Indy Eleven vs New York - 03.03

- Opponent: New York Cosmos
- Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
- Attendance: 9,067
- Final Score: 2-1 W
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Falvey, Janicki, Vukovic, Ring, Paterson, Braun, Mares, Lacroix, Zayed
- Substitutions: Smart 64' (Lacroix), Franco 73' (Vukovic), Wojcik 76' (Paterson)
- Unused: Cardona, Shaffer, Keller, Miller
- Goals: Zayed 90', Zayed 90+5'
- Bookings: Vukovic 50' (Yellow), Braun 57' (Yellow), Janicki 65' (Yellow), Ring 90+5' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

Before I get into the discussion of the game, I want to include some thoughts on the NY Cosmos contingent who attended the game. From my perspective sitting in the section below them, their constant voice helped create a great environment for the game. The Mike is well considered to be one of the best environments to play in the league, and it's nice to have other team's fans make the trip because it only adds to the stadium noise. Their voice was loud enough that cancelled out the BYB noise for my section. Combine that with the Red Card Regiment and the east end of the stadium was a very loud place to be. At one point, I recall having the BYB in my left ear, the Cosmos fans behind me, the Red Card Regiment going in front of me, and the entirety of the east stands using the metal stands and seats for all their sonorous glory in conjunction with the RCR made it deafeningly loud. I'm going to give them a pass for part of their behavior during the national anthem. A group of violins are tough to hear, even through the P.A. system. However, when it gets under 5 minutes before the game and both teams are standing at attention with a large American flag showing on the replay screen, use your other senses and realize that the National Anthem might be playing. Then, after the rest of the crowd around you gets your attention about it, stop making noise, apologize, and refrain from using the f-bomb at the crowd for the rest of the anthem. They took a reasonably understandable issue and turned the home crowd against them by not being adults about it.

Now let's talk about the Green Smoke Monster in the room. I personally don't mind the smoke. However, two days before the game, the fans tweeted that they would be at the game and the Eleven staff gave them a warning about the way they should conduct themselves.

Can't wait to have you at #TheMike @5_Points_NYC. Enjoy some light reading in advance ...https://t.co/J2okr5KkJj https://t.co/ilehPJd6Ci

— Indy Eleven (@IndyEleven) April 14, 2016

If you didn't follow the link:

• Guests shall refrain from using offensive language, making obscene gestures, throwing objects, using flares, fireworks, smoke bombs and other prohibited items.

I confirmed with the team that they did not seek permission to use the smoke bombs. So after the massive cloud they released during the National Anthem, they were given a warning, both by the team and the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department. When the smoke was again released after their goal in the 51st minute, their departure from the stadium was required. I also heard rumor that the setting of those smoke bombs also started a small fire from the paper confetti they used during the player announcements and that further contributed to their early departure. So again, if they had paid attention, their presence would have made for a very raucous ending to the game. As it was, the Indy Eleven fans and BYB got to experience the joy of the last minute win unencumbered by the noise from visiting supporters.

Now for my take on the game.

From the time the fans had their first interactions with Coach Hankinson in December, the tactical formation of 4-2-3-1 has been his favored lineup. The preseason games and the first two games against Tampa Bay and Ottawa have all used that arrangement. Ubiparipovic's hamstring injury, however, made many wonder how he would rearrange things. Given Mares' effort and effectiveness last week against Ottawa, a like-for-like change seemed reasonable. However, Coach Hankinson surprised all by switching to a 4-4-2 with a flat midfield using Ring and Paterson in the middle, Mares on the right, and Braun moved up top with Zayed. The Eleven weren't able to get it to translate into a possession advantage, but this arrangement was more effective at creating chances than in the previous weeks. With the exception of adding Mares to the starting lineup, these were the exact same players on the field under the 4-2-3-1, but it removed Zayed from being on an island by himself and allowed Braun to work in what seemed like a more natural way for him.

Given the result and the way the team played against one of the best teams in the league, it looks like a stroke of genius on Coach Hankinson's part. Yet if we're all honest, this was a miraculous win and even stealing a draw after going down a goal to New York would have been an acceptable, and historically consistent, result. It's clear that there is no quit in this team, but three games into this young season and the team hasn't scored a goal before the 89th minute and have had to play from behind in two of the three games. It's a bit early to be discussing whether those are going to be defining traits or just an early season anomaly, but those are not trends that the team want to continue.

