slot the ball past the keeper for a 2-0 cushion. Marino had chances themselves but the Tenerife defence stood firm and Sergio was always on hand to deny anyone who got through.

It’s very early days and there will be better teams than Marino to beat, an away win and a clean sheet are good reasons to smile for at least the next week. It’s not always the obvious that works, the pairing of Bruno and Tarantino in defence is a strange one considering some of the other defenders we have at the club. The red card hungry Tarantino and former hot prospect Bruno, back from a years loan, have surprised many fans but they seem to bring out the best in each other. As for Marino, it could be a long hard season and they will have to woo back their hardcore fans, the official figure of 2,500 was quite a bit short of Marino´s prediction of 4,000 and did that include those copping a free one perched on top of the fence near the scoreboard?

Lucky Las Palmas snatched the Copa Mahou Canarias with a harsh 88 th minute penalty after another masterful defensive showing from CD Tenerife. Just like the goal less home leg the Pios made the better chances but found the new look mean CDT defence unwilling to let them in, the penalty was for a hand ball by Amado but the replay was far from convincing.

Sergio Aragoneses was captain for the night and was on top form particularly with a two fisted clearance half way through the second half. Tenerife matched Las Palmas in the first half, Vitolo was the danger man for the Pios but a frustrated theatrical dive in the box after 40 minutes was the nearest he got to scoring, the ref just laughed it away. Las Palmas took control of the game in the second half but Vitolo fluffed an easy chance. With it all level over 2 legs a penalty shoot out was looming when the ref made his strange late decision allowing Suarez to score from the spot. Tenerife weren’t happy and already booked David Medina talked himself into a sending off.

Overall it was another encouraging performance on the heels of the 2-0 midweek win at Granadilla (both goals from Suso). Josmar played the first half but needs to impose his undoubted skill on the game more and the need for a goal scorer is getting rather pressing.

Another new dawn for CD Tenerife but this season we are promised a largely young squad of Canarian born players. Expectation and reality may be on seperate tracks but hopefully they will begin to converge as the new crop grows in experience and confidence under the latest coach Alvaro Cervera who spent some of his formative years as a CDT youth player. Before this first leg of the Copa Mahou Canarias we were bracing ourselves for a pounding from The Pios smug on their lofty perch a division above us but a strong defensive display and some poor Las Palmas finishing produced a comendable 0-0 draw.

It was difficult to work out who was who among the new faces as the players wore last seasons shirts and no information was given on the stadium scoreboard – to be fair they could have come round and whispered the changes individually to the crowd,the official 2,382 was wildly generous, it it wasn’t for the ever loyal, ever vocal Frente Blanquiazul and a full coach of Armada Sur the stadium would have been like a ghost town. Las Palmas clearly had the edge in terms of preparation and experience but they never made it count, Aragoneses was a little lucky when he pulled down Deived after the half hour but the home defence looked calm and well organised particularly right back Javi Moyano (above). Tenerife looked light up front despite Aridane turning in a decent display, the 17 year old goal scoring sensation Ayoze from the youth team looks like a strong breeze migh snap him in two but that is something that can be worked on.

From our half time vantage point on the outside ring of the stadium we could see a fire in a local shop had roused a full range of emergency service vehicles and staff – maybe the club added them all onto the attendance figure. At the break the bench rang the first of eight changes to the playing line up, when Medina and Chechu were added they made a difference to the weak midfield and Loro had a couple of genuine chances. German looked quite lively but at the moment it’s not clear where our goals are going to come from. The Pios hit the woodwork twice and looked suitably frustrated, they will see this as a bad result in their build up, for Tenerife it was a useful warm up, the new coaches influence could be seen but he knows there is a lot of work and hopefully another couple of signings before the Segunda B campaign starts.

I could say we were robbed by a joke of a referee, he certainly played his part, but over the two legged final we just were not good enough. It’s another season in Segunda B for CD Tenerife after a cruel 1-2 home defeat to Ponferradina and with the long play off process there is a lot of work to do in a short time.

Even trailing 1-0 from the away leg hopes were high among the 18,714 crowd, the pre match tifo and show of support from the fans spread right around the stadium and was magnificent but the players never scaled the heights of the RM Castilla home demolition. In the stifling heat Tenerife struggled to get into any rythmn, Perona and Aridane didn’t put enough pressure on Orlando in the visiting goal and the ref was giving all the calls to Ponferradina. Kike Lopez was bundled over in the box in the 30th minute and the ref wasn’t interested, it was going to be an uphill struggle.

