A short, severe shower at the start of the second half was the heavenly pouring for a Jersey Express exalting 1-0 triumph over Reading United AC in their Mid-Atlantic Division play-in match-up on Tuesday, July 26. Blessed by a Robert Youhill lone goal in blinding rain at Reading’s Don Thomas Stadium, the Express now continue their ascension to PDL glory.
It was a special happenstance by Youhill who came up big in this first post-season game just like his strike in Jersey’s mid-May regular season opener. “This one is more of a team win than anything else,” said the midfielder. “The ball popped out to me and I just hit it, and that was the difference tonight. We’re happy.”
The goal came after a testing first half where the teams fought gamely to pierce each other’s sturdy defense wall. Seemingly baptized by the showers, Jersey controlled the water-drenched opening minutes of the second stanza, and sang their praises to Youhill who converted the chance created by striker Abdoulaye Coulibaly. Like rain gods, Tlaloc and Zeus, the two out-maneuvered Reading’s defense to sustain possession of the ball in the box.
The speedy Youhill who has an atypical leaning posture over the ball when in full throttle, became the ‘hidden dragon’ instead of ‘crouching tiger’. He was literally uncontested when he blast the winner into the ole onion bag after Coulibaly back headed the slippery sphere towards Reading’s goal.
The already visibly evident downpour became equally audible as the partisan 300-plus crowd were hushed; their earlier avid cheering dampened by Jersey’s 50th minute strike.
“It all came when it matter,” noted General Manager Gali Maimon, adding that his club exhibited their patient, but confident task of improving their play against the previously lasting league leaders. Jersey smarted from their only home loss of the season – a 3-1 misfortune on June 23 – to a goalless stalemate then to this remarkable win, both in their opponents’ backyard.
The elation was special for the 4-year old franchise whose entry into the league was cut short of being phenomenal when Reading handed them an extra time loss in the 2008 Conference semifinals.
But, now Jersey savors the victory as a ‘bounce backs’ of sorts, according to club chairman, Joe Branco. “Since then we have done very well here. Now we have, I think, two wins and a tie …so that’s a pretty good record considering the quality of the team that Reading always puts on the field,” he said, recalling the team’s away showing. “But, we are happy with the win. We are happy that we are going to the playoffs at the weekend, and you know I think we are going to do well.”
As the rain subsided Reading pressed for an equalizer. Urged on mainly by several ‘stadium seated’ coaches and a band of very vocal lead cheerers amongst the fans, the homesters went all out especially in the dying stages looking for an equalizer.
In apparent angst to salvage their once promising season that catapulted into dastardly demise, Reading got their full-11, including goalie Brian Holt into attack mode. But, their failure to finish opened up Jersey’s counters. Two times Jersey almost netted insurance goals, but for the yeoman service of Holt.
First, the diminutive goalie parried striker Joseph Ovenseri’s 18-yard blast in the 81st minute. He tipped the ball which hit the crossbar and bounced near the goal line before being cleared out – a chain of events that had the markings of a goal. Then in stoppage time, midfielder Ansger Otto had a well-timed breakaway in tandem with Coulibaly and Kadeem Dacres, but he played the ball too far ahead allowing an advancing Holt to stop the chance. Otto rued that prospect of driving another nail in the Reading coffin.
Jersey’s 2010 Goalkeeper of the Year Ryan Meara stood stout with his defenseline of Chris Edwards, Shaun Foster, Mike Konicoff, Mike Mazzullo and Joe Ruesgen to turn back every Reading challenge. The homesters had one less shot to goal than Jersey’s six, but Meara only worked a sweat on one when he leapt to punch the ball out from a dangerous overhead pass in the 87th minute. Jersey also had a nine to five ratio (6:1 in first half) on corner kicks.
After three minutes of stoppage time, referee John Douglas’ repeated tweets came with the 1 being the only natural number on the scoreboard LED’s, besides the ‘2’ in the ‘Quarter’ frame. Amazingly all four qualifying games played on the day ended in shutout wins with three having just the solitary goal. The blanking by Jersey is their eleventh in 17 games this season
Those stats prompted Allen Hartman, one of a handful of Jersey supporters, to praise the team’s all-round performance. He agreed to the undeniable sports doctrine that “you can’t lose if you don’t let the other team score.” Maimon, too, added a piece for his emotionally calm head coach George Vichniakov, who seemed to have exhausted his fervor on the sidelines while marshalling his players. “George was excellent and he got the same out of the guys for this win. They deserve it”.
“The guys did a wonderful job. They took care of what they know they are capable of, and we are just focused on the next game,” was all the chameleonic Vichniakov finally offered in quite confidence to the tasks ahead. He looks to will his team onto greater heights as they prep for the Conference semifinals (National ‘Sweet-16’) this Friday (July 29th) hosted by Long Island Rough Riders in New York.
The Express will be the ‘home team’ to Carolina Dynamo, the South Atlantic division‘s #1 side, in the first of a double header of semis from 5:30pm at the Cy Donnelly Stadium (St. Anthony’s High School), South Huntington.
Assistant Manager Eric Maimon who administers the team’s players-of-the-game selections, continued his recent espousal of naming everyone in the squad as vital contributors. “They all had significant roles in the last set of games. At this stage everyone wins when the team wins. It’s team effort. It’s all about our motto,” he said after being front and center motivating from the side, though he was feeling under the weather. The younger Maimon was referring to the club’s credo: ‘Unity Is Strength’.
And, it underlines what goal scorer Youhill had earlier conceded that: “We only gonna’ win as a team”.
Jersey Team: Meara, Edwards, Foster, Konicoff, Mazzullo, Ruesgen, Andrew Konopelsky, Josh Trott, Will Stamatis, Youhill, Dacres, Coulibaly, Otto, Ovenseri, Louis Niouky, Idris Mashriqi, John Londono, Chris Karcz – players; Vichniakov, Dudi Gil, Lucio Russo – coaches.
