from OnTheSidelines.org
Richmond Kickers 3, Toronto Lynx 1
Weary Richmond Have Just Enough To Finish Off Toronto
Jeffrey Tallies Goal, Assist; Williams Scores; Cephas Notches 1st As Professional
Richie Williams scores the Kickers' 2nd goal in the 3-1 win over Toronto.
by Jimmy LaRoue
May 6, 2004—A flat warm-up had the Richmond coaching staff a bit concerned, but they got off to a strong start and held off the Toronto Lynx 3-1 before 1,042 at University of Richmond Stadium.
Richmond won despite wasting numerous chances—22 shots in all—to put the match away in the first half, though they did convert on two first half goals. Nice offensive buildups turned into squandered opportunities high and wide of the goal against Toronto, perhaps a product of the Kickers playing their third match in seven days.
“The scoreline is great, and to get the three points is fantastic,” said Richmond coach Leigh Cowlishaw. “The performance was sporadic. I think we created many chances and we should have been more than two-nil up at halftime. That was a positive thing that we created a lot of chances. I didn’t think that we really were able to control the tempo of the game. It was never really in our total control, which it needed to be at 2-0. We made it hard for ourselves.” (Audio)
Forward Kevin Jeffrey got things started for the Kickers in the 5th minute, taking a 50-yard pass from Tony Williams and after gaining control of the ball in the left-center of the 18-yard box, slotted a right-footed shot past Lynx goalkeeper Bryheem Hancock.
Jeffrey and Richie Williams combined for the second goal in the 24th minute. Jeffrey took a Williams pass and turned right toward goal. Getting closed down, Jeffrey passed to an overlapping Williams, whose 12-yard left-footed shot beat Hancock for a 2-0 lead. (Audio)
“Anytime you can come on in the first half and get a goal and an assist, and he was always looking dangerous, it’s only going to help his confidence and help the team’s confidence,” Cowlishaw said of Jeffrey. (Audio)
They continued to let slip opportunities in the second half, though, paying the price in the form of a John Berry Nusum goal in the 67th minute.
Nusum got the ball about 40-yard from goal in the left-center of the field. Nusum bowled over Peter Luzak and beat a charging Pascale from 14-yards to cut the lead to 2-1. The Lynx had a great chance three minutes later to tie the match. Joe Mattacchione took a free kick from 25-yards out left of goal and found an open Adrian Serioux at the far post, but his left-footed volley went wide left of goal.
Cowlishaw thought the team created good chances and did not think the team got “bogged down,” but rather lacked control of the match, likely due to the team's tired state.
McColm Cephas finally put the match out of reach in the 85th minute with his first professional goal, taking a pass from Matthew Delicate, catching the Lynx defense flat-footed before beating Hancock with a laser from 12-yards. (Audio)
Toronto rarely threatened Richmond’s goal in any serious manner, and except for about a 10-minute stretch of the second half, did not look capable of mounting a challenge against a tired Kickers team.
Joey Worthen looked dangerous playing wide left for the Kickers, sending in accurate crosses, yet he was also guilty of wasting opportunities. After stripping former Kickers defender Rumbani Munthali of the ball in the 48th minute, his one-on-one opportunity with Hancock was shot directly to the keeper. He had a 52nd minute header from a David Hayes cross saved by Hancock at the right post from 12-yards, then two minutes later, put a one-timed left-footed volley from inside six-yards into the left-side netting. He missed wide with a right-footed 18-yarder in the 60th minute as well. Just that series of shots show what the Kickers wasted in opportunities.
Munthali, playing in reserve role for the Lynx, had his share of troubles with Worthen and the Kickers, getting booked in the 50th minute for his ill-timed challenge on Richmond defender Chris Fox.
On the whole, Richmond got away with a subpar performance—one not nearing the quality of the last Saturday’s win at Virginia Beach. However, the Kickers have taken points in their last four matches (2-0-2), including ties at defending A-League champions Charleston and at home against the Mariners, and two consecutive wins at Virginia Beach and their first home win against an inferior Lynx side. The Kickers also moved into the 3rd round of the US Open Cup with the results against Virginia Beach.
“After losing the first game, you go ‘okay, it was a decent performance, it was tough,’” Cowlishaw said. “And then managing to get a point at Blackbaud [Stadium in Charleston]. Two wins, two ties [in] the last four games. You play the reigning champions, you played a very, very good Virginia Beach twice. You’ve got to be quite happy. We’ve just got to keep making sure that we win the games that we should. And Puerto Rico—no disrespect—we have to go out there looking to get as many points as possible.” (Audio)
With a much-needed rest, Richmond will head to San Juan to take on the expansion Islanders—a team the Kickers know next-to-nothing about—in the first of two matches on the island next Thursday, with the second coming two days later. Puerto Rico’s most recent result was a 2-2 home tie against Syracuse. The Kickers return home May 23 with a 6:00 p.m. kickoff against Atlanta.
1st 2nd F
Richmond 2 1 3
Toronto 0 1 1
Scoring Summary
RIC—Kevin Jeffrey (Tony Williams) 5
RIC—Richie Williams (Kevin Jeffrey) 24
TOR—John Barry Nusum (unassisted) 67
RIC—McColm Cephas (Matthew Delicate) 85
Richmond Kickers--Ronnie Pascale (GK), Chris Fox, Kevin Knight, Tony Williams, Peter Luzak, Richie Williams, Clyde Simms (Paul Lekics- 76), Joey Worthen, David Hayes (Mike Burke- 57), Matt Delicate (Rob Ukrop- 90), Kevin Jeffrey (McColm Cephas- 66) Subs Not Used: Caleb Norkus, Matt Bobo, Steve Ankiel
Total Shots: 22 (Worthen 6, Jeffrey 5); Saves: 4 (Pascale 4); Fouls: 10; Corners: 6
Toronto Lynx--Bryheen Hancock (GK), Darren Baxter (David DiPlacido- 43), Lewis Blois, John Barry Nusum, Aaron Steele (Avango Andres- 61), Josue Mayard (Rumba Munthali-45), Joe Mattacchione, Jamie Dodds, Ali Gerba (Igor Prostran- 54), Adrian Serioux, Edgar Bartolomeu (Tyler Hughes- 79) Subs Not Used: Shawn Faria, Tyler Hughes, Richard Goddard
Total Shots: 11 (Nusum, Dodds 3); Saves: 8 (Hancock 8); Fouls: 11 (Bartolomeu, Dodds, Munthali 2); Corners: 3
Misconduct Summary
TOR—Rumba Munthali- 50
Ejections: None
Referee: Daniel Stead
Assistant Referees: John Schmitz and Ben Jones
Fourth Official: Scott Johnson
Attendance: 1,042
Weather: Clear, 66°
First Market Bank Man of the Match: Kevin Jeffrey
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