Ponferradina were fired up for the game, very physical and always ready to attack, Raul Llorente had a running batte with Sanchez, Pablo Sicilia had his work cut out with Yuri and Acoran and at half time 0-0 wasn’t what we needed to see. The second half was barely underway before the ref administered the killer blow, Kitoko was called for a foul on Acoran in the box, it looked well outside, and just for good measure the official showed a red to Kitoko. The Tenerife bench reacted with fury but that just illicited another flurry of bookings and Yuri converted the penalty.

There was worse to come 15 minutes later from a counter attack, Didac seized his chance and plunged the sword further into Tenerife’s hearts, at 2-0 there was no way back with 10 men. Zazo replaced Bravo but it had little effect, Kiko Raton arrived for Aridane who had reverted to his early season form, a well struck goal from Kiko in the last minutee was just a consolation. As Ponferradina celebrated in front of their fans the Tenerife faithful gave a rousing defiant chorus of support for the players and a pledge of continued backing as the battle for promotion starts all over again. As supporters swarmed onto the pitch some idiots, probably not regulars, threw stones at the visiting fans, that along with the plastic bottles thrown at the ref may well have financial repurcussions for the club.

There is hardly time for tears and recriminations, next season is only weeks away, there will be some new faces in the squad and a few old favourites gone but the true fans will return in large numbers and full of renewed hope.

One more push, one more hurdle, one more game, and CD Tenerife can be back in the Segunda Division. This first leg 1-0 defeat at Ponferradina has left the promotion final finely poised but with a near 23,000 full house in Santa Cruz at noon on Sunday 24 June there can be celebration in the air once more.

Only a harsh hand ball against Pablo Sicilia late in the first half separated the sides when the home top scorer Yuri converted the penalty but they both had enough chances to seize control. After his ridiculous bribery allegations against Tenerife, Orlando was glad to show a safe pair of hands from Zazo’s shot set up by Perona. Mayor risked spoiling his rockabilly quiff by heading wide after five minutes but Tenerife had the best of the first half. Kike Lopez and Chechu (above) were causing plenty of problems down the flanks and a perfectly weighted deep cross from Perona was just beyond Kike with the goal at his mercy.

Chechu put in a cracker of a free kick, Tarantino headed the ball down, sadly noone was there to finish the move. Ponferradina managed an attempt from Isaias that brought a diving save from Sergio, short respite as Chechu flicked a free kick in for Aridane who headed wide. Back at the other end Mayor beat Sergio Rodriguez and was heading for goal, it took a classy intervention from Pablo Sicilia to shield the ball into Sergio Aragoneses arms. With half time looming a waist high ball into the Tenerife penalty area caught Pablo’s hand as he tried to move it out of the way, there was no intent but it changed the flight of the ball and the ref awarded the penalty that Yuri put just out of Sergio’s reach.

The clouds opened for the second half and amid torrential rain Perona lost his footing after Chechu served up a clear chance. Acoran forced a magnificent save from Sergio and just after Loro replaced Kike, Chechu shot wide and Aridane found a Sergio Rodriguez cross a shade too high to reach in front of goal. Mayor was the target man with Yuri feeding off him, Sergio was equal to both of them taking cleanly from Mayor and sliding out to take the ball from Yuri’s feet. Chechu was caught out of his comfort zone trying to defend and had to be rescued by Rodriguez (above) following a poor clearance, Acoran spurned two clear chances putting them both wide as the home team pressed for a bigger cushion to bring to Santa Cruz.

As the puddles grew on the poor quality pitch and the 1,300 blanquiazul fans got soaked Rodriguez showed his worth with a firm tackle to diffuse another home attack. An away goal would have made such a difference for Tenerife but as the final whistle blew the home fans must have wished for more than a slender one goal lead. The Heliodoro furnace awaits, there’s plenty of drama left in this campaign.

Goals galore, a flurry of red cards, missed chances, and a determined attitude from CD Tenerife made this a thriller of a match as our heroes beat RB Linense 3-2 at home to go with the 1-0 away win last week. Four red cards, it must have been a blood bath? No but there was a clot for a referee. This was never a dirty game but the ref was weak with his calls early in the game and tried to make up for it by acting tough with anyone who challenged his laughable authority.

It was the 25 th anniversary game for the Frente Blanquiazul peña and their amazing banners draped over the Grada Popular end had an inspiring effect on CD Tenerife. In the first minute Perona broke on the right and skimmed a measured cross over the grass to Kike Lopez who placed it perfectly in the visitors net. Just what we needed to settle the nerves, Chechu could have doubled the advantage but shot into the arms of Pagola in the Linense net. At the over end Sergio Aragoneses punched clear from a free kick and Victor Bravo came back to force a low save from Pagola.

