Game Report: Jack Walsh Tournament

GAME 1 (Cheltenham)

Over the years, the Maroon boys have struggled with early morning games. Blame it on late night partying, decaf coffee, or simple biology - teenage boys aren't meant to be awake at dawn on a Saturday. (Then again, the same has always been true of the other teams....)

Given the team's history of morning sluggishness, it was a relief to see ACU post up two goals in the first six minutes of the Jack Walsh Tournament. Facing off against a local squad from Cheltenham, the ailing Kyle M (stomach bug) came on the field, took care of business with a header into the net on a setup from Jimmy G on the left side (2'), and came out of the game soon after that. Jimmy started up his own personal tournament goal factory with a run from the top of the box (6'), assisted by Michael P. ACU dominated possession during the rest of the half, making 21 visits to the attacking third of the field, but took only two more shots (Jimmy G, 16', and Ricky C, 19'). United held Cheltenham to one corner kick and zero shots on goal in the half, leaving Connor C with a lot of free time in goal.

Cheltenham did some waking up of its own to start the second half, taking its first shot on goal in the 27th minute and forcing another corner kick two minutes later. ACU's defense withstood the early attack, helped by deft footwork and strong physical presence from John C. Maroon steadily put Cheltenham back on their heels, with Jimmy G, Ricky C, and Brad T all taking shots during the rest of the half. ACU capped the win with a penalty kick by Michael P in the 40th minute. Final score ACU 3:0 Cheltenham.


GAME 2 (HUNTER STRIKERS)

The second game on Saturday saw ACU match up against the Hunter Strikers, a U-13 elite team from Delco playing up in the U-14 bracket for this tournament. The Strikers brought a high-tempo playing style to the early minutes, drawing two corner kicks in the first two minutes and notching two shots on goal in the 6th minute. Age, guile, and brute force will usually prevail over youth and beauty, and the Maroon boys dug in for a long defensive fight. Jimmy G landed two shots on goal (6' and 11') early in the half, and finally broke through on a long unassisted run to the goal (21') off a beautiful service from Andy A. ACU yielded three other corner kicks in the half, but the defense and keeper Connor C held the Strikers at bay.

The balance of power continued to shift in favor of AC United with the second half, as Kyle M (27'), Nathan A (28'), and Jimmy G (29') launched attacks that all led to shots on goal. Hunter regained its footing briefly, and took their lone shot on goal for the second half (31'), before the game settled once again into a defensive struggle. Jimmy G (39') and Brad T (40') got in a few more licks later in the half, but there would be no more back-of-the-net joy for either team. Final score ACU 1:0 Hunter.


GAME 3 (CRUSA)

Another morning match, another surprisingly feisty performance from the Maroon men. Jimmy G lit up CRUSA for the first goal of the match (6') with an unassisted run straight up the center of the field. Kyle M found the back of the net just two minutes later on a Michael P assist. This CRUSA side, which ACU last faced in the 2008 ICSL regular season, had few answers for United, taking two shots on goal in the first half (10' and 20') and giving up a total of five corner kicks in the match. In the 'feisty' department, Nick P and Nick S rung up matching fouls for pushing in the opening minutes of the match, and Jacob R drew an offside call for having the nerve to make a run for the goal in the 13th minute. Nick P would go on to earn a yellow card (40') in the second half for his... enthusiastic defense. Both teams struggled throughout the match with slippery field conditions because of morning dew, as well as wicked sun glare behind the ACU goal in the first half.

Kyle M opened up the second half with a goal (27') that appeared to put the finishing touches on a third straight ACU shutout. Kyle would take a total of six shots in a match that turned into a shot-fest for ACU, with Andy A (3 shots), Connor C (2), John C (1), Nick P (1), and Brad T (1) all looking for net-swishing glory. However, in the final minutes of the match, CRUSA broke the ACU shutout spell with a goal (49') on a free kick from the top of the box. Until that point, ACU had played 149 minutes of shutout soccer in the tournament, which is surely a record for this team. Final score ACU 3:1 CRUSA.

We were in.


CHAMPIONSHIP (FOX CHASE)

The final match turned out to be a game to remember, in every sense of the phrase. Three things you don't see every day in U-14 soccer: Six yellow cards and an ejection. A coach ejected at halftime. And a golden goal in the last minute of overtime to put ACU over the top.

Fox Chase, like Hunter Strikers, is an elite U-13 team that played up for this tournament, and came out of the other half of the U-14 bracket to face ACU in the champs. Both teams opened the action with energy and focus. Kyle M launched two shots in the first two minutes of the match, and Fox Chase tested keeper Connor C early with their first shot in the 3rd minute. Moments later, Fox Chase drew first blood with a goal (4') on a corner kick. For the first time in the tournament, ACU would play from behind. It didn't take long for Maroon to answer. Jimmy G, eager to keep his name atop the Golden Boot standings for the tournament, parked a goal in the back of the net (8') on an assist from Nick S. The two sides then settled into a back-and-forth possession game, with Andy A (10'), Jimmy G (14' and 19'), and Nathan A (24') taking occasional pot shots at the goal. Jimmy G also opened the yellow card party with a warning in the 23rd minute, followed by a Fox Chase yellow in the 25th minute.

Tensions were running high both on and around the field. The ref had warned the parents at the beginning of the match that any inappropriate commentary would lead to him sending all spectators to the parking lot. ACU suffered a coach ejection at halftime for comments made from the sideline. Little did either side know that by the end of the match, the first half would look like a pleasant, low-key scrimmage when compared to the second half and overtime.

Fox Chase staged a repeat of the first half, winning a goal on a corner kick (33') to put them ahead once more. Remarkably, other than the set piece goal, Fox Chase would take only one more shot on goal in the half, a shot that was saved with some aggressive goalkeeping by Connor C. Fox Chase started surrendering corner kicks, yielding a total of five in the second half. Then, an unusual turn of events: Nathan A was ejected, and Fox Chase warned, for a scuffle near midfield in the 43rd minute. Kyle M scored on the restart of play to bring ACU back to level. But the Maroon men would now have to play a man down for the last 17 minutes of regulation.

Both teams scrapped for the ball. Fox Chase added two more yellow cards to its collection. Nick S drew a yellow card (55') for aggressive play in the right back corner, with Kyle M and Brad T drawing fouls for physical play in the next couple minutes. As the end of regulation neared, both teams made desperate attempts to sneak across the finish line, to no avail.

Tournament rules called for a 10-minute 'golden goal' overtime, to be followed by penalty kicks if there was no winning goal during the OT. Hunter went on the attack in the first minute, only to be turned back. ACU went down to the other end a minute later and forced a corner kick, with no result. Remarkably, in the 10-minute overtime, the two teams committed six fouls, four of which were called on Fox Chase. The last of these, in the 10th minute of OT, set up Jimmy G with a free kick at the top of the Fox Chase box. Done. The Goal Machine from Maple Glen swished the net, the team that played a man down for 27 minutes finished the job once and for all, and the ACU sideline went crazy.

The scariest moment of the entire match might have been in the 9th minute of overtime, when Fox Chase teed up a corner kick, its third of the match. The first two had resulted in goals. AC United held them off, got the win, and brought home the hardware.