Weekend Results

Through Sun April 20

Image credit: Birmingham Legion Facebook

Birmingham Legion FC

Legion were on the road to face Hartford Athletic for a game that looked tailor-made for a team that needs momentum. Last week's win, the first of the season, was an enormous relief for fans and players. The feelings expressed following the win (as seen above) were understandable, but the truth is simple and plain to see: we're not back (yet).

This ended up being a classic trap game, and Birmingham set it for themselves. Hartford had only scored one game during regular season play and they had two key starters that would be out due to red card suspensions. Within that framework, the Legion players and staff were quoted as saying that this was a hard game to prepare for because they didn't know what to expect from the Hartford lineup. So it shouldn't be a surprise that the game played out as advertised.

I've chosen to forego a more traditional recap here. The game was individually less meaningful than what it revealed about the team. Legion is lacking an identity. That shouldn't be a surprise, given that our coach was fired this early in the season. Hartford was down players and didn't have enough bodies for a full bench (Bham knows what that's like). This was a game where Legion should have hit the pitch and played “their game”. Yes, keep Dieng bottled up, which they did very well. But beyond that there was no drive to impose their will on the opponent. The simplest question - what will we do? - was left unasked and unanswered. When Legion is facing a strong opponent that has ingrained tendencies, they tend to do better, leaving Pittsburgh out of that conversation. Lilley-ball is apparently immune. What we need is our own preferred position of strength. Go in against Hartford or the Little Rock Rangers and make them stop us. Too often, Birmingham goes in playing soft. Too quick to cede territory and waiting to see what the other team will do. That goes beyond being a team that's built on counterattacks. On Saturday, Birmingham played without intensity and let Hartford work into the match without worrying about running out of gas. Legion's only shot on target came just before halftime from a free kick. It was a great shot, and a great save by the Harford keeper. By contrast, Hartford managed five shots on target, and Van Oekel made some good saves. Unfortunately, he also lost focus on a ball that should have been easily handled, and it spun across the line for the lone goal of the game. Legion lost 0-1.

The emotional state of the team can't be ignored. The team took it hard when Soehn was fired and it's easy to forget that the uncertainty for what comes next will be weighing heavily on everyone. But the great players on the roster still just haven't really come together as a team. Hopefully a new coach is imminent, as will be some new direction.

Huntsville City FC

Huntsville probably wishes they could play the Chicago Fire 2 every week. The first game of the season saw Huntsville cruise to a 4-1 win against Chicago on the road. Huntsville got on the board first in the 19th minute, and the Fire decided to accelrate things by picking up a red card just a few minutes later. The boys in blue took a 4-0 lead into the half on their way to a dominant 5-0 win.

FC Birmingham

FC Birmingham faced Albion Atlanta on Saturday, trying to turn things around and get another win. Albion were very organized from the start and had FCB under pressure up and down the field. Birmingham was repeatedly caught waiting for passes to arrive, giving Atlanta chances to intercept. The sloppy play led to an early 2-0 lead for Albion, which they carried into halftime.

FCB must have had a spirited discussion in the locker room, and they looked like a different team to start the second half. In the 67th minute, Birmingham put one into the net, and pushing and shoving ensued. An Albion player got a red card from the scuffle, taking them down to ten men. A few minutes later, FCB struck again with a shot from long range. Play intensified as both teams were looking to get a game-winner late. In stoppage time, an Albion player got through the FCB line and chipped the ball in. That was the winner. FC Birmingham loses 2-3.

UMA FC

Image credit: Potros FC

Potros took a 2-0 lead into halftime from a brace by forward Nazario Mbomio. He would pick up the hat trick and hand UMA a 0-3 loss. The three goals give Mbomio six goals for the season.

The Adjacency

I posted a full recap for the Columbus Derby at Southeast Soccer Report. Fountain City struggled to get things going, despite FC Columbus Elite going down to ten men early. Colgaelite put together a dominating 3-0 victory.