The Herbiers Football club did not contradict, this Friday, November 15 evening, its status as a Coupe de France team. Accustomed to exploits in this competition – with even a final lost to PSG six years ago – the VHF created a new feat, against Ajaccio, a Ligue 2 club, two divisions above the Vendéens.
A real cup match in Massabielle
In their lair of Massabielle, the Rouge et Noir won 2-1 at the very end of the match. A real Cup match. The Corsicans opened the scoring in the 34th minute thanks to Bamba. Their only opportunity in the first half. The VHF had several chances to equalize in the first period, but could not do so. At the hour mark, the referee whistles a penalty for Ajaccio, after the Herbret goalkeeper went out. Goalkeeper Nathan Yavorsky stops the penalty. Reduced to 10 after a second day card for their scorer, the Ajaccians saw the Herbretais continue to push and win at the very end of the match. In the 90th, Shelton Guillaume’s long shot. The 27-year-old striker, who arrived this summer in Vendée, doubled the lead in the 95th minute, converting a penalty, obtained after a foul on Daniel Glao.
“So you always have to believe in it” for the Herbret coach
“A fantastic match. We felt that the VHF could create the feat and once again, it ended up happening”, explains Sébastien, loyal supporter of the VHF. “Thank you all. You gave us a great pleasure. It’s great to have pulled out all the stops to get this qualification,” Christian, for his part, said on the club’s Facebook page.
“Both teams played a great match. Ajaccio was really a tough opponent,” according to the Herbret coach at the end of the match. And Laurent David explained that after the Ajaccio goal “we didn’t disunite. We had an offensive and defensive plan and the players highlighted what we had decided to do. It’s a crazy scenario, because it’s true that it goes on at the end of the match, so you always have to believe in it.” “The coach told us that there would be a stroke of genius at one point or another, I don’t think, I shoot,” confided to the club’s partners the double scorer, Shelton Guillaume.
In the next round, the weekend of November 30-December 1, the Herbiers will not play at home, but outside. It will be against the winner of the match between Bressuire, Regional 1 club, and the Girondins de Bordeaux, Nationale 2 club, meeting scheduled for this Sunday, November 17, at 5 p.m., in Deux-Sèvres.
To find out the program of the other teams from Loire-Atlantique and Vendée, entered in the Coupe de France, it’s here.
