stood in stark contrast

[bearfreak]

Hello everyone. This is football (soccer). I don't understand the phrase "stood in stark" here. What does it mean?

Aguero headed the hosts level three minutes from the end of a keenly contested first half, which stood in stark contrast to the second.
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[Cagey]

Stark is an adjective modifying 'contrast'.

Our dictionary includes this definition of 'stark'.

adj
4. sharply or harshly distinct: a stark contrast.

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2015​

The keenly contested first half 'stood in stark contrast to the second [half].
The first half of the game was very different from the second half.

This discussion may also be helpful: in stark contrast