Linense players were falling theatrically at every turn and from one of the many generous free kicks Chico ran onto the ball as Tarantino and Sergio Rodriguez got in a muddle leaving Sergio Aragoneses unsighted as Linense drew level. Tenerife pushed forward, Pablo headed wide and Perona blasted over the bar but there wasn’t enough pressure on the frail keeper who had looked so poor the week before. With 5 minutes to the break the keeper showed his weakness flapping and missing the ball which broke to Bravo to unleash a well placed shot past the helpless stopper. Tenerife let their guard down and Linense replied within a minute as Copi headed the ball down and into the goal. Half time arrived with that dreaded second away goal raising concern among the home fans – another goal and Linense would be on course for victory.

Linense were relying on their big forwards to chase the game as CD Tenerife struggled to regain their composure at the start of the second half. Disaster struck after 58 minutes when Victor Bravo got a second yellow card for arguing and was off%

Even penned in the players tunnel and trying to peer through a police guard Quique Medina must have enjoyed watching his CD Tenerife players cruise to a 1-0 away win at Linense. The coach was sent off from the bench after 69 minutes for arguing with the ref over a blatant penalty that could have made this a 2-0 walk over. Long before that Kike Lopez had grabbed a 40 minute lead with a little help from dozey home keeper Pagola.

Linense were a poor team with few ideas other than hooffing the ball at the Tenrife goal from long range. Coach Medina again showed his tactical sense by playing Bravo in a more defensive midfield role and giving Kike licence to cut inside more to take pressure off Aridane who was doubtful with an injury a few days before the match. Kike was like a ferret down the Linense trousers and gave them lots of early problems, their goalie looked slow and hesitant and was thankful to see Perona pulled back for an early offside and Aridane blocked on the left touchline as he threatened to repeat his previous weeks heroics in opening an opposition defence.

The Rock Of Gibraltar loomed large over the packed ground but it was Tenerife that were in charge, Aridane forced the keeper to save from a corner and Chechu and Sicilia both juggled the ball but couldn’t quite get a clean shot in front of goal. Aridane set Kike free but he could only screw the ball back across the face of the goal, Perona should have punished a defensive slip that left him one on one with the keeper but his half shot was saved. The goal had to come, after 40 minutes Kike poked the ball past Olmo and despite his bulky body check he shrugged past him and took it wide before squeezing his shot back, the bewildered keeper stuck out a foot and redirected the ball inside the top netting.

The second half opened with a long range Bravo chip over the bar, Copi made a rare visit to the CDT goal area but was well offside, and Ocana went for power rather than accuracy to blast wide. The penalty that wasn’t given came when Aridane rode a challenge outside the box but was then tripped inside, the ref didn’t want to know but Medina had plenty to say about it and ended up directing operations via his mobile and assistant Roberto Perera on the bench. Bello got sent off with a harsh straight red for a foul on Sergio Rodriguez but it seemd to lift the crowd and the ten men for a while. Sergio Aragoneses had a little flutter losing the ball but Kitoko cleaned up after him. Sergio showed his brilliant best in injury time, first a two handed save from a downward point blank header and then a full length finger tip save at the top corner.

So we go into next Sundays home leg (noon kick off) with a great lead, hopefullythe players will beware of over confidence, Linense can’t have got in the play offs by playing this bad every week.

Hands up anyone who thought the newly arrived Aridane was a waste of space. Hang on I can’t count that many, and yes I have both hands up, but with a regular starting slot Aridane has improved steadily and this 3-1 home win over Badalona was his finest hour. Apart from a anxious spell when the visitors pulled back to 2-1 behind, this was a near perfect afternoon in an atmosphere harking back to the glory days of promotion to the Primera.

Both main strikers Aridane and Perona played a fine unselfish team game. Quique Medina sprung a few more pre match surprises bringing Tarantino and Sergio Rodriguez back into the defence in place of Medina and Cristobal and they did a decent job. Zazo must have thought his wonder goal in the 1-1 away draw a week earlier would cement his starting place but Victor Bravo was preferred and rewarded the coach’s faith with a powerful opening goal after 36 minutes. Perona pounced on a loose ball, started to head for goal but realising his path was blocked he layed the ball off to Bravo whose long range smash left the goalie groping at air.

