NEW ENGLAND MUTINY 1, NEW YORK FURY 5
Two goals in first fifteen minutes dooms Mutiny to lopsided result in home opener
EAST LONGMEADOW, MA (05/12/12) - The excitement was palpable for the New England Mutiny (0-1 WPSL Elite) as the team readied itself for their 2012 Home Opener vs. the staunch & experienced New York Fury. However, the Mutiny still had rivers to cross when it came to their full roster, as several of their prominent off-season signings were unavailable due to various National Team call-ups.
The area of the team that was hit the hardest was the defensive side of the ball, as the team was missing four players with extensive U.S. National Team experience. New York Head Coach Paul Riley and his Fury side took advantage of that fact, scoring twice in the first 15 minutes while adding another in the 25th minute to roll on to a 5-1 victory.
"I thought we got a little flat after the first goal, we got a little confused," said New England Head Coach Tony Horta. "But i thought the second half with the information we gave them, they took it well. We made some adjustments and the game was even. So, if you take the first half away and you evaluate the second half, it was an even match."
"I would think we're probably three weeks away from getting fully fit and all the pieces are moving," said Riley. "We moved for about 45 minutes but we didn't move for 90 minutes tonight. I think the Mutiny when they get they're players back will be a lot better. Its a difficult scenario.
"You could see we looked a bit more comfortable tonight with each other. If they got one in the first ten minutes, it might've been different. They had a couple early crosses but nothing came of it."
New England came out of the gates firing, with Riley Houle almost converting on a scoring opportunity. But those early chances opened up the space in the Mutiny defense to counterattack and the speedy & dynamic two-some of Merrit Mathias and Jasmyne Spencer filled that void.
Mathias would notch the first of her three first half goals in the 5th minute, beating the offside trap and breaking in 1v1 on Mutiny goalkeeper Jennifer Bannon. Mathias would become the provider on the second goal in the 14th minute, juking along the end line to serve a cross to an open Spencer who ruthlessly finished for the 2-0 lead.
Both teams appeared to settle down into a rhythm for the next ten minutes until Mathias capitalized on a goalkeeper error to make the score 3-0. If the third goal didn't let the air out of the balloon for New England, Mathias' goal to seal the hat-trick in the 42nd minute would prove to be the needle in any comeback bid.
Riley Houle (L) had an early scoring opportunity for the Mutiny but it was the Fury's Jasmyne Spencer (R) who would get on the scoreboard. (Photo courtesy of G. Skovera)
10-year Mutiny veteran Jenny Maurer (L) goes up for a header against the Fury's Meghan Lenczyk. (Photo courtesy of G. Skovera)
The Mutiny were now behind 4-0 on the scoreboard. Horta would make adjustments to his side at halftime and the second half would see a stronger performance from the home side.
The offense was spearheaded by the ever-present work from Miami Hurricanes forward Kate Howarth. Her work off & over the ball created many scoring chances for the Mutiny but Fury goalkeeper Michelle Betos was up to the task, especially in the 64th and 83rd minutes.
"I thought [Kate] was excellent," said Horta about his athletic forward. "I think we're going to see a lot of her. I gave her the freedom to exploit those places that she likes to go into. We need to get a player that can compliment her with her speed and with being interchangeable."
New York's Meghan Lenczyk, however, would show her how to fire a ball past a keeper in the 74th minute, blasting a shot from 20 yards out on the left side of the penalty area that Bannon had no chance to save. Recent signee Tiya Gallegos would put the Mutiny on the board a little over a minute later, converting off a rebound of a hard Howarth shot for the final score of 5-1.
The next home game for New England is next Saturday, May 19th as they host the Chesapeake Charge (0-1 WPSL Elite). The Charge lost to the Boston Breakers (1-0 WPSL Elite) by a 3-0 score in the WPSL Elite Opening Match this past Thursday night.
STARTERS: Mutiny - Bannon; Fitzsimmons, McCormack, Riviere, Dakin; Hood, Maurer, Reilly, Houle; Mays, Howarth. Fury - Betos; Johnson, Krzysik, Avant, Taylor; Lenczyk, T. DiMartino, Yokers, G. DiMartino; Spencer, Mathias.
About the New England Mutiny: The New England Mutiny are a charter member of the WPSL East Conference, winning five East titles while reaching the WPSL National Final on two occasions. The Mutiny will compete in WPSL Elite in 2012, competing against the Boston Breakers, WNY Flash, New York Fury, Chicago Red Stars, F.C. Indiana, ASA Chesapeake and the Philadelphia Fever. For more information on the team, please visit http://www.MutinySoccer.com or send an e-mail to NewEnglandMutiny@aol.com. AAA (American Automobile Association) of Pioneer Valley is the Official Team Sponsor of the Mutiny. Visit their official website at http://www.pioneervalley.aaa.com to book special travel discounts, apply for an auto loan, receive auto insurance discounts and much, much more! You can also follow our team on Twitter and Facebook.
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