So what happens to the 4-2-3-1 after the bye week when the Eleven head to Oklahoma who are shown to have played the same formation in their first two games? Does Coach Hankinson fall back to it himself or does the team's success with Braun up top with Zayed keep the arrangement going for another week? I think I remember Hankinson say that the starting formation is just that. A way to start and that it's how the team uses the players on the field. Well the team had the same players on the field against New York as they did against Ottawa, but with different results.

They had more crosses, they were better with possession, better with aerial duels, had more shots. It's an interesting position the team finds itself. This team was built around players that Coach Hankinson felt could play in the 4-2-3-1 system and yet they have been the most effective in other tactical arrangements. Even last week against Ottawa, when they were chasing the game, the 4-2-3-1 dissolved somewhat as Smart and Reinoso helped push things higher on the field, as well as Paterson pushing forward. The defense has been solid even as guys get pushed forward working for the equalizer so I guess that the team stays with this arrangement after the week off. If it continues to be effective, I think Hankinson's preferred arrangement gets benched for the foreseeable future.

On most games, I have a narrative of what I want to write about it in my head as I'm leaving the stadium and let my review of the stats and rewatch of the television broadcast confirm or question that narrative. For this game, I had to rewrite parts of that narrative three times in less than 5 minutes. At around the 75 minute mark, I remember thinking that I didn't know how the team could pull off the draw, much less the win. The New York Cosmos are a much better team than the Ottawa Fury and the Eleven barely managed that draw. At the 85th minute, I thought there might be a chance for the draw. At the 90th minute, I watched the fans around me groan when it was announced that there was going to be 5 minutes of stoppage time because we've all seen the Eleven turn wins into draws and draws into losses with adage goal after adage goal and they were playing the defending champions who have started the season on fire. When Braun's header in the 90+3 minute went a foot wide of the goal, I figured that was the last good chance. I didn't expect to be able to write that the Eleven won the game on a cheeky chip from Braun that lead to a one-timed blast from Mares that was perfectly put away on the rebound from Zayed.

Miraculous? Yes.

Deserved win? Yes.

Do we have a name for these folks yet?
The Watchmen? The Lookout? Lew's Lookout? Lew's Crew? The Sentinels?

Congratulation Zayed on being named this week's Player of the Week!

Congratulations Zayed and Mares on being named to the Team of the Week!

Congratulations Zayed on being nominated for Play of the Week!


Congratulations Zayed for getting the weekly treble and winning Play of the Week!

Highlights

Indy Eleven vs Ottawa - 03.02

- Opponent: Ottawa Fury
- Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
- Attendance: 9,140
- Final Score: 1-1 T
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Falvey, Janicki, Vukovic, Ring, Paterson, Braun, Ubiparipovic, Lacroix, Zayed
- Substitutions: Mares 51' (Ubiparipovic), Reinoso 63' (Braun), Smart 74' (Lacroix)
- Unused: Cardona, Miller, Franco, Larrea
- Goals: Vukovic 89'
- Bookings: Mares 55' (Yellow), Paterson 66' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

Much was discussed coming into this game about the trio of Falvey, Paterson, and Ubiparipovic facing off against their old team from last year. A team they helped lead to the Championship game with an unbelievable stretch of games in the Fall Season. How they could help scout the team. How they said that the Eleven would beat the Fury.

The thing, though, that was mentioned, but never really emphasized as far as I found was that this Ottawa Fury team is a shell of the team that went to the Championship last year. Like Indy, they have a new coach. Three of their key players are sitting here in Indy and a large chunk of the team found new homes as well. By my count, there are only 7 players on the current roster that were on the team at the end of last year and two of those are goalkeepers.  For all that the three knew the club, they didn't know this team. Much in the way that we're all waiting to see exactly how this new look Eleven is going to perform, Ottawa is in the same situation. Such is the life in the NASL with team turnover.

What that meant was that in many ways, the team that lost by three to the Cosmos last week, outperformed the Eleven this week. The Fury held a 60/40 possession edge, and like I indicated in last week's recap for stats I wanted to watch, they held roughly that same ratio in duels and aerial duels won. Only time will tell if this is the start of a trend.

