Tough defending and two Jack Panayotou assists powered recently crowned USL Jägermeister Cup champions to a 2-1 victory over Oakland Roots on the road.
The California side started out with a bang, testing Hartford goalkeeper John Berner from the get-go. In the fourth minute, Joe Farrell was able to clear a potentially threatening cross but Camden Riley found the ball and fired off a one-touch shot. Although not too powerful, Riley’s shot was dropping just under the bar when Berner leapt to get a hand to it and push the ball over the crossbar.
Hartford worked the ball into Roots’ defensive third several times but was unable to find a shot on goal.
Just about halfway through the first half, Oakland had a dangerous chance at goal but the Hartford defense was able to clear the attempt out of danger. Adrían Diz Pe made the initial clearance and then Joe Farrell made a diving block to protect his side’s goal.
In the 31st minute, Peter Wilson put Roots on the scoreboard by netting his 14th goal of the regular season – his 10th in the past nine appearances.
A quick one-touch cross from Camden Riley slipped through several bodies in the box and found its way to Wilson who was able to bury the ball in the back of the net to put the home team up 1-0 just after the half-hour mark.
The Monrovia, Liberia native continued to cause problems for the Athletic backline, almost getting on the end of another cross just minutes later and finding himself in front of goal a few more times before the end of the half.
Hartford’s defense held strong and kept the California side to one going into the locker rooms for halftime.
The second half saw the Green & Blue come out hungry for a goal, as Head Coach Brendan Burke’s side began hammering the Oakland backline soon after retaking the field.
In the 55th minute, Panayotou turned his defender and took off down the sidelines. He fired off a cross, which slipped under a defender’s foot and fell to Baboucarr Njie. The Gambian defender got on the end of it but goalkeeper Raphael Spiegel parried it wide.
The ensuing corner turned out to be just the opportunity that the Boys in Green needed, as Joshua Belluz’s 6’5” frame sailed above everyone else to get a head on the end of the service and redirect it into the back of the net to level the score at one.
Just past the hour mark, Kyle Edwards scored his eighth goal off the bench – setting a USL Championship single season record for goals as a substitute – to put Hartford up by one.
Jack Panayotou started the play by charging at the Oakland backline on the dribble. As the defenders moved to stop him, the New England Revolution loanee dished the ball to a wide open Edwards, who had made the perfect overlapping run. Hartford’s super-sub showed how he earned that nickname by calmly sliding the ball past Spiegel.
The Boys in Green fought with everything they had to defend the lead for the final 30 minutes, even as Oakland Roots relentlessly pounded the goal.
With seconds left in the game and completely against the run of play, Beverly Makangila provided an insurance goal for Hartford. Michee Ngalina received the ball in the left corner and spun his defender with some tricky footwork. He played the ball to Samuel Careaga who passed it along to Makangila. Athletic’s #6 ran onto the ball and placed it in the back of the net for a 3-1 final score.
Hartford Athletic is back at home on Saturday, October 11th at 7 PM for a rematch against Sacramento Republic and this season’s Match for a Cause. Tickets are available here.
FAST STATS
| HARTFORD | OAKLAND | |
|---|---|---|
| Shots | 8 | 15 |
| Shots On Target | 4 | 6 |
| Corners | 2 | 6 |
| Fouls | 14 | 16 |
| Offsides | 2 | 0 |
| Possession | 30.9% | 69.1% |
| Passing Accuracy | 57% | 84.6% |
| Saves | 5 | 2 |
SCORING SUMMARY
| HARTFORD | OAKLAND |
|---|---|
| 56′ – Josh Belluz (Jack Panayotou) | 31′ – Peter Wilson (Camden Riley) |
| 64′ – Kyle Edwards (Jack Panayotou) | |
| 90+4′ – Beverly Makangila (Samuel Careaga) |
DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY
| HARTFORD | OAKLAND |
|---|---|
| 14′ – Adrían Diz Pe (Yellow) | 6′ – Gagi Margvelashvili (Yellow) |
| 82′ – Kyle Edwards (Yellow) | 43′ – Panos Armenakas (Yellow) |
| 86′ – Joshua Belluz (Yellow) | 66′ – Neveal Hacksaw (Yellow) |
| 90+3′ – Marlon Hairston (Yellow) | 71′ – Danny Trejo (Yellow) |
| 90+4′ – Camden Riley (Yellow) |
LINEUPS
| HARTFORD | OAKLAND |
|---|---|
| 13 (GK) John Berner | 35 (GK) Raphael Spiegel |
| 30 (DF) Adrían Diz Pe | 5 (DF) Camden Riley |
| 33 (DF) Joshua Belluz | 4 (DF) Gagi Margvelashvili |
| 15 (DF) Joe Farrell (C) | 15 (DF) Neveal Hacksaw (C) |
| 22 (MF) TJ Presthus | 10 (DF) Panos Armenakas |
| 5 (MF) Baboucarr Njie | 6 (MF) Daniel Gomez |
| 6 (MF) Beverly Makangila | 12 (MF) Tyler Gibson |
| 16 (MF) Jack Panayotou (Marlon Hairston, 73′) | 45 (MF) Ali Elmasnaouy (Morey Doner, 77′) |
| 17 (FW) Jonathan Jiménez (Michee Ngalina, 46′) | 77 (MF) Faysal Bettache (Wolfgang Prentice, 77′) |
| 81 (FW) Adewale Obalola (Kyle Edwards, 46′) | 9 (FW) Peter Wilson |
| 92 (FW) Hadji Barry (Samuel Careaga, 63′) | 99 (FW) Danny Trejo |
