Sutton on Tour were the team to sit out the second round of fixtures so they had a game in hand over most of the teams in Group A. They currently sat in 5th positon after a narrow 1-0 defeat in Round 1. Their opponents at the start of Round 3 were Fylde FC Old Boys who'd begun with a 100% record – 2 wins from 2.

Fylde FC Old Boys last appeared in our events at the 2019 Alicante Tournament and competed well in an evenly matched group featuring teams from England, Spain and Tunisia. They emerged from the group with 2 wins, 2 draws and just 1 defeat. They were defensively sound with just the 1 goal conceded in 5 games as they finished third in Group C to qualify for the Cup. They drew the eventual winners Atletico San Bas in the QF and left us following a 3-0 defeat.

So far today they were yet to concede with 2 clean sheets so that represented just 1 goal conceded in their last 7 group games in our events – a phenomenal record. However, Sutton on Tour were to breach that defence here in Lisbon. David Dunkling was the man to get his name on the scoresheet. It proved to be the only goal of the game and saw Sutton on Tour climb to fourth in the table.

To complete Round 3 was Tikki Masala versus RAF1. The two teams had identical records of won one, lost one and so this represented a chance for the winner to surge up the table.

RAF's most recent performance was at the 2022 Amsterdam Sixes where they excelled in the group phase. They were unbeaten with 4 wins and 1 draw in their 5 group games including victory over the eventual champions. They scored 14 goals along the way and conceded just 3. They were one of the favourites for the title as they reached the Cup Semi-Finals against reigning Amsterdam Sevens champions Humble Goats (Ned). In an exhilarating encounter they drew 2-2 with Humble Goats getting a late penalty for handball (or was it ball to hand?) and then the final whistle blowing with RAF on the counter attack to possibly win it late. In the end, penalties would decide the contest and it was Humble Goats who won the shoot-out 2-1.

Tiago Sousa opened the scoring in this contest with his second goal of the tournament. At 1-0 the game was still in the balance and even more-so when Miguel Del Rio Lorenzo drew Tikki Masala level. They were not level for long though as RAF1 quickly restored their lead through Daniel Costa to secure all 3 points for RAF1 as they became one of three teams locked together on 6 points at the top. The defeat saw Tikki Masala drop from fourth to fifth in the table.