NASL Recap– Indy Eleven 1 : 1 Tampa Bay Rowdies
Eleven Fight Back from a Goal Down to Secure a Point in Front of Sellout Crowd of 10,412
INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, April 19, 2014) – It was a night of repeats for Indy Eleven as the North American Soccer League expansion side attracted its second consecutive sellout crowd at IUPUI’s Michael A. Carroll Stadium in addition to its second 1-1 draw, this time against the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Tampa Bay’s Brian Shriver, the reigning NASL Golden Boot winner, and Indy Eleven’s Erick Norales both recorded their first goals of the 2014 season for their respective teams.
The first 45 minutes of play set the stage for a competitive and physical match that would be sure to keep the 10,412 fans in attendance entertained. After a brief settling-in period, both the home and away team were quick to push the ball forward and create dangerous opportunities.
Indy Eleven midfielder Kleberson continued his recent run of good form and looked to be the most dangerous scoring option on the field in the first half. In the 16 th minute Kleberson put himself in threatening position to receive a Walter Ramirez cross, which the Brazilian put just wide. Two minutes later it was again Kleberson who took a stinging shot from 30 yards out that beat Tampa Bay goalkeeper Matt Pickens, only to be denied by the top of the crossbar.
After withstanding an onslaught of Indy Eleven attacks, Tampa Bay found more possession and countered with 10 minutes of sustained attacks. Eleven goalkeeper Kristian Nicht was up to the challenge, first tipping a Darel Russell shot from distance over the crossbar and following it up with a breakaway save against Georgi Hristov. Later in the half Nicht would again step up to preserve the shutout, tipping Shane Hill’s shot wide in the 40 th minute.
After the halftime break it was déjà vu all over again for Indy Eleven when they conceded a goal straight out of the locker room in the 48 th minute. After bagging 15 goals for Carolina last season, Shriver opened his Rowdies account by receiving a well-played through ball from Blake Wagner before going five-hole on Nicht to put the Floridians up 1-0.
Kleberson would continue to punish the woodwork in the 73 rd minute with a 30-yard free kick that hit the top of the left post and bounced forcefully back into play before being cleared from danger. It would be the 82 nd minute when Indy’s equalizer would come through an unlikely source in Norales. The Honduran defender was up-field for a dead ball opportunity and lingered long enough in the area to be found by midfielder Dylan Mares’ low cross. Norales cut inside his mark to deflect the ball past Pickens from close range to even things up at 1-1.
Next weekend Indy Eleven (0-0-2, 2 pts.) will get its first taste of the road in NASL play when it heads to South Florida to take on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1-1-0, 3 pts), which fell 1-4 at the Carolina RailHawks tonight. Kickoff from Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale next Saturday is set for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff for a match that can be viewed online via the NASLLive.com subscription package. Fans in Central Indiana should stay tuned to www.indyeleven.com and the team’s social media channels for information on watch parties to be held in conjunction with the team’s Brickyard Battalion independent supporters group.
Indy Eleven Head Coach Juergen Sommer:
On the fight of the squad:
“It was great to see the boys fight back there and get the equalizer, especially for Erick [Norales] to step in and get the equalizer. Dylan [Mares] came in and changed the game for us like we had hoped he would and he was rewarded with getting the assist on the equalizer.”
On the Tampa Bay Rowdies:
“Tampa Bay is a very physical team that is also very crafty. They’ve got 10 or 11 veterans on their team that know how to play and manage the game well. That sort of skill comes with game experience and hopefully our guys will learn as we go forward.”
On the Atmosphere/Sellout Crowd:
“I think it really made the difference tonight. It’s what pushes us to continue to compete when we go down a goal and our heads drop. It’s a great environment. Thank you to the Brickyard Battalion and all of our supporters.”
Tampa Bay Rowdies Head Coach Ricky Hill:
On his team’s performance:
“I thought it was a reasonable performance from us. We weren’t settled very well for the first 20 minutes, but we got there.”
NASL Game Week 2
Indy Eleven 1 : 1 Tampa Bay Rowdies
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Attendance: 10,412 (sellout)
Scoring Summary:
TBR – Brian Shriver 1 (Blake Wagner 1) 48’
IND – Erick Norales 1 (Dylan Mares 1) 81’
Discipline Summary:
TBR – Georgi Hristov (caution) 58’
TBR – Blake Wagner (caution) 80’
TBR – Lucky Mkosana (caution) 88’
Indy Eleven Line-up (4-2-3-1): Kristian Nicht (c); Chris Estridge, Jaime Frias, Erick Norales, Kyle Hyland; Brad Ring, Kleberson; A.J. Corrado (Pedro Mendes, 46’), Walter Ramirez (Don Smart, 90+’), Corby Moore (Dylan Mares, 78’); Mike Ambersley.
Tampa Bay Rowdies (4-4-2): Matt Pickens; Frankie Sanfilippo (c), JP Rodrigues, Takuya Yamada, Blake Wagner; Evans Frimpong, Shane Hill, Darel Russell, Anthony Wallace (Keith Savage, 81’); Georgi Hristov, Brian Shriver (Lucky Mkosoana, 72’).
