Andre Matos’s controversial stoppage-time winner extended the Azores Under-19 side’s unbeaten run in the Bermuda International Football Festival at Goose Gosling Field last night.

The defender nodded in Andre Silva’s corner kick after coming off the substitutes’ bench to score the only goal of the game to hand the Bermuda Under-19 side their first defeat of the tournament.

However, the focal point after the match was the timing of Matos’s late winner which arrived after the five minutes of stoppage time indicated by the fourth official had expired.

“The game really should have ended 0-0,” Ray Jones, the Bermuda Under-19 coach, lamented.

“[The referee] signalled five minutes and then when the ball goes out for the corner it was actually five minutes and 45 seconds gone and he looks at his watch so that is the talking point.

“Obviously the boys are upset because they put it all in but that’s football.

“But I’m proud of the effort we put in and this is part of the journey that hopefully makes them stronger for the bigger picture of what we are trying to accomplish.”

Things may have panned out entirely differently for the home side had they put away the clear-cut chances they scoffed.

“We had three clear-cut chances and we hit the side netting three times and at this level you have to be more clinical because you don’t get lots of chances,” Jones added.

The visiting side were equally as guilty of squandering chances to put the game to bed.

“We had quite a few opportunities that could have made it little bit easier,” Robert Camara, the Azores Under-19 coach, said.

“We could have won comfortably but the other team defended well also and kept us on our heels. They were very quick going from defence to offence and that kept us on our heels.”

Tempers flared on several occasions during this physical encounter, with referee Martin Wyer having to reach in his pocket on at least two occasions to issue yellow cards.

A late skirmish off of the pitch involving the visiting team’s fans also held play up momentarily before cooler heads prevailed and play resumed.

“It was a very passionate game and I think I lost three or four pounds with all of the excitement,” Camara added.

The home side had the better chances in the first half and should have led at the half.

Nizigh Spence had three good looks at the visiting side’s goal but failed to convert.

The Azores Under-19 side dominated possession in the second half and created more opportunities but at times seemed vulnerable when the home side broke on the counter attack with their pace.

Bermuda coped well defensively with the visiting side’s relentless pressure with goalkeeper Quinaceo Hunt making a string of saves and defender Edry Moore clearing Patricia Coelho’s shot off the line to keep the home side in the match.

Manuel Camara and substitutes Ricardo Varas and Nuno Loureiro also went close before Matos finally settled matters with a powerful header at the far post.