A 90th minute pleasure
Lazio attack for the whole game and deservedly score in the dying moments
Also on this day:
The season so far
The previous season Lazio had done rather well. Coming back from the hell of two years in Serie B they had arrived eighth under manager Juan Carlos Lorenzo. The Argentinian was offered a contract renewal despite the club not having much money. He had agreed and given his word, but in a typical coup de theatre, he instead signed for Roma who offered him a large advance. Umberto Mannocci was the new head coach.
The terrible financial situation did not allow much as far as summer transfers were concerned. The club had to say goodbye to Massimo Giacomini (Genoa), Giancarlo Morrone (Fiorentina), Egidio Fumagalli (Frosinone), Graziano Landoni (Atalanta), Mario Maraschi (Bologna) and Orlando Rozzoni (loan to Catania). The newcomers were midfielders Giampiero Vitali (Triestina), Can Bartu (Fiorentina), Eugenio Fascetti (Messina) and Kurt Christensen (Atalanta) and forwards Gianfranco Petris (Fiorentina), Giampaolo Piaceri (Genoa) and Antonio Renna (Bologna).
The season had opened with the first round of the Coppa Italia in early September and Lazio had won at Trani 3-0. In the second round later on in the month they faced Napoli. The match ended 0-0 and was also goalless after extra time. In those days there was no penalty shootout but a flip of the coin and the Biancocelesti lost the toss.
In campionato things were not going very well. After nine games Lazio were 16th with only 5 points. They had won just one game at home against Varese.
The match: Sunday, November 22, 1964, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
After just five minutes, following a Paolo Carosi free kick, Kurt Christiansen missed from a favourable position. In the 19th Alberto Mari had a chance to go face to face with the keeper but his last control of the ball was a shambles and the opportunity vanished. Eight minutes later it was Giampaolo Piaceri to throw away a golden opportunity when Gianfranco Petris gave him a perfect assist but the Lazio forward shot at Enrico Spinosi. A fourth opportunity arose in 32nd minute when Petris, instead of shooting, decided to leave the ball to Mari who was unable to get to it.
Lazio dominated but were wasteful, all Cagliari did was defend and not very well. The easiest of chances arrived in the 77th minute. A Petris header allowed Piaceri to control the ball with his chest in front of the keeper. He could have done anything with that ball, whichever way he touched it would have been a goal. But he missed it completely and Angelo Colombo thanked him.
In the 88th minute Mazzucchi fouled Piaceri on the limit of the box. The free kick took two minutes to be taken. A first 60 seconds were needed to the physios to get the Lazio forward back on his feet and another minute for the ref to calm everybody down. Nello Governato touched the ball to Petris who with a clinical shot finally put the ball behind Colombo.
Finally, a goal, but one can’t be so wasteful in Serie A.
Who played for Lazio
Manager: Mannocci
Who played for Cagliari
Colombo, Mazzucchi, Tiddia, Cera, Spinosi, Longo, Visentin, Nené, Gallardo, Greatti, Cappellaro
Manager: Silvestri
Referee: Carminati
Goal: 90’ Petris
What happened next
It was certainly not a season to remember. With six games to go, Lazio were in deep trouble, 16th and in full relegation zone. But then three consecutive wins (Sampdoria and Foggia at home, Mantova away) plus a draw at home against Atalanta got them out of trouble and Lazio avoided relegation. They finished 14th.
The player with the most appearances was Pierluigi Pagni (35), top scorers were Nello Governato and Renna with a meagre 5 goals.
Let's talk about Gianfranco Petris
Gianfranco Petris was born on August 27, 1936, in Budoia (Friuli).
He started to play football with Treviso making 40 appearances between Serie B and C with 11 goals. In 1956 he joined Triestina debuting in Serie A on September 30 against Padova. Triestina were then relegated but he stayed on in Serie B playing a total of 63 games with 23 goals. In his last year the forward was particularly good with 18 goals and a promotion, attracting the attention of Fiorentina.
He left for Florence in 1958 and stayed for six years, winning a Coppa Italia in 1960-61 and a Cup Winners Cup that same year. The Viola were also finalists in the 1958 Coppa Italia, which they lost to Lazio, and the 1961-62 Cup Winners Cup. In total he played 166 league games with 43 goals.
In 1964 he joined Lazio in Serie A but it was a disappointing year for him with just 11 appearances and 1 goal. In the autumn of 1965, he joined Trani in Serie B and stayed until the end of his career in 1968 by which time the Dragoni had just been relegated to Serie D.
Petris was the first player from Serie B to play for the Nazionale and the first to score too. He made his debut against Austria on March 23 1958 in Vienna for the Central European International Cup in a game Italy lost 3-2. He was also the last player from Triestina to play for the Nazionale.
He died on July 1 2018 in Trepalle near Sondrio.
Lazio Playing Career
Season | Appearances (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia |
1964-65 | 13 (1) | 11 (1) | 2 |
Sources
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