Indy Eleven vs Birmingham Legion - 12.10

Summary

- Opponent: Birmingham Legion
- Location: Protective Stadium
- Attendance: 
- Final Score: 1-0 W

- Starting XI: Sulte, McRobb, Musa, Ofeimu, Hogan, Blake, Murphy, Quinn (C), Rendon, Lindley, Amoh

- Substitution: O'Brien, J. 69' (McRobb); Kizza 69' (Amoh); Bryneus 77' (Lindley); Soumaoro 77' (Blake); Collier 90' (Quinn)

- Unused: Charles-Cook, Foster

Scoring Summary:
IND - Lindley 4' (assist Blake)

- Bookings:

BHM - Centeno 16' (Yellow)
IND - Musa 27' (Yellow)
BHM - Damus 70' (Yellow)

BHM - Hernandez-Foster 75' (Yellow)

BHM - Torres 76' (Yellow)
IND - O'Brien, J. 90'+1' (Yellow)
IND - Murphy 90'+4' (Yellow)

- Referee: Elton Garcia

- Adage goals: None.

Thoughts and Opinions

Both needed points from the game. Both really needed a win from the game. There had never been anything but a draw in the history of the series between the two clubs, with the record even for both teams with 6 wins and 6 losses. Based on past experience, it would have been a good bet that one of the teams was going to get the full three points. Indy fans rejoiced the continuation of that trend thanks to a 4th minute strike from Cam Lindley that gave Indy an early lead that they wouldn't relinquish. 

In the first of two games between these two teams in the month (today's league game and at Indy as part of the Jagermeister Cup group play at the end of the month), and the first of three games on the season, both teams had to deal with some squad adjustment due to injuries and international call-ups. One of the beneficiaries of those adjustments for Indy was Cam Lindley who picked up his first league start of the season. With the start, Lindley overtook Franco for Games Played in team history. More importantly though, Lindley made the best use of his start by blasting a shot into the lower left side of the goal from well outside the 18-yard box. 

Musa was given a introduction to the speed of former Indy player Tyler Pasher for Birmingham's first shot of the game. Sulte was able to parry away the shot for a corner kick, preventing Birmingham from getting on the board. The next time the two faced each other, Pasher's speed and footwork with the ball was more than Musa could handle and he had to drag down the speedy forward, resulting in a free kick in a dangerous position just outside the box. There was a foul on the restart, but Pasher doesn't seem to have lost any of his pace since his time in Indy. 

Half - Heatmap

Pace though, despite Pasher's periodic displays of it, was not the theme of the first half. Whether it was the heat of the Alabama night or tactics, but neither team looked inclined to put too much speed to their actions for chunks of the half. Obviously, there were the occasional bursts, but taken in its entirety, the half was played slowly and deliberately. Each team was above 85% passing accuracy for the half, with Birmingham at 87% in Indy's half of the field. The first half was spent mostly around the middle circle, with both teams content to let possession there happen there. If I was trying to be clever, I guess I could try to say "what happens at half field stays at half field" might be a thing. Not being clever, the first half really looked like two teams that have struggled for consistent results playing the first half trying to figure out how to get a result. Indy scored early and looked content at times to just let that one ride, without taking too many chances that would get them out of defensive shape. For a team that has conceded untimely goals, there's some logic to that, but the 86-minute bunker never seems to go that well. Birmingham, despite a 7-3 shot (most of those well off target), didn't look like they had any ideas on how to break the bunker. So to Indy's credit, the bunker did seem to work in the half. 

Early in the second half, Indy's passivity was not matched by Birmingham, who finally looked like they had a fire lit under them by Coach Mark Griggs during the halftime break. Whereas their first half position was hovering around the midfield circle, their line of conflict in the second half was further up the field. The change in their mentality led to some early shots, including one that rattled the post. 

Then the game, already at a measured pace, ground to an absolute stop when referee Elton Garcia stopped the game, reportedly, due to abusive language from the Birmingham fans behind the Indy goal. The delay added 7 minutes of stoppage time, but play did resume after some warnings from the public address announcer. 