Last week, the wingers seemed to keep pinching in bringing defenders with them and limiting the passing zones. If the heat maps are to be believed, they did a better job of this, but I remember a couple times when a ball was received on the wings and then taken right back inside and subsequently lost. The times they did it last week didn't make sense to me and it wasn't any better this week.

What does concern me already about this team, despite playing to two draws, is that I have this sense that the "playmaker" position isn't being utilized. With the new Opta stats, I was able to check something without having to make that my focus in my rewatch of the game. Ubiparipovic had 22 touches in the 51 minutes he was in the game, while Mares had 28 in the 32 minutes he was in the game after replacing Ubiparipovic after injuring his hamstring. So a combined 50 touches. While I don't have a good idea if that is enough or not, it seems light for a player that Hankinson stated when Ubiparipovic was signed that "A team’s attack is only successful if it’s based on the ability to break down a defense and create chances for strikers. Those are exactly the skills Siniša brings with him to club."

So the two players in that #10 role touched the ball 50 times. But it, unfortunately breaks down like this for passes:
Janicki to Ubiparipovic - 0
Vukovic to Ubi - 2
Palmer to Ubi - 0
Falvey to Ubi - 0
Paterson to Ubi - 1 (a corner kick in the 12th minute)
Ring to Ubi - 2

Janicki to Mares - 3
Vukovic to Mares - 0
Palmer to Mares - 3
Falvey to Mares - 2
Paterson to Mares - 1
Ring to Mares - 4

So the two players who are the "playmakers" and are supposed to be linking the defense to the attack were passed to 4 times in the first 51 minutes and then 13 times in the next 39 minutes. The only reason I checked this information was because I remember seeing a ball over the top from Janicki and then his very next possession was the same thing.

So while I remember the incident as Janicki, he wasn't the only one.

The Eleven were again in the range of 25% of their passes being considered "long." While it's still early in the season and I don't want to read too much into it yet, I hope this isn't the start of a trend. Ubiparipovic was the team's first signing of new players during the offseason, explicitly to be able to provide that connect between the defense and the offense and he wasn't used. The lack of passes to Ubiparipovic wasn't quite so stark in the Tampa Bay game so hopefully it was a one-off.

All that being said, I have faith in this defense. This team has a good defensive unit. On Ottawa's goal, there were players back and Vukovic ball watched for half a second, but even then it took a sprawled out Vered to put it on frame, otherwise it would have squirted through dangerously but wide. That didn't happen and the Eleven go down a goal.

Before the game, I was asked if I had a prediction for the game and I said 2 - 0 Indy based on what I saw of Indy against a good Tampa team and Ottawa's loss to New York. However, I reminded myself after of a conversation I had during the preseason game against Louisville when somebody (who will remain nameless for now) said to me, "there could be a lot of 0-0, 1-0 games this season." Until I'm convinced otherwise, I'm not going to predict any multiple goal games. I just don't see it happening at the moment, which is concerning since New York comes to town having scored multiple goals in both of their first two games. That's going to test the "death, taxes, and a draw with the Cosmos" mantra.

So when a team is having a hard time getting their scoring legs under them, sometimes you have to earn a draw on the road and steal a win at home. Vukovic's late equalizer keeps the Eleven in the crowded middle of the Spring Standings, but a surging out of the gate Cosmos and RailHawks have an early lead that hopefully will get reduced on Saturday with an Eleven win over the Cosmos.

PHOTO GALLERY:

Jon. Jon? Over here Jon.

HIGHLIGHTS:


Congratulations Vukovic on getting Team of the Week honors!

Indy Eleven vs Rowdies - 03.01

 - Opponent: Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Location: Tampa Bay, Florida
- Attendance: 5,740
- Final Score: 0-0 T
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Falvey, Janicki, Vukovic, Ring, Paterson, Braun, Ubiparipovic, Lacroix, Zayed
- Substitutions: Larrea 63' (Paterson), Reinoso 73' (Lacroix), Franco 82' (Palmer)
- Unused: Cardona, Mares, Smart, Miller
- Goals: None
- Bookings: Ring 53' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

A draw on the road in the first game of the season with the number of changes that this team has seen from last season to this one can never be considered a horrible result. There were moments where the team looked really good, held possession, and seemed to be in control of the game and tempo. There were also moments where they looked completely under attack. Like the last 5 to 10 minutes of the second half where I wondered if my habit of keeping track of adage goals was going to be tested. I'm hoping that that I can stop keeping track of that statistic with this Indy Eleven 3.0.

