Edward P. Dittmer (Hershey, PA)
Both teams entered the Memorial Day clash with a mission. Atlanta was looking to get their first win on the road. Hershey needed to get back on track with a win after two home defeats. Neither got what they wanted from the match, which ended in a 1-1 draw and saw three sendings off in the final minutes.
Both teams played patient, attacking, and very physical soccer in the first half, but had no result to show for it. Most of the action took place in the Hershey end with Atlanta mounting the most effective attacks, which were generally snuffed out by a stingy Hershey defense. Hershey produced more chances on counter-attacks, as its midfield seemed unable to produce a sustained assault on the Atlanta goal or provide adequate service to the strikers.
Hershey, due to some injury problems and a match only two days before, played a more unfamiliar lineup. Drew Kopp and Ray Goodlett were out of the defense, while Tim Leonard and Cesidio Colasante would sit out the start of this match. Rich Sletvold started in goal over Mike LeBerge.
The best chance in the first half for Atlanta was a one on one for Patrick Beech, which goalkeeper Rich Sletvold took right off his feet in the area in the 9th minute. Atlanta had one or two shots on goal, which were saved easily by Rich Sletvold.
For Hershey, Jamel Mitchell was able to get a header off a corner, which was blocked just off the line by Junas (sp?) Coralic. And a controversial call came in the 44th when Jamel Mitchell went in alone against the keeper who appeared to pull his leg out trying to slap the ball away. The referee, however, instructed them to play on.
The scoring opened in the 73rd with Patrick Beech blasting a John Henderson cross into the top of the goal. Henderson made an excellent run up the far side and sent the cross right into Beech's path.
Hershey finally equalized off Jamel Mitchell's boot as Simmonds sent in a long pass to Ford, who sent the ball on to Mitchell in the 83rd.
Hershey would have gone ahead in the 89th if not for Tony Roberts' work in goal. The Wildcats were awarded a strange free kick as Josh Henderson failed to make contact with a header near the box and allowed the ball to hit his hand as he was coming down. The free kick from Paul Byrne nearly slid under Roberts, who did a good job of covering up the loose ball.
In the first overtime period, Jamel Mitchell took the ball down the near side and as he began to accelerate, Josh Henderson reached around the striker, just enough to slow him down. The referee rewarded Henderson with a 2nd yellow card for his effort and Atlanta would be reduced to 10 men. The decision seemed a bit harsh and left Hershey in the driver's seat for a golden goal.
The second overtime period saw a Hershey goal called back due to a foul in the box and another ejection. Henning sloppily took down Tony Soto as he started a counter on the far side and deserved a card. However, Soto's reaction was to punch Henning while they tangled on the ground and earn himself a red card. For Mike Henning, it would be his second red card of the season, issued on the day of his return from a suspension. He would also be helped off the field as he picked up a slight injury while tangling with Soto.
Hershey would not be able to capitalize as the referee added almost no extra time on to the period despite the ejections and resulting injuries lasting at least two minutes. The Wildcats protested to no avail after the whistle.
This was another example of the poor quality of refereeing in the A-League. Poor decisions aggravated both teams, although Atlanta was more often the victim of these calls, the most questionable being the red card against Josh Henderson. The referee, throughout the match however, showed either a profound ignorance for the Laws of the Game or outright refusal to call fouls unless it was too blatant to ignore. When he did call a foul, it was usually to issue a card as six players went into the book and three were sent off.
Attendance was 1,241.