Full - Shots

Despite being on the wrong end of nearly every statistical category (shots, shots on target, possession, duels, aerial duels, corners, passing accuracy, crosses, crossing accuracy, tackle success rate), Indy were on the right end of the score, getting a much needed 1-nil win on the road. It wasn't the 3-3 fireworks from the last game, but Indy's ability to make Birmingham shoot from distance was the difference tonight. Birmingham outshot Indy 21 to 5, but many of those shots were well high or wide. They did seem to be narrowing that window as the game progressed so if they had some more time, maybe the 6 shots they had on target would have been more threatening. Regardless, Indy will take the win and get back to Indy as quickly as possible, knowing they finally have their second league win a full third of the way through the league schedule. Still a lot of season to go, but as the saying goes, "if you want to get out of a hole, you have to first stop digging." Indy did that tonight with the win.

Indy now have 10 days off before returning to The Mike to face another team desperate to get positive results when Pittsburgh makes the trip to Indy. 

The Game Beckons Game Ball

The guy has been getting mop-up minutes in most games, but has seemingly continued to work hard during training, and has had a professional attitude about his minutes. A game winner on the road and a good shift in his first league start of the year means that Cam Lindley also gets the GBGB. I'm sure he'll enjoy the goal and the win a lot more than a recognition from me, but I continue to be impressed with Lindley and the effort he gives in his limited minutes this season.

Indy Eleven vs Kings Hammer - 04.04

Summary

- Opponent: Kings Hammer FC
- Location: Grand Park Event Center
- Attendance: -
- Final Score: 3-2 L

- Starting XI: Edwards, Malin, Bahr (C), Malloy, Satterfield, Yamazaki, Pinto, Smith, Chester, Williams-Osswald, Soderstrom-Bulger

- Substitution: Guthrie 45' (Chester); Chatterton 45' (Malin); Joyce 68' (Smith); Trandji 68' (Soderstrom-Bulger); Molloy 79' (Kruer); Albert 82' (Satterfield); Sochacki 82' (Williams-Osswald)

- Unused: Wyatt, Komori

Scoring Summary:
KHFC – Britt 10' (assist Broering)
KHFC - Erbach 25' (assist Smith)
IND - Yamazaki 39' (assist Chester)
KHFC - Flax 86' (assist Carle)
IND - Joyce 88' (assist Bahr)

- Bookings:

None

- Referee: Erin Patterson

- Adage goals: None.

Thoughts and Opinions

Kings Hammer has regularly given Indy a good game and were Indy's first opponent in the inaugural game of the inaugural season of the W League, so it's been a long history. Tonight marked the 8th game between the two teams, with Indy holding a 4W-3D-0L advantage coming into the game over the team from Cincinnati, but that means that Kings Hammer account for 60% of Indy's draws in the club's history. Which is why it wasn't altogether surprising that Kings Hammer scored the game's first goal from a corner kick that Indy couldn't get cleared. What was surprising for Indy fans was that the goal was the first of three in the game and Indy could only muster two of their own to finish with a 3-2 loss and their second loss in as many games. For a club that struggles for consistency in results, Indy fans could bank on the women's team getting wins, not just results. Two losses in a row has historically seem like an improbability, but that's where the team and the fans find themselves. Indy have nowt put a ton of pressure on themselves if they want to repeat as the Division champs for the 4th year in a row. The margin of error for that to happen has likely dropped to zero with tonight's loss. The good news for Indy is that with the exception of Dayton who have not fared well against any of the other teams, it's unlikely any team in the division is going to make it through unscathed. So if Indy can take care of their business, they're likely going to get help from their opponents. The Division title isn't lost tonight, but it's currently on a dangerous precipice. 

Photo: Don Thompson Photography

Coach Kim wasn't messing around with his starting lineup tonight though. Captain Bahr in the back, obviously, but the forward line consisted of Williams-Osswald, and Soderstrom-Bulger and Chester in their first appearances for the team this season. That's a combined 118 starts for the four for the Girls in Blue, and a combined 59 goals (or ~46% of the team's goals in the history of the team), as well as the team's top two assist makers. Not to mention the four include the team's leaders in Game Winners (Soderstrom-Bulger & Williams-Osswald) and account for 3 of the team's 4 hat tricks (Williams-Osswald (2); Soderstrom-Bulger (1)). Knowing these players can't always make the away trips due to their life schedules that are significantly different than their younger teammates', Coach Kim gave them all a chance to make an immediate impact on the game. With her start tonight, Grace Bahr became the team's career start leader, overtaking Ella Rogers. Bahr overtook Rogers as the career leader in minutes a couple of games ago. Chester was on a minutes restriction as she returns from an injury, but she looked really good in the 45-minutes that she played. 