It was an inspiring day to be a chicharrero, the stadium was decked out in blue and white bunting and as CD Tenerife took to the pitch an avalanche of tifo and toilet rolls produced a blue and white snow storm. It certainly gave the team a flying start, Perona was through on goal after 11 minutes, he beat the defence and took the ball wide before shooting, somehow the keeper scrambled back to clear his line. At the other end a fierce shot at Sergio was easily smothered but a booking for Tarantino left him flirting with a 4th dismissal of the season and Pablo Sicilia had to be replaced with Medina after a clash of heads left him with blurrred vision. Perona could have had at least a couple of goals had it not been for the woodwork but a half time lead was what we had hoped for.

The second half opened in style, Chechu floated in a corner and Aridane glanced the ball into the net with a commanding header. The party mood cranked up a few notches, angelic voices were in full cry, bodies were bouncing up and down, and we even had cheer leaders adding a touch of glamour as they raced around the pitch side barriers – maybe some of the wrong smoke had got up my nostrils cos I even thought I saw Super Mario smile! Fair play to Badalona, they refused to give up and pulled a goal back from a corner, the ball broke to Ceballos, time and the defence froze and he lashed the ball into the net. The away goals rule meant an equaliser would have been enough to win the tie for Badalona so they pressed forward. Sergio made vital saves from Garcia and Robles before Aridane showed how good he can be. The big forward took the ball down the left and beyond the defence, kept it in play at the byline and slotted it back to the on rushing Chechu to make it 3-1. It was a magnificent goal and the players piled on Aridane to celebrate.

The 13,379 crowd could sense victory and the wave rippled around the stadium – long time since we have seen that. Kike Lopez had a chance to increase the lead, he guided the ball past the keeper at close range but also just wide of the post. Badalona were a spent force now, Tenerife counted down the minutes and the final whistle was celebrated by players, fans, and even a few up on the flat balconies high above the stadium. Another hurdle jumped but now it’s away (3 June) and home (10 June) with Linense from just outside Gibraltar. The quest continues.

One nil down and the seconds ticking away at Badalona, next Sundays home leg of the promotion play off round was looking like a tall order for CD Tenerife. Cristobal pushing up from right back crossed the ball into the goal area and Zazo (above) launched himself among the flying boots for a brave bullet header that should shine the way into the next knock out round.

This was no classic performance from CDT, for much of the game they were struggling to cope with Badalona’s lively forwards, always looking for an opening and spreading the ball from wing to wing with ease to torment the Tenerife defence. Sergio Aragoneses was again immense making so many telling saves, although he will takee some blame for the home goal after failing to clear the ball. In theory this was the strongest line up for the blanquiazul, Cristobal and Llorente returned to full back duties but Llorente in particular had a poor game. Kitoko was back in midfield and when Kike Lopez charged straight at the home goal in the opening minute, the travelling fans had cause to hope for a win.

Kike set up Aridane a minute later but he fired over the goal. Then Badalona showed their qualities, Victor curled a free kick that Sergio did well to take and Munoz put the ball in the Tenerife net only to have it ruled offside in the approach play. Llorente got caught napping, it took a sharp interception from Kike to snuff out the danger, then Llorente got booked for a wild swinging tackle. Pablo blocked at the post, Kitoko made a good clearance, and Sergio stopped another Garcia shot. Tenerife made little headway up front, Perona was wasted playing deep and only came to life just before the break putting a Chechu pass just wide, and flicking on a header to Kike who also missed the target.

The second half opened with a body blow to Tenerife, the defence dithered and Sergio couldn’t hold onto a shot leaving Goikoetxea to pounce and make it 1-0 to Badalona. Tenerife led a charmed life as Badalona scraped the bar and Victor shot just wide of Sergio and the post. Bravo came on for Kike and had a clear chance after Perona flicked the ball onto him, the final shot was wild and wide. Kiko Raton replaced Aridane and missed after a turning and unleashing a rushed shot. At the other end Sergio was busy, a long free kick was gathered at his feet and with his defence deserting him he had to race out of his goal, first to chest the ball away and then to tackle a home player bearing down on goal.

Badalona must have fancied coming to Santa Cruz and trying to nick an early goal to make it near impossible for Tenerife, it needed something special to give Tenerife a vital away goal, thankfully Zazo’s determined dive made the difference and his late goal sent the Tenerife fans wild. Zazo had the goal in his sights again when Munoz upended him and got a red card, a little scuffle followed but the draw was safe. Tenerife will need to play a lot better to reach their promotion goal but they are well placed for next weeks return leg at 5.30 pm at home.