In a second half oriented game, the Union and Orlando City drew 2-2 in Orlando in a game that could have gone either way. The Union went into the game with the same strategy they usually use. Coach Jim Curtin wants to get numbers in the box, and get service to his big forwards, CJ Sapong, Christ Pontius, and Sebastein Le Toux. Meanwhile Orlando played a similar style, however with Kaka in their line-up, much more play is ended up through the middle of the park.
Union’s Josh Yaro picked up a shoulder injury late in the first half, which allowed Ken Tribbet on the field. Tribbet ended up scoring the equalizer and serving the initial pass on the first Union goal. Yaro has been kept on the roster for the game Saturday against the Colorado Rapids, which mean his injury might not be serious enough to warrant being sent home.
Lets look at how the game broke down.
Cross-header back across the goal-shot-goal:
This has been Curtin’s bread and butter this year and we saw it once again on Wednesday. Ken Tribbet has shown tremendous technical skill out of the back before his injury, and his performance as a sub proved his value to the team. Yaro and Tribbet have been playing well, giving Curtin a selection headache. On one hand Yaro is the more physical player, and offers pace in deep areas, on the other hand Tribbet is a larger player, and stronger in the air, as well as the more technical of the two.
Tribbet played a simple deep ball into the far side of the box. Pontius, doing what he has done in the box all year, rose above the defenders and put a beautiful header to Barnetta who just had to tap it into the back of the net. This is as simple as plays come, yet one of the more difficult to defend, especially as a goalkeeper. Bendik had no chance once the ball reached Barnetta. Orlando should have done better to prevent this goal, however. Mateos is in a good position, but does not noticing the threat of Barnetta. Kevin Alston is mismatched on Pontius, who won the initial header, while Tom Redding was occupied with Sapong. Mateos initially comes over to help with Sapong, who clears away after the Pontius header to get the second ball, which leaves Barnetta open. Left back Brek Shea is the one who should have been there to defend Barnetta, but he fails to tuck in, which leaves Barnetta in acres of space at the far post. Credit should be given to Pontius, his header was absolutely perfect. Had he put any more or less distance on hit, the ball surely would have been cleared.
One of those things
The Orlando goals were just one of those things for the Union. Both have been highly debated but the one that sticks out is the first goal. Perhaps Blake could have punched the ball while going into traffic, perhaps Fabinho and Marquez should have shielded Cyle Larin away from their keeper, perhaps it was a foul. Perhaps, perhaps. In the end it was a goal, as the ref saw that Blake collided with his own defenders. Had he gotten a second angle he may have seen that it was in fact Larin that took Blake down.
The ref should have gotten control of the game much earlier than the 92nd minute. The red card issued to Mateos was one that could also have been questionable given the contact. However the fact is that he raised his studs into Fabian Herbers, which is undeniably a red card, whether or not contact is direct. This is one of the good call the ref made this game, he was wildly inconsistent, however given the situation and the rising tempers, I cannot fault him. This is because I do not think I would have done any better, nor most people who would easily criticize him for that matter. In a game such as this one it is usually better for the official to get things under control early. Several occasions saw an Orlando player lash out at a Union player off the ball, while both teams saw fit to delay the game by kicking the ball away at any stoppage.
The ref did call the penalty correctly, and for that I will give him credit. Blake obviously did not want to make contact and did his best to avoid it all-together. Unfortunately for him he does catch Kaka on the leg and trips him up in his follow through. The ref recognized it was a foul, but not a card. Blake did not prevent an easy goal scoring opportunity, as Kaka’s touch took him wide of the net, and thus why no card was given.
Had the ref given the Union ALL the calls they wanted, perhaps Fabinho would be let off the hook. As it stands he probably should have done better on both the goals. Each time he allows Larin to go by him too easily. On either goal, Marquez had no idea where Larin or Blake were and can’t be at fault. Fabinho however had Larin in front of him, and should have done more to slow down the prolific forward, preventing him from getting into the danger zones.
Conclusion:
Each of the goals Wednesday night were scrappy. Neither team took control of the game, and a 2-2 draw was a fair result. There are always things to complain about, what ifs. When it comes down to it the Union didn’t earn the victory, and even though they will feel hard done by the result, they can be content with a point on the road, and will need to improve when the get to league leaders Colorado.
