GROUP A
The teams were divided into 4 subgroups per 5 teams by blind lot. And the first quintet became almost Novosibirsk one. Five teams were diluted with the team "IMH-Coal" from Kemerovo and, as it turned out, quite successfully! The first round caused a slight sensation of déjà vu, because like in the last year, LoTrEk and Novosibirsk Instrument-Making Plant (formerly Shvabe) also met in the first match, but if the transport producers were stronger last year – 1:0, then now the instrument makers gained revenge – with the same score. In the other opening match, the old friends of the instrument makers, both in business and on the field, – the Novosibirsk Mechanical Plant "Iskra" coped with the Novosibirsk HPP, and the first goal of the tournament was scored here — Grigory Bocharov excelled. In the next match, Iskra and NIMP came together in a derby, but there was no fight like at SibirProm in September (the former Shvabe and the Iskra players separated amicably in the group stage), and the first ones were stronger – 4:0. The debutants "IMH-Coal", driven forward by the whole army of fans, beat the Novosibirsk HPP. The failures of hydropower plant workers continued in the third round too, when LoTrEk outplayed HPP. However, for the transport producers, alas, this victory was the last one at the group stage, and the semifinalists of the last year tournament went to the Silver Playoff from the fourth place. The NIMP that lost in the match for entering the Golden Playoff in favor of the residents of Kemerovo, kept a company to it. But before that, as it turned out later, there was a match for the first place in the group. When leading in the score 2:0, Iskra missed the advantage, allowing the opponent to level the score. Moreover, at the last minutes of the match, IMH-Coal was close to victory, but the implementation failed. Thus, the first place was decided by the difference in goals scored and conceded – the difference in Iskra turned out to be better and they became the first ones. The residents of Kemerovo went into the main playoff of the competition from the second position. The summary table of group A is given below