Despite the difference in possession skewed towards Tampa Bay at 60% to 40% and the pressure that Tampa Bay placed upon the defense, the back four, as well as the defensive midfielders Ring and Paterson, did a really good job of limiting most of the Rowdies chances. I can only remember one time where the defense broke down giving Heinemann a really good opportunity inside the box from a pass Alhassan, but Busch was there to collect it. 

In February, the NASL announced a partnership with Opta, to bring substantially more statistical data to the NASL fans. This additional data is amazing and I can't wait to see how others use this data throughout the season. For now, I'm going to talk about a few stats that jumped off the page at me about this game, including using a few (hopefully not illegal) screen captures.

Under the General Play tab of the statistics, it indicates that the Eleven turned the 50/50 balls into a 60/40 proposition, which coincidentally was the same as the possession battle. The Duels Won and Aerial Duels Won stats are two that I want to keep track of this season. Yet despite the fact that they weren't winning the 50/50 balls, the Eleven held better than a 4 to 1 advantage in intercepting Tampa Bay's passes. That speaks to good positional awareness and anticipation of their opponents' passes.

Switching to the Distribution tab, it shows that nearly a quarter of the team's passes were considered "long." That's another one that I'm curious to watch because mid-way into the second half, I remember thinking that it seemed that Palmer was falling into the Frias category of blasting the ball forward from the backline in hopeful attempts to get the ball into the Eleven's offensive third. Given that the team wasn't winning those battles according to the Duels stats, it wasn't an effective strategy. Similarly, the team had 13 crosses, which averages out to a cross every 7 minutes. While I think this game had a more defensive strategy that other games might have in store, that's still not a lot of attempts to get the ball into the box. Yet, combine the relatively few crosses with the Duels stats and you get a Successful Crosses Percent of zero. That's right, not a single cross found the head of an Eleven player. This is one of those stats that I wish I could rewatch the game to verify. If true, that trend can't continue if the Eleven want to be successful.

Moving onto the screen caps (Opta Data Screen Capture from NASL Match Center). As can be seen from the Heat Map of the game using both teams, this game was clearly played in the middle half of the field. Busch was active, but this graphic is a telling sign that this game was a midfield battle.

Look what happens though, when you take away the heat map associated with Tampa Bay's players. The bulk of the Eleven's heat signature is in their defensive half of the field and maybe just as concerning was the absolute minimal amount of presence within Tampa's box. The Eleven struggled to get into near the goal and it shows.

The last screencap that I thought was representative of the game was the graphic, showing the Average Position where players were located throughout the game. #15, #3, #17, #2 are Tampa Bay's backline and #5 (Palmer), #32 (Falvey), #12 (Janicki), and #82 (Vukovic) are Indy's backline. I love how this graphic shows how both defenses kept their shape throughout the game, but what is indicative of the game is how Tampa's backline is pushed higher on the field that the Eleven's. That means they were able to push the ball more into the Eleven's half of the field, more consistently. The other thing that disappoints me about the Eleven looking at this data is how the entirety of the Eleven's midfield is huddled within the center circle. Some of this could potentially be attributed to the wingers switching sides, but if that was the case then Lacroix would be more toward the center than he is shown. So four of the five midfielders' average position were right on top of each other.

Throughout the preseason games that I saw, I kept thinking that every time one of the Eleven midfielders got the ball on the offensive side of the field, they seemed to drift into the middle of the field instead of keeping their width. When you are playing with five midfielders, if you drift into the middle of the field, it just seemed to clog the passing lanes. During preseason, I wondered if it was just something that wasn't as prominent as I thought it was, but through the first game, my assessment was proven. The other thing that needs to happen if those midfielders do push in though is that the outside backs need to be able to make some overlapping runs and I felt like Vukovic was doing that more often that Palmer. Maybe that's partially why Vukovic's shown slightly higher up the field than Palmer.

