Indy Eleven vs Atlanta United 2 - 08.17

 

Summary

- Opponent: Atlanta United 2
- Location: Fifth Third Bank Stadium
- Attendance: 677
- Final Score: 6-2 L

- Starting XI: Dick, Buckmaster, Ouimette, Timmer, Seagrist, Sissoko, Ayoze (C), Law, Wild, Hamilton, Arteaga
- Substitutions: Moon (Hamilton 45'); Vassell (Sissoko 45'); Cochran (Ouimette 62'); Hackshaw (Seagrist 62'); Gutjahr (Arteaga 75'); Timmer (Out due to INJURY 86')
- Unused: Farr, Malic

- Scoring Summary:
ATL2 - Wolff 1' (scored in 10 seconds by blocking clearance from Dick)
ATL2 - Wolff 6' (assist Matheus)
ATL2 - Wolff 50'
IND - Moon 51' (assist Ayoze)
ATL2 - Matheus 53' (assist Wiley)
ATL2 - Diop 58' (assist Wolff)
IND - Vassell 61'
ATL2 - Mejia 90'+5' (assist Goodrum)

- Bookings:
ATL2 - Matheus 18' (Yellow)
IND - Wild 45'+1' (Yellow)
ATL2 - Bauer 77' (Yellow)

- Referee: William Steffen
- Adage goals: SIX!!

Thoughts and Opinions

As I've watched games over the years, I have wondered why teams (including Indy) take the kick-off and proceed to blast it down the field when they want to play a possession style of soccer. Why give up the ball so quickly when your game plan consists of you holding as much possession as possible to work your way towards the opponent's goal. So why have the first possession and immediately give it away?

Now I know why. 

The previous record for the quickest goal Indy has allowed was 26 seconds from a goal by Fafa Picault in a 2-1 loss to the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in September of 2014 (sidenote: Picault is now playing alongside former Indy Eleven goal scorer Tyler Pasher in Houston). This new record of 10 seconds is going to be tough to beat. 

Let's be honest, this game was more or less garbage for the Indy Eleven from literal start to finish. A goal within 10 seconds of the opening whistle and a goal within 1 minute of the closing whistle. Throw in another goal within 5 minutes of the first goal and a rash of goals within the first 15 minutes of the halftime whistle and these two teams took the old "adage" goal to the extreme. All eight goals were scored within 5 minutes of a starting, ending, or goal scoring whistle. 

If I'm being further honest, I pretty much checked out of this game not long after Indy gave up the second goal. So if you're here for a significant tactical evaluation of this game, I'm sorry to disappoint you. As Peter Wilt once said to me, "Thank you for your writing and for your insights Drew. Yours is not to break news or even always to analyze news. Sometimes it is to share experiences and perspectives unique to you." 

In that vein, my experience with this game is to not think about it any more than is required. Hopefully, it's a one-off "rough night at the office" that gives the guys a wake-up call. Or maybe it's just the start of a downward spiral to the basement of the table. We won't know until the guys suit up again on Saturday against OKC. However, the club has had three previous games where they allowed at least 5 goals:

1. 5 - 1 loss to Minnesota United FC in August 2014
2. 7 - 1 loss to Fort Lauderdale Strikers in August 2015
3. 5 - 0 loss to North Carolina FC in October 2017

In two of those three games, Indy went on to lose the next game as well. The one common denominator between all of those losses is that they occurred in losing seasons. While Indy just reached the midpoint of this season, a losing season is something they are flirting with doing as well, despite all of the talent and glimpses that we've seen to date. 

Indy head back to the "less than friendly this year" confines of Carroll Stadium on Saturday to take on OKC, whom Indy split the points with back in June and were in the process of tying a few games ago on "the night the lights went out in Georgia" Oklahoma. Indy needs, both for their standings in the table and for their confidence, to find a win in front of their home crowd on Saturday. With the trajectory of the results lately, I'm not that confident. 

The Game Beckons Game Ball

In a 6-2 loss, it feels like it should be difficult to pick a person for the GBGB, particularly when the stats tell you that no player should get it. Yet, it was in the highlight reel that it became clear to me what player should get it.

Jordan Farr.

Down 5 - 2, with the player with Indy's third highest minutes total being literally carried off the field, Jordan ran onto the field, grabbed the trainer's bags, and carried them off the field to them. Jordan is a teammate that you want playing for your club, but more importantly, he's the kind of person that you want representing your club. He's just a good person who cares about his teammates and the fans who support the team on which he plays. At some point, Jordan is going to move on from Indy and while he may not have eye-catching statistics nor the number of games as the guys who have come before him, he will be missed by Indy Eleven fans.