The day started early for yours truly as there were things that needed doing 'round the house before I was going to be allowed to head down to the 'Baud to see Charleston open its season against the Riverhounds. Luckily, I finally headed out the door in Columbia and made it to Charleston with plenty of time to spare so I decided to check into the hotel around the corner. Once there I touched base with a-league.com's resident guru, Dan Barnes, to find out that he was across the parking lot with his family in the brand new seafood restaurant that had been built in the past few months. It was quite an honor to meet up with Dan and his family for a bite to eat before afternoon nappies for some.
Anyway, I finally made my way back down to the lobby in time to catch the Los Angeles-Colorado MLS telecast along with Dan. We noticed a tall fellow in a Riverhounds shirt who had sat down to watch a bit of the game and wound up striking up a conversation with a couple that had apparently driven up from the Tampa area to partake of the Battery's season opener. Dan and I finally figured out that the tall 'Hound happened to be defender Michael Green but by then it was time to gather the troops and head over to Blackbaud Stadium.
Setting foot on the property of this stadium made me realize how long the offseason had truly been and how glad I am to have this new season getting into full swing. The first people to greet us were Jim and Kim Gregory while several other Regiment members were soon to show up as well. Then it was off for a pre-game nip at the Three Lions Pub, which is always a sight for any and all newcomers such as Dan's son, Todd and Todd's girlfriend, Joleen.
After a quick bite to eat with Karl and Kit of the Regiment we went down to the Regiment table to purchase tickets for the raffle being held later in the match. They do one of these raffles at every home game and it's always worth buying at least one ticket. Then I just had to make a stop by the Battery Pro Shop where I promptly purchased the new AC Milan-esque Battery away shirt. Oh, and I also purchased an umbrella just to insure that any rain that came would not be too bad.
Finally it was into the stands for kickoff as I waited anxiously for the match to begin. This was what many others and I had been waiting all winter for. As the lineups were announced it was readily apparent that contraction had helped lead to both sides having a fair share of former MLS players. The Riverhounds featured Tim Sahaydak, Michael Green, and Matt Chulis while the Battery had Mark Watson, Andrew Lewis, and Justin Evans in their squad. That's also not counting other former MLS players on the bench for each club. The referee finally signaled for the match to begin and both teams quickly tried to establish themselves on the ball leading to a bit of sloppy play over the first five minutes. Not long after that, though, the Battery began to impose their will upon the game despite a sloppy challenge from Justin Evans leading to his first yellow card caution of the season in the 14th minute.
The opening goal consistently seemed to be only moments away for the Battery especially when Paul Conway headed just wide in the 26th minute while Morgan Zeba had proven to be a danger to the 'Hounds tough defense throughout the first half. The Riverhounds went for more creativity in the 38th minute by subbing in Henry Gutierrez for Jaman Tripoli but he was unable to gain any meaningful amount of possession for the visitors. Terry Phelan played a consistent and outstanding match as he raced from one end of the field to the other cutting out opposing passes and making runs that were only occasionally recognized by his teammates. The Irishman's tireless effort belies the fact of his age and some of his teammates could learn a lot from the veteran and hopefully will as the season moves forward.
Heading into halftime the score remained knotted at 0-0 with a handful of the best chances going to the home side. Seemingly content to counterattack the Riverhounds were never really able to get their offense in gear against Charleston. However, Pittsburgh seemed to have caught the Battery a little flat-footed coming out for the second half as Phil Karn was able to get a pair of shots off in the 48th and 52nd minutes. Then it was back to the control that the Battery had enjoyed for much of the first half.
The bottom nearly fell out for Pittsburgh during a five-minute stretch during the second stanza as the Battery laid siege to Randy Dedini from the 57th minute to the 62nd. A series of various corners and one prolonged flurry in the box lead to several astounding saves from the Riverhounds netminder while several shots were blocked by Michael Green and his mates in the back. Indeed, for large stretches of this match Dedini had little to fear from Paul Conway and other would be attackers who attempted to go in one on one with Green. The former K.C. Wizards player had one of the better games I've seen anyone have as a central defender against the Battery. Green appeared calm and poised throughout the match while taking whatever window was shown to him to snatch the ball away from the offensive player.
The flurry in the box that very nearly resulted in a Battery goal saw shots from Justin Evans, John Wilson, Paul Conway, and Mark Watson turned away. Meanwhile, Morgan Zeba continued to crank in cross after cross from the 17 or more corner kicks that Charleston earned. Henry Gutierrez took some of the pressure off in the 63rd minute when he took a free kick for the 'Hounds approximately 25 yards out from Hudock's goal. The speedy Swede, Zeba, retaliated with a nifty run down the right side, which saw his resulting shot sail over the Pittsburgh goal.
The Riverhounds seemed content to aim for a draw at this point when they took out rookie midfielder Joey Worthen and inserted defender Mario Gori. The momentum was beginning to stall for Charleston as play began to swing back and forth between both clubs with Phil Karn taking a shot on the Battery goal in the 69th minute. Coach Ramsey tried to take that momentum back by taking off Mac Cozier in favor of Raul Diaz Arce in the 71st minute of the match. Once again, though, the Battery were stymied when they were unable to get onto the end of the crosses that came into the box either due to poor positioning or the ability of Dedini to pick them out of the air.
As overtime neared Kai Haaskivi turned to David Flavius who was subbed in for Apple in the 74th minute. Both teams then began to grind things out as they tried to cautiously move forward to score the opening goal while also diligently trying not to give up that precious goal. The match was turning into a taut tug of war between the clubs and frustration was becoming evident when teammates did not do what was expected or calls did not go the player's way. Paul Conway's frustration bubbled over in the 77th minute as a melee ensued at the Pittsburgh end that involved the majority of each team.
In the dying moments Ryan Trout came on for the Battery as John Wilson came off. Trout's fresh legs gave a small spark to the Battery midfield but he was unable to do what was needed to score the goal that the Battery so sorely needed. The best chance during regular time of the match fell to Pittsburgh's Phil Karn as he raced in alone on Dusty Hudock in the 86th minute. Karn passed through the Battery defense who seemed to be trying to pull an offside trap and found himself one on one with Hudock but as the Charleston 'keeper came out to cut down the angle Karn fired his shot just wide of the open goal. This was the last golden opportunity for either club and it was off to overtime to try to decide a winner.
The first overtime period saw Morgan Zeba drill a shot off the cross bar for the Battery while Tim Sahaydak shot wide at the other end for the 'Hounds. Shaker Asad came on for Andrew Lewis and made several nice runs in midfield only to fall short when arriving in the eighteen-yard box. Asad also managed to take home his first yellow of the season before the finish of the first overtime period. Late in the second overtime Raul Diaz Arce finally showed some danger only to send his header over the bar much to the disappointment of the Salvadoran fans who were rocking their little section of the stadium for most of the night despite RDA's belated appearance. Such was the way the match ended and it was off to the Three Lions to talk about the match that we all had just witnessed. Oh, and around midnight it was time to wish Coach Ramsey happy birthday as the gaffer turned 40 on the 28th of April.
Lineups:
Charleston: Dusty Hudock; Terry Phelan, Mark Watson, Linval Dixon, John Wilson (Ryan Trout - 84th); Andrew Lewis (Shaker Asad - 90+), Steve Klein, Justin Evans, Morgan Zeba; Mac Cozier (Raul Diaz Arce - 71st), Paul Conway
Pittsburgh: Randy Dedini; Michael Green, Tim Sahaydak, Matt Chulis, Mike Potteiger, Brian Johnson, Joey Worthen (Mario Gori - 65th), Jaman Tripoli (Henry Gutierrez - 38th), Chris Houser, Mike Apple (David Flavius - 74th), Phil Karn
Men of the Match: Terry Phelan & Michael Green
Fouls: Charleston - 16, Pittsburgh - 15
Cautions: Charleston - Evans, Conway, Asad, Pittsburgh - none
Ejections: none
Shots: Charleston - 15, Pittsburgh - 7
Corners: Charleston - 17, Pittsburgh - 0
Attendance: 3791
Weather: 68, overcast/humid