"Figures often beguile me, particularly when I have the arranging of them myself; in which case the remark attributed to Disraeli would often apply with justice and force: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.""
- Mark Twain's Own Autobiography: The Chapters from the North American Review

Statistics can be useful or they can be a distraction from the game and the results. Regardless, I'm going to be intrigued to find if the Eleven's future games and results compare to the NASL/Opta stats as they did with this first game draw with Tampa Bay.

Congratulations Vukovic for making the inaugural Team of the Week for the 2016 Spring Season!

HIGHLIGHTS:

2016 NASL Season - There's Hope and It's Practically Here!

Only a couple days remain before the NASL season officially says goodbye to preseason training camps, friendlies, and absolute guesses about candidates for Golden Boot, Golden Glove, and Young Player of the Year and kicks off the official start to the 2016 Spring Season.

Carolina hosts Minnesota.
Fort Lauderdale hosts Miami.
New York hosts Ottawa.
Rayo OKC hosts Edmonton.
Tampa Bay hosts Indy.

Whether one of the games is your home opener or you're forced to watch the game from the friendly confines of your home or local pub on one of the 200 media partners (I kid...kind of...1, 2, 3, 4), there's one consistent thing among all of the fan bases right now. Hope. The Standings are a clean slate, just waiting for teams to determine what trajectory they are going to go.

There aren't any win streaks. No losing streaks. No trends.

There aren't any attendance figures. Nobody has walked through the gates to give the chuckle on a rain-delayed Saturday night when the announced attendance takes longer to announce than it would to actually count the number of people in the stands.

There are no Wins. No Losses. No Draws. No Goal Differentials. No Points.

There is only hope that this is the season where the team pulls it all together. Hope that the injury bug finds itself somewhere else. Hope that the defense is stout and the offense is lighting up the scoreboard. Hope that the team starts strong and wins the Spring Season. Hope that the team finishes strong and wins the Fall Season. Hope that the team is consistent enough to at least be one of the top four in the Combined Standings. Hope of a Championship.

Right now, anything is possible. Right now, Hope wins!

Tomorrow?

Well, tomorrow starts the exuberant, colorful, gut-wrenching, heart-breaking, last-minute-winning, beautiful joy ride we've waited all off-season to enjoy.

...Even if the Koluder tried to prevent it...

How The Koluder Stole Spring Season
by Drew as inspired by Dr. Seuss

Every Bricker in the Battalion liked The Spring Season a lot...
But the Koluder,who lived just north of the Battalion, did NOT!

The Koluder hated The Spring Season! As well as the Fall Season!
Now, please don't ask why. No one quite knows the reason.

It could be his head wasn't screwed on just right.
It could be, perhaps, that his cleats were too tight.

But I think that the most likely reason of all,
May have been that his heart was crushed every Fall.

Whatever the reason, maybe he just liked to bicker,
He stood there on Spring Season Eve, hating the Brickers,

Staring down at the Battalion with a sour, Koludery frown,
At the Indy Eleven buzz slowly growing in their town.

For he knew every Bricker in the Battalion beneath,
Was busy now, waiting to scream through their teeth.

"And they're preparing their chants!" he snarled with a sneer,
"Tomorrow is the Spring Season! It's practically here!"

Then he growled, with his Koluder fingers nervously drumming,
"I MUST find some way to stop Spring Season from coming!"

For Tomorrow, he knew, all the Bricker gals and chaps,
Would wake bright and early and head to Chatham Tap!

And then! Oh, the noise! Oh, the Noise!
Noise! Noise! Noise!
That's one thing he hated! The NOISE!
NOISE! NOISE! NOISE!

Then the Brickers, young and old, would sit down to a feast.
And they'd feast! And they'd feast! And they'd FEAST!
FEAST! FEAST! FEAST!

They would feast on corn dogs, and rare Full 90 beer.
Which was something that always put the Koluder on his rear!

And THEN They'd do something He liked least of all!
Every Bricker in the Battalion, the tall and the small,
Would stand close together, with the Red Card Regiment ringing.
They'd stand hand-in-hand. And the Brickers would start singing!

They'd sing! And they'd sing! And they'd SING!
SING! SING! SING!

INDY!
COME ON YOU BOYS IN BLUE!
COME ON YOU BOYS IN BLUE!
INDY IS RED AND BLUE!
INDY IS RED AND BLUE!