Summary- Opponent: FC Tulsa
- Location: ONEOK Field
- Attendance: -
- Final Score: 0-0 D
- Starting XI: Sulte, O'Brien, J., Chapman-Page, Diz Pe, Mines, Stanley, Gibson, Lindley (C), Guenzatti, Martinez, Williams, R.
- Substitution: Williams, A. 60' (Guenzatti); Neidlinger 60' (Mines); Ofeimu 60' (Chapman-Page); Henderlong 81' (Williams, R.); Sanchez 89' (Lindley)
- Unused: Oettl
- Scoring Summary:
"you don't score until you score"
- Bookings:
TUL - Goodrum 26' (Yellow)
IND - Chapman-Page 27' (Yellow)
TUL - Laszo 47' (Yellow)
TUL - Sinclair 52' (Yellow)
IND - Diz Pe 58' (Yellow)
IND - O'Brien, J. 72' (Yellow)
IND - Ofeimu 79' (Yellow)
- Referee: Lorenzo Hernandez
- Adage goals: None
Thoughts and Opinions
I'll likely say it forever because it seems like it will never go away, but I sure do hate soccer games in baseball fields. Carroll Stadium isn't perfect, obviously, and Lucas Oil Stadium, again obviously, had football lines, but at least the turf is permanent and doesn't have transitions from permanent grass to temporary grass. That being said, Tulsa's field at least looked reasonable.
As far as the play on that field, I would like to say that it was exciting soccer to watch in the first half. I would like to say that. What I will say is that both teams were on the field.
Shots were rare. Shots on target were even more rare. Between the two teams, Indy was the only one to put a shot on target, and managed that late in the half from a Stanley knuckler that Penaranda was able to easily parry away. That shot from Stanley broke a 33-minute drought from Indy after getting three early looks at the goal. Tulsa held a possession advantage, but mostly in unthreatening areas and didn't do much with it, getting just two shots in the half.
The second half wasn't much different. Both teams played a lot of this game in the middle third of the field. Neither was overly successful in their offensive third of the game. Was it great defense from both teams or just good defense on mediocre offenses? I would tend to lean towards the latter. Indy managed just one more shot on target, giving them two for the game, while Tulsa didn't have any an official shot on target despite Goodrum getting close a couple of times. After going the first 18 games across all competitions scoring a goal, Indy have now been held scoreless in back-to-back games and for the third time in six games. With Indy's talent up top and Stanley's ability to serve in a good ball, the recent lack of goals is a bit perplexing. Though Stanley has now gone 7 league games without an assist.
The two teams finished with a fairly deserved nil-nil draw. One set of fans (Tulsa) are okay with that result due to their place in the Western Conference table, and the other set of fans (Indy) feel like the point on the road might not have been enough. The Tulsa announcers periodically said that the game was going to need a moment of brilliance from somebody. That moment of brillance didn't materialize for either team and both teams get a single point for their efforts.
For what it's worth, unofficially, tonight's start for Gibson moved him past Vukovic for club starts, putting him at 8th in the club history. By playing >15 minutes, he also surpassed club legend Don Smart for minutes played. Lindley is now also 1 game away from matching Dylan Mares for club starts.
Indy returns to action in back-to-back Friday games when they travel to Charleston next weekend.
The Game Beckons Game Ball
Goodrum requires a hell of an effort from defenders to keep him off the board. He forces all the backline to stay aware of his presence and other players' runs away from the ball. For his defense against Goodrum late in the game and just an overall good performance, Diz Pe gets tonight's GBGB.
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