- Location: Tampa Bay, Florida
- Attendance: 4,691
- Final Score: 1-1 D
- Starting XI: Cardona, Franco, Miller, Norales, Frias, Smart, Pena, Steinberger, Lacroix, Mares, Brown
- Substitutions: Richards 63' (Brown), Keller 86' (Pena), Stojkov 70' (Pena)
- Unused: Nicht, Janicki, Pineda, Dawson
- Goals: Frias 70'
- Bookings: None
- Adage goals: None
These Wednesday games on One World Sports, where I can't record the game or easily find a replay and have a poor internet connection for the first viewing make it difficult to write as well as I normally like to do so I'm going to keep this fairly basic.
While it's nice to not write about an Eleven loss, ties just aren't going to get them into the playoffs at this point. Wins and many of them in succession are all that is going to get it done. That being said, after the first 15 minutes of the game where the Rowdies had multiple chances at getting on the board early, and then falling behind, it's good to see them stick with it and get the equalizer.
The Rowdies' goal was one of the most mind-boggling defensive decisions by Norales that I have seen all season from him. He was ideally placed to head the ball out and just stopped and let it go right over him. In the replay, it appears almost as if he thought somebody called him off of it. To me, that's a function of the combinations of backline and goalie that the Eleven have had to enlist in the last couple of months due to injuries and suspensions.
It was good to see Sergio "From Distance" Pena back in the lineup and basically do a full 90 minutes (yeah, I just made up that nickname). He's a big body that this team has lacked in his absence and proved once again that he is unafraid to shoot on goal.
While Steinberger's presence on the roster coincided with Mares' injury, this was the combination that I was most excited to see function after seeing the starting lineup. While Mares was listed as a forward, his interplay with Steinberger showed glimpses of what could have been with both of them on the field consistently. They are both fantastic on the ball and they seemed just a bit out of sync with one another, but I hope their pairing continues because I think their vision is going to create chances. I would be remiss if I didn't mention that it was Mares who tracked back and blocked an unmarked Adu shot on goal from the 6-yard line in the 10th minute. That's a good run by a player who has barely seen the field in recent months.
If the rest of the guys take the shots when they are available... I thought that Doug Starnes verbalized it well on the Frias goal. Simple, but exactly to the point.
Good things happen when you take a chance. Well done, @jfrias_3! @IndyEleven
— Grass In The Sky (@GrassInTheSky1) October 1, 2015
The Eleven need to take their point and head to Jacksonville to try and come home with four points in their suitcases.Highlights:
1 comment:
I wasn't able to turn on the game until just as Frias scored, so I didn't see Tampa Bay's goal until much later. And you're right, that's simply a mind-boggling lapse on Norales' part.
Regan continues to make some odd lineup choices, but I assume that what happened here--in particular, the omission of Richards from he starting lineup--was dictated in part by the fact that the team was facing another game a few days later.
To be honest, I'm just about ready or the season to be over. Don't get me wrong, I still derive significant pleasure from he mere fact that we have a team an that I can watch professional soccer in my hometown. But it's pretty clear that this particular assemblage is not going to progress significantly. I'm eager to see what comes next.
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