They should have gotten three points, but one mistake on defense and an offense that had nothing left in Extra Time equaled just one for the Silverbacks. They deserved three, they outplayed, hustled and finessed Hampton Roads, but in the end, they just didn't play smart enough soccer to get the victory over such a strong team.
The game got off to a slow start offensively but it certainly wasn't boring in the first few minutes. Four Yellow Cards were issued to Atlanta in the first half alone, including a yellow to Patrick Beech after it appeared he clipped a Hampton Roads player a bit over the shin that could have been seen as a Red. Josh Henderson managed to muster a couple of good chances off headers, but they were all saved by Roads keeper Jon Busch who looked on his game as did Atlanta keeper Tony Roberts who pushed away a few balls that other keepers may not have been able to get to. But as the half came to a close I began to notice that in between the talented forwards and defense of Atlanta, there was an extremely weak looking midfield core who continuously tried to put the ball over the top rather than playing a little possession and making accurate, short and especially safe passes. I spoke to a few Silverbacks players at the half and they saw the same problem, Junuz Coralic, who has been by far the most consistent middie for Atlanta since his arrival here, didn't even get 5 touches in the first half. At halftime, things weren't looking up for either team.
The second half was exciting, Josh Henderson continued to muster out chances but just couldn't put the ball in the back of the net. Meanwhile the forwards tandem of Iggy Moleka and Patrick Beech failed to mount much of anything. But then in the 70th minute, Junuz Coralic found Patrick Beech streaking down the middle of the field, as he reached the 18', he squeezed the ball under a charging Busch. But then with less than five minutes remaining, Atlanta Defender Danny Care tripped at the top of the box and Mariner Forward Ribiero pounced on the ball and put it by Roberts to deadlock the game at one. An even bigger scare than the goal came in the middle of the second half when rookie midfielder Brian Piesner went down near the right touchline. The Atlanta trainer took one look at him and took him off the field for substitute Ramon Luna who was appearing in only his second game of the year. He told me that he thought he pinched a nerve in his back after the game.
There weren't any legitimate shots in the OT and both teams went home, upset with their performance. The Silverbacks, in one of their biggest two game sets of the year, received only one point. Atlanta will remain home though and gets a rematch with the El-Paso Patriots (who beat them 1-0 at home on Friday) this Saturday. But it has to be frustrating to leave a game the way it was left at Hampton Roads, the Silverbacks deserved better, perhaps three points.
Man of the Match
Midfielder Josh Henderson
Henderson accumulated a large amount of chances and showed heart like never before in this game and provided almost all of the offense for Atlanta in extra time. Other than his two goal performance at home one month ago, this is by far his best showing of the year.
