FIRE BURNS BUCKS IN LAST SECOND WIN
Season’s first
showdown doesn't disappoint
Bridgeview, IL (June 3, 2010) - The Michigan Bucks and Chicago Fire have been battling for nearly a decade. Each season the two Premier Development League (PDL) powerhouses battle for players, wins and supremacy at the top of the Great Lakes Division. The two clubs have had more players drafted to Major League Soccer than any other PDL teams in history. Taking Thursday’s stanza to the final seconds was no surprise to anyone. The Fire came away with a last second goal to take the first meeting of the season 2-1 in dramatic fashion. The two teams started the first ten minutes getting the feel for the game and the two formations. It didn’t take long for the Bucks to get into their season norm of dominating the first half of play. Unfortunately, the Bucks have had little success in finishing chances in the opening stanza. Forwards Kenny Uzoigwe, Andy Lorei and Rubin Bega (MichiganState) combined for eight first half chances to only two for the Fire but could not get a shot past Fire keeper David Meves (Akron), who made three saves. The first half ended 0-0, but the score did not indicate the intensity of the match.
The Bucks came out the aggressor in the beginning of the second half and finally broke the deadlock when right back Kofi Sarkodie (Akron) made a twenty yard run through the defense and slid a nice ball through to Rubin Bega (Michigan State), who slipped his shot into the back of the net past Meves for a 1-0 Michigan lead in the 54th minute. The goal seemed to give the Bucks confidence for about five minutes or so as they knocked the ball around the mid field. The Fire substituted two MSU Spartans of their own in Dominic Barone and Cyrus Saydee, who jump started the offensive attack shortly after they fell behind. In the 63rd minute, Barone took a pass from Sam Redmond and slotted a shot that banged in off the far post to knot the score at 1-1. The strike gave the Fire confidence and they took advantage of the Bucks sitting back on defense and unleashed a fifteen minute attack on Bucks goal keeper Mitch Hildebrandt (Oakland). The Livonia native stood strong under the attack and managed to make five saves to keep the score all square into the closing minutes.
While most teams would have been happy with killing off the last five minutes of a 1-1 tie, both the Bucks and Fire decided to throw caution to the wind and go for the three points. Bucks second half substitution Stefan St. Louis (Oakland) had a couple of good chances, including a shot that sailed over the bar in the 89th minute. But it was the Fire’s final counterattack of the evening that proved to be the killer for the Bucks. In the 94th minute, Chicago sent what seemed like a routine shot at goal. Hildebrandt came out to make the save, only to bobble the ball and leave it at the feet of Fire midfielder Mark Blades who knocked the loose ball into the open net as time expired. The loss left the Bucks record at 3-2 on the season, while Chicago jumped ahead in the standings with a record of 3-1-1.
Bucks coach Gary Parsons was naturally disappointed with the second half defensive miscues, but seemed ready to move on. “It was a classic Bucks-Fire game; one that exemplifies what the PDL is all about. It was a shame that either team had to lose, but this can be a cruel game. I feel bad for Mitch. He has been a solid force for us in goal all season and this was the first mistake he made all year. Unfortunately, when you play in a game of this magnitude, you cannot afford to make a mistake. We all need to learn from it and move forward,” said Parsons. On the notion that his team tried to sit on a one goal lead, the first year coach added, “We knew we were short handed offensively tonight missing Ben (Speas), Scott (Caldwell), Tommy (Catalano) and Mauro (Fuzetti). If we have those options in the last thirty minutes, I suspect you would see a whole lot more second half offense. Having said that, if you would have told me that we would go into the last thirty minutes of this game today with this team and a1-0 lead, I would take that all day long. Our team hasn’t given up two goals in two games, much less in thirty minutes. Give Chicago credit. They are well coached and were highly motivated to win tonight.”The Bucks look to get back on track on Saturday night when they return home to Ultimate Soccer Arenas to take on the Cleveland Internationals (7:30 kickoff). The game is sponsored by the Michigan State Youth Soccer Association (MSYSA) and the association is encouraging all youth players to wear their team jersey to the match. Tickets are available at the door and are $10 Adult and $7 Youth (15 and under). Children 5 and under are always free to Bucks game.
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