Indy Eleven vs RailHawks - 03.10

- Opponent: Carolina RailHawks
- Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
- Attendance: 9,341
- Final Score: 4-1 W
- Starting XI: Busch, Franco, Falvey, Janicki, Vukovic, Mares, Paterson, Larrea, Gordon, Zayed, Braun
- Substitutions: Lacroix 63' (Paterson), Ubiparipovic 76' (Falvey), Ring 89' (Larrea)
- Unused: Cardona, Shaffer, Keller, Miller
- Goals: Zayed 16', 65', 85', Braun 45+1'
- Bookings: None
- Adage goals: None

As I prepared to head to the game tonight, on a night when minutes before the start of the game the air temperature was a little more than 90-degrees F, I wondered if the Eleven would be physically able attack this game in a way that would be able to produce enough goals to overcome the deficit behind the New York Cosmos and win the Spring Championship. Short bursts in that kind of temperature take a toll on the body. Would they have enough energy to be able to sustain the pressure through 90 minutes to score as many goals as the team has been able to do only once? Further complicating the issue is that the on-field temperatures are usually higher than the air temperature. So armed with a normal thermometer from the house, I did a little field investigation.

Yes, folks, that says 106.1-degrees F. Though, it was so hot (and admittedly not using a device designed to do what I was asking it to do), it went up to 106.8-degrees.

I also took a measurement in the shade, which minutes before the start of the game, was basically non-existent. 101.8-degrees F. Still hot!

Yet, despite the heat, the team came out with their collective foot on the gas and put Carolina on their heels from the very beginning. The final possession stat indicates a slight edge to Carolina, but this game was about Indy seeing a chance to collect some hardware and going after it. Average Position stats and Heat Map are much more heavily skewed towards the offensive end of the field, which is something that we haven't seen often from the Eleven. 

I started this graphic this season and have been updating it in the sidebar, but wanted to bring it out into the main article after this game. With this game, the Eleven have scored 15 goals on the season; 12 at home and 3 on the road. What's interesting to me about where the Eleven are scoring their goals is that only two of them are outside of 12-yards from the goal and only one has been outside of the 18-yard box. This was not the case last season where we witnessed a number of long range goals. This team is finding success inside the 6-yard box and today was no different. Three of the four goals were within that area and the fourth was just a yard outside of it. They are still taking shots outside the box, but the ones going into the goal are from close range. (Sidenote: Anybody remember how we thought that Zayed and Braun would start scoring goals once they got their first one? That player for me, now, is Dylan Mares. He is without a goal nor an assist on the season, but it's not for a lack of effort. Some of his shots have been on the high side, but he's not been afraid to take the shot when it becomes available. Dylan needs to see one find the back of the net, and soon.)

This team believed they could put 4 goals on the board and played that way. In a change from normal, there was a more offensive game plan. As the game neared the end and they were chasing that final goal, Coach Hankinson made good on his Soccer Saturday comments of going for the title. Paterson was subbed for Lacroix, creating a more offensive presence. On more than one occasion, Gordon was up top with Zayed and Braun. Then when Falvey needed to come out due to his injury (leaving Busch as the only ironman left on the team to play every single minute of the season), Coach Hankinson brought on Ubiparipovic, definitely not a like-for-like substitution. At that point, the Eleven were, in essence, playing a 3 man back line, 5 midfielders, and 3 forwards. They were up by two goals with a win well in their sights and they chose to go for the title too. While this is still to be determined as of this writing due to the Edmonton versus Fort Lauderdale game tomorrow, if a 4-1 win by the Eleven has already been labeled as the "Miracle at the Mike," the SIX goal margin of victory needed by the Strikers would go down in the NASL history books as one of the greatest wins of all time. So the Cosmos were the first in the clubhouse with the title in their grasp only to watch the Eleven come in behind them and take the Spring Season title away. Later on Sunday, the Eleven will know if it will remain theirs.

I said recently that nothing would surprise me about this team any longer. I said that this team could be special, it just might not happen in the Spring Season. As a joke, I said I wanted to see a 3-5-3 tactical formation out of this team for this game.

This team believed.

This team achieved.

"Mr. Hat-Trick" did nothing to diminish his legend, but rather grow it more. 

I hope Gordon is ok. He looked like he might have been dehydrated after the game...

What a way to go out Peter!

Congratulations Eamon on the Player of the Week selection! Twice in 10 games!

Congratulations Eamon on the Play of the Week Nominee! Vote here!

And Play of the Week selection!

Congratulations Team of the Week honorees: Vuko (6th time), Zayed (2nd time), and Falvey (well deserved)

Highlights:

Indy Eleven vs Miami FC - 03.09

- Opponent: Miami FC
- Location: Miami, Florida
- Attendance: 1,837
- Final Score: 0-0 D
- Starting XI: Busch, Franco, Falvey, Janicki, Vukