Saturday evening signaled the beginning of a new season for the Atlanta Silverbacks. And after a tumultuous and controversial offseason the 'Backs were intent on getting off to a good start in 2003. But a matchup with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, one of the more talented teams in the A-league, led many to believe that opening night would be a dissappointment. But the 'Backs silenced a few of their critics with a solid performance, and their efforts were rewarded with a hard fought 2-2 draw.
The Hounds got off to a great start when they notched the opening goal just four minutes in when Thiago Martins found Corey Woolfolk behind the Silverbacks defense. With only newly signed goalkeeper Anthony Topkah to beat, Woolfolk calmly sent the ball into the back of the net.
Many believed the early netter spelled the beginning of a blowout. But the 'Backs fought back, and they were nearly rewarded in the 12th when a brilliant ball from midfielder Erik Ozimek to Martin Klinger left the former NY/NJ Metrostars striker just behind the defense. Klinger entered the box with a defender pressuring him from his left, he blasted the ball over the near post.
The 'Backs kept fighting, and in the 25th their hard work was finally rewarded with the equalizer. Joard Odera's brilliant cross was an essential ingredient in the goal, and John Barry Nusum met the cross with a fantastic header that beat T.J. Hannig to his left, and the score was deadlocked at 1.
Just as the 'Backs did earlier, the Hounds played well after getting scored on. In the 29th, Gary Depalma's 25 yard blast sailed over the bar, and in the 35th, Topkah made a magnificent diving save to deny Aleksey Korol.
The second half was an extremely physical battle between two seemingly evenly matched sides. The 'Backs snatched the lead in the 69th when Nusum made a steal in midfield and sent the ball wide to winger Ramon Luna. Luna made a nice run down the line, and then played drop to Byron Mitchell, Mitchell's cross left Shaker Asad with little work to do, as a simple full volley from two yards out gave Atlanta their first lead of the match.
But a questionable call led to the tying goal only 7 minutes later. After a Riverhound shot was blocked, the ball bounced around in the box for a few seconds as the 'Backs tried to clear the ball, and the Hounds tried to get a shot off, the ball took an unlucky bounce and struck an Atlanta defender in the hand. Although the handball was clearly inadvertent, and hardly effected the play, the referee pointed to the spot. Topkah guessed right on Thiago Martins' ensuing penalty, but the ball was perfectly placed, and the match was tied once again.
Topkah denied the Hounds yet again when he denied Ricardo Villar in the 83rd, and the match went into overtime.
Pittsburgh dominated in overtime, and Martins should have finished off Atlanta in the 92nd when his wide open header from the top of the 6 was saved by Topkah. Martins should have done better with the chance, but his powerful header lacked the proper placement, and Topkah made the save.
Asad, the hero of the match just 35 minutes earler, made a huge mistake in the 98th when he kicked the ball away before Pittsburgh could take a free kick. The referee was left with no choice but to send Asad off for his second bookable offense of the match. Despite being down a man, Pittsburgh wasn't able to create any chances for the remainder of the match, and although they dominated the final 20 minutes, they would have to settle for a single point.
But the 'Backs had plenty to smile about with the draw, as they proved that this season was not going to go down the drain. If the players continue to work as hard as they did Saturday night, 2003 may be a much more succesfull season than anyone could have expected for the Atlanta Silverbacks.
