“At this point it’s pride. We gotta turn these one goal losses into results.”
-John Galas, Head Coach
Wednesday’s match at Civic Park showcased a hard fought battle between Lane United and Capital FC. However, this battle resulted in a disappointing 1-0 loss for the Reds. Midfielder Tate Richards spoke to the squad’s confidence coming into the match after their previous win against the Tacoma Stars. Richards asserted that, “coming into today’s match we were very confident, coming off of the win from Tacoma. We had a great performance and a great win…” This confidence was certainly needed as the Reds geared up to face a dangerous Capital FC.
As the match commenced, the Reds were eager to get points on the board and finish with quality. The first ten minutes of the match had LUFC on the defensive as Capital initiated a high and hard press. The Reds eventually found rhythm and attempted to initiate their own press, but fell short at times connecting passes. When asked about Lane’s performance in the first half, Richards commented that, “after we weathered the ten minute storm in the beginning, we moved the ball well, we were confident, we lacked the final third part I would say, but getting to that point we did really well.” While the Red’s indeed attempted to capitalize in the final third, the half remained scoreless on both sides. Capital FC exploited the giveaways given up by Lane and the lack of execution on net. Which resulted in heavy possession and attacks in the Red’s final third. As the first half drew to a close and both teams took a breather, it was obvious LUFC needed to reorganize and re-energize.
The beginning of the second half saw an uptick of aggression as both teams reentered the pitch anxious to obtain the lead. This aggression came to a head very early on, and in the 47th minute of play Capital FC was able to obtain the lead. The goal was a result of a well-placed shot ripped at the top of the box. This unfortunate goal early in the second half seemed to tip both teams into an extremely aggressive playing style. Numerous cards were issued on both sides, and LUFC midfielder Ethan Doud received a red card, leaving his team with 10 men and down a goal. Although the team definitely felt Doud’s absence, Head Coach John Galas felt proud of the effort on the pitch. Coach Galas went on to say that, “we responded very well, the mentality was great. We were pissed off, but luckily the ref had a great game to even things out.” Indeed as the second half progressed and the aggression increased, the referee seemingly let the game get slightly out of hand. Determined to not let the ref’s calls become a factor, the Reds continued to battle. However as the final whistle blew the score remained 1-0, and Capital FC acquired the win.
With only a few games remaining in the 2024 season the squad knows they need to get some wins and earn some more points. When asked about the mentality going forward, Coach Galas attested that, “At this point it’s pride. We gotta turn these one goal losses into results. I think that’s our fifth one goal loss, and we’ve talked about this all season. We’re very close to getting over that hump and we haven’t been able to do it. So it’s really frustrating for us as a staff, and most importantly for the players.”
Support the Reds as they wrap up their season at Civic Park on the 12th and 14th of July.
