Goalkeeper Jonny Walker posted his second straight shutout in the Chilean League playoffs as Colo Colo defeated visiting Universidad de Concepcion, 3-0, in the first leg of the semifinal series.
A win or a tie for Colo Colo in Sunday's return match in Concepcion will give them passage to the final, where they will meet Cobreloa or Huachipato. If Universidad de Concepcion wins the second leg, a tiebreaking mini-game will be played, followed by penalty kicks if the score is tied at the end of two 15-minute halves.
This was another strong match for Walker. Although his team was favored and took the lead in the 15th minute, they played about half the game a man down — from the time Colo Colo's Marco Villaseca received a red card in the 33rd minute until the visitors' Mauricio Cataldo got one of his own in the 79th minute. During that span, Walker made three key saves and received a yellow card for delaying a goal kick.
Once the teams returned to equal manpower, Chilean legend Ivan Zamorano scored insurance tallies in the 83rd and 90th minutes.