NASL Recap– Indy Eleven 1 : 1 Tampa Bay Rowdies
Eleven Fight Back from a Goal Down to Secure a Point in Front of Sellout Crowd of 10,412
INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, April 19, 2014) – It was a night of repeats for Indy Eleven as the North American Soccer League expansion side attracted its second consecutive sellout crowd at IUPUI’s Michael A. Carroll Stadium in addition to its second 1-1 draw, this time against the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Tampa Bay’s Brian Shriver, the reigning NASL Golden Boot winner, and Indy Eleven’s Erick Norales both recorded their first goals of the 2014 season for their respective teams.
The first 45 minutes of play set the stage for a competitive and physical match that would be sure to keep the 10,412 fans in attendance entertained. After a brief settling-in period, both the home and away team were quick to push the ball forward and create dangerous opportunities.
Indy Eleven midfielder Kleberson continued his recent run of good form and looked to be the most dangerous scoring option on the field in the first half. In the 16 th minute Kleberson put himself in threatening position to receive a Walter Ramirez cross, which the Brazilian put just wide. Two minutes later it was again Kleberson who took a stinging shot from 30 yards out that beat Tampa Bay goalkeeper Matt Pickens, only to be denied by the top of the crossbar.
After withstanding an onslaught of Indy Eleven attacks, Tampa Bay found more possession and countered with 10 minutes of sustained attacks. Eleven goalkeeper Kristian Nicht was up to the challenge, first tipping a Darel Russell shot from distance over the crossbar and following it up with a breakaway save against Georgi Hristov. Later in the half Nicht would again step up to preserve the shutout, tipping Shane Hill’s shot wide in the 40 th minute.
After the halftime break it was déjà vu all over again for Indy Eleven when they conceded a goal straight out of the locker room in the 48 th minute. After bagging 15 goals for Carolina last season, Shriver opened his Rowdies account by receiving a well-played through ball from Blake Wagner before going five-hole on Nicht to put the Floridians up 1-0.
Kleberson would continue to punish the woodwork in the 73 rd minute with a 30-yard free kick that hit the top of the left post and bounced forcefully back into play before being cleared from danger. It would be the 82 nd minute when Indy’s equalizer would come through an unlikely source in Norales. The Honduran defender was up-field for a dead ball opportunity and lingered long enough in the area to be found by midfielder Dylan Mares’ low cross. Norales cut inside his mark to deflect the ball past Pickens from close range to even things up at 1-1.
Next weekend Indy Eleven (0-0-2, 2 pts.) will get its first taste of the road in NASL play when it heads to South Florida to take on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1-1-0, 3 pts), which fell 1-4 at the Carolina RailHawks tonight. Kickoff from Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale next Saturday is set for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff for a match that can be viewed online via the NASLLive.com subscription package. Fans in Central Indiana should stay tuned to www.indyeleven.com and the team’s social media channels for information on watch parties to be held in conjunction with the team’s Brickyard Battalion independent supporters group.
Indy Eleven Head Coach Juergen Sommer:
On the fight of the squad:
“It was great to see the boys fight back there and get the equalizer, especially for Erick [Norales] to step in and get the equalizer. Dylan [Mares] came in and changed the game for us like we had hoped he would and he was rewarded with getting the assist on the equalizer.”
On the Tampa Bay Rowdies:
“Tampa Bay is a very physical team that is also very crafty. They’ve got 10 or 11 veterans on their team that know how to play and manage the game well. That sort of skill comes with game experience and hopefully our guys will learn as we go forward.”
On the Atmosphere/Sellout Crowd:
“I think it really made the difference tonight. It’s what pushes us to continue to compete when we go down a goal and our heads drop. It’s a great environment. Thank you to the Brickyard Battalion and all of our supporters.”
Tampa Bay Rowdies Head Coach Ricky Hill:
On his team’s performance:
“I thought it was a reasonable performance from us. We weren’t settled very well for the first 20 minutes, but we got there.”
NASL Game Week 2
Indy Eleven 1 : 1 Tampa Bay Rowdies
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Attendance: 10,412 (sellout)
Scoring Summary:
TBR – Brian Shriver 1 (Blake Wagner 1) 48’
IND – Erick Norales 1 (Dylan Mares 1) 81’
Discipline Summary:
TBR – Georgi Hristov (caution) 58’
TBR – Blake Wagner (caution) 80’
TBR – Lucky Mkosana (caution) 88’
Indy Eleven Line-up (4-2-3-1): Kristian Nicht (c); Chris Estridge, Jaime Frias, Erick Norales, Kyle Hyland; Brad Ring, Kleberson; A.J. Corrado (Pedro Mendes, 46’), Walter Ramirez (Don Smart, 90+’), Corby Moore (Dylan Mares, 78’); Mike Ambersley.
Tampa Bay Rowdies (4-4-2): Matt Pickens; Frankie Sanfilippo (c), JP Rodrigues, Takuya Yamada, Blake Wagner; Evans Frimpong, Shane Hill, Darel Russell, Anthony Wallace (Keith Savage, 81’); Georgi Hristov, Brian Shriver (Lucky Mkosoana, 72’).
