Korona Kielce were eliminated from the STS Polish Cup on Thursday, losing 2-1 away to second-division Polonia Warszawa in the round of 32, according to SportoweFakty. The result makes the Kielce club the latest top-flight team to fall to lower-league opposition in this season's competition.
The match at Polonia's Konwiktorska ground came shortly after Korona replaced head coach Jacek Zieliński with Robert Kolendowicz. Kolendowicz had opened his tenure with a 1-0 league win over GKS Katowice.
Polonia, coached by Piotr Stokowiec, are chasing promotion back to the PKO Ekstraklasa after decades away from the top tier. SportoweFakty reports the Warsaw side have had mixed results this season but remain on course for the elite division.
Why it matters
Korona's exit continues a pattern that has defined this season's cup. SportoweFakty notes that so many Ekstraklasa clubs have been eliminated this week that keeping track of them has become difficult. Korona now join that group and, like the others, turn their attention back to league duties.
For Polonia, the win is a notable scalp against a top-flight opponent and adds to a promotion campaign already generating momentum. For Korona, the defeat leaves Kolendowicz's early record at one win and one loss, and removes a competition from a squad still adjusting to a new coach.
An own goal opens the scoring
Korona fielded a strong lineup, with Ariel Mosór, Kamil Jakubczyk, Mariusz Stępiński and Camilo Mena all starting. SportoweFakty reports that Polonia coach Stokowiec sprung a surprise by deploying David Kristjan Olafsson high up the pitch as a winger, while Kolendowicz had prior familiarity with Sebastian Kowalczyk and Kacper Kostorz from their time together at Pogoń Szczecin.
Korona created chances to take the lead but did not convert them, and that wastefulness proved costly in the 27th minute. Polonia's opening goal came with help from the visitors: defender Marcel Pięczek turned the ball into his own net, catching out goalkeeper Rafał Mamla. According to SportoweFakty, Pięczek was attempting to deal with a follow-up effort from Dani Vega after a Kacper Kostorz shot but mishandled the situation.
Korona pushed for a response before half-time. In the 32nd minute Stępiński missed the target from a Wiktor Długosz cross, and further chances followed. SportoweFakty described Stępiński's first half as a hat-trick of squandered close-range opportunities rather than goals. Polonia led 1-0 at the interval, leaving Korona 45 minutes to avoid the fate of the other top-flight clubs already out.
Kostorz doubles the lead, Bąk pulls one back
The second half had barely begun when Polonia went 2-0 up in the 48th minute. Kacper Kostorz received a pass from Dani Vega and struck hard under the crossbar, finishing off after Mamla had saved an effort from Marten Kuusk moments earlier.
Only then did Korona's chase begin. In the 51st minute Daniel Bąk, who had come on for Michael Ameyaw at half-time, beat goalkeeper Henrich Ravas to cut the deficit to 2-1. The goal came just minutes after Bąk entered the pitch and put Korona back within reach, though they still needed another goal to level.
Kolendowicz continued to use his bench, bringing on Nono and Simon Gustafson. In the 80th minute Dawid Błanik, who had replaced Pięczek, had Kielce's last real hope of an equaliser, but he could not find the net. SportoweFakty described the closing stages as a picture of Korona's helplessness.
Polonia saw out the win and advanced, while Korona join the growing list of Ekstraklasa sides out of the cup. In the other result reported from the competition, Chrobry Głogów beat Polonia Bytom 2-0, with Jehor Szarabura scoring in the 32nd minute and Alan Rybak adding a second three minutes later.
Match details
Polonia Warszawa 2-1 Korona Kielce (1-0)
Goals: 1-0 Marcel Pięczek (own goal) 27'; 2-0 Kacper Kostorz 48'; 2-1 Daniel Bąk 51'
Polonia: Henrich Ravas – Marten Kuusk (80' Patryk Janasik), Aleksander Gołoś, Jakub Budnicki – Tomasz Makowski, Dave Gnasse – Dani Vega (68' Krystian Tabara), Sebastian Kowalczyk (76' Simon Skrabb), Ilkay Durmus (76' Ernest Terpiłowski), David Kristjan Olafsson – Kacper Kostorz (68' Gierman Barkowskij)
Korona: Rafał Mamla – Wiktor Długosz, Ariel Mosór, Slobodan Rubezić, Marcel Pięczek (80' Dawid Błanik) – Kamil Jakubczyk, Martin Remacle (73' Simon Gustafsson), Patrik Hellebrand (64' Nono) – Camilo Mena, Mariusz Stępiński (46' Morgan Fassbender), Michael Ameyaw (46' Daniel Bąk)
Yellow cards: Gnasse, Olafsson, Budnicki, Barkowskij (Polonia); Rubezić (Korona)
Korona return to league action next, with Kolendowicz's side looking to build on their opening win under the new coach. Polonia, meanwhile, continue their promotion push and await their next cup opponent.