After Kings Hammer took the early lead in the 10th minute when a corner kick to the back post was headed back towards the middle of the box which Britt one-timed to Edwards' right, Indy nearly pulled one back in the 15th minute, but the experienced players in Soderstrom-Bulger and Williams-Osswald saw their shots hit the post and then pushed over the top on the rebound. Kings Hammer were controlling the possession, but Indy's midfield and forwards were finding dangerous and threating ways around and through. Much like the mid-week men's game, this game looked like there were going to be more goals in it and that it was just going to be a matter of who could convert their chances. 

Photo: Don Thompson Photography

Kings Hammer nearly doubled their lead in the 19th minute, but Edwards' reaction save kept the home team within reach. A few minutes later, Soderstrom-Bulger put a ball over the crossbar from the 6-yard box in the 23rd minute that seems like the kind of shot and location that would normally be harder for her to miss than make, but somehow she got her foot under it and looped it over the crossbar. Indy's three experienced forwards looked a bit out of sync in the early minutes, and maybe a bit rusty, but still had their moments where they looked like the best players on the field. Seconds after Soderstrom-Bulger's miss, Kings Hammer did finally double their lead when Erbach took a shot from outside the 18-yard box that just made it over the outstretched arm of Edwards and just under the crossbar.

The Girls in Blue were not as lucky with the Kings Hammer crossbar as they tallied 1 post & 2 crossbars in the first half, which would have made for a very different conversation in the halftime locker room. They were getting chances and good looks to claw their way back into the game, but were just a hair away from getting on the scoreboard. The thing that the Kings Hammer players were doing well was that they were adamant about trying to not let Indy's known commodities up front get the best of them. Two players were regularly running to the ball to defend when any of those players received the ball. Given their proficiency in scoring in this league, that's a good and smart tactic.

Crossbar hit #3 came in the 52nd minute from a shot by Soderstrom-Bulger that would have equalized the game. Five minutes later, Kings Hammer's goalkeeper Galley pushed a shot/cross against the crossbar to keep her team in the lead. She didn't have a lot of options, but when the posts and crossbars are working for you, you use what's working. The woodwork was not Indy's friend as they found it five times during the game. With that kind of close calls, it starts to feel like it's just not your night.

Kings Hammer would get their 3rd insurance goal in the 86th minute when Bahr was unable to get Carle contained as she made a run to the endline before turning it back inside. Bahr kicked the ball which bounced off Carle, but in the opposite direction of Bahr's momentum, putting Carle a step ahead of Bahr. Not wanting to concede a penalty kick by fouling in the box, Bahr found herself behind Carle, trying to not give the referee any option to call a foul. Carle laid the ball off to an onrushing Flax who had snuck between Indy defenders and easily redirected it past Edwards. While Indy would get a late long-distance goal from Joyce, the third Kings Hammer goal would prove to be the game winner.

Indy have a week between games before Coach Dolinsky and Lexington return to Grand Park for the second of three meetings. Hopefully the second version is able to be played on the same night as it starts, but the chess match between the two coaches and friends will be the main talking point of the game as the two coaches try to outwit and anticipate the other's tactical adjustments.

The Game Beckons Game Ball

In a game where Indy started Williams-Osswald, Soderstrom-Bulger, Chester, and Bahr, it was the midfielder from Japan that I kept noticing doing good things with the ball. The fact that Yamazaki also got the goal to open her account and Indy's scoring on the night was a testament to her work rate and her reward for her effort on both sides of the ball. There were other good performances, but as I've stated before, when it comes to the GBGB, sometimes it's just a gut feeling and an eyeball test on who actually gets it. Yamazaki was that player tonight.

A Final Thought - Maddy Williams-Osswald

Photo: Don Thompson Photography

There are a wide range of players when it comes to the USL W League in both age and experience. In nearly every soccer/football league/level in the world, the thing that most stands out to me as you move to better and better players is their first touch and their IQ. Even while not playing or training full-time, Williams-Osswald continues to demonstrate her IQ and touch are just better than the majority of players that I've watched in this league. Whereas her teammates and her opponents tonight had to regularly chase down a ball after a poor first touch, her first touch is almost always impeccable. It's that first touch that allows her to then use her IQ to put passes (properly weighted passes) to teammates. For better or for worse with this year's team that is using more Academy players than in previous years, the correct run that she sees should be made isn't made from her teammates. Or the heavy passes that they send to her that don't give her the chance to do anything with the ball. To me, Maddy is the perfect example of how an injury (and then a pandemic) can derail what I think should have been a long professional career. She moved onto "life after soccer" long before her talent has given way. 

Photos - Don Thompson Photography