Patronato and Gimnasia y Esgrima de Jujuy drew 3-3 at Estadio Presbítero Bartolomé Grella in round 26 of the Primera Nacional. The match passed through several conditions: parity at half-time, a two-goal lead for the Entre Ríos side and a visitors' recovery with ten players. The final result created opposing feelings for hosts unable to close a win and second-placed opponents who rescued a difficult point.
Diego Díaz opened the scoring for Patronato after 16 minutes of the first half. Gimnasia responded through David Gallardo after 33 and carried the 1-1 score into the interval. That period's balance also appeared in efforts on target, one for each team, although the visitors held 60 per cent possession against the hosts' 40. Neither side had yet established a lasting separation.
The situation changed seven minutes into the second half when Nicolás Dematei was sent off for Gimnasia de Jujuy. Patronato quickly used the new context: Alejo Miró scored after 12 minutes and Diego Díaz struck again after 18. At 3-1 and with a numerical advantage, the Paraná team appeared to have directed the match towards a victory urgently needed in the lower part of the table.
Gimnasia refused that conclusion. Despite playing a man short, the visitors continued to search and reduced the gap through Guillermo Cosaro after 35 minutes of the second half. Three minutes later, David Gallardo appeared again to make it 3-3. The forward's double completed a response of enormous competitive value because it occurred with a numerical disadvantage and with very little time remaining.
The final statistics showed Gimnasia leading possession by 56 per cent to 44, while both teams produced three efforts on target. Patronato received one yellow card; the visitors accumulated five cautions and one dismissal. Those figures cannot explain all six goals by themselves, but they show that the Jujuy side retained involvement with the ball even after losing Dematei early in the second period.
The draw left Patronato seventeenth in Group B on 25 points and still deeply involved in the lower section. Gimnasia reached 45 points and retained second position. The same result therefore carried different emotional consequences: the Entre Ríos club lost a concrete opportunity to collect three points, while the Jujuy team defended their competitive standing through an unlikely comeback away from home.
The schedule will continue quickly. Patronato host Atlanta on Wednesday 26 August at 15:30, again at the Grella. Gimnasia face Agropecuario on Saturday 29 at Estadio 23 de Agosto. The hosts must process how a 3-1 lead with an extra player disappeared; the visitors can build upon the resistance that turned a highly adverse afternoon into a point for their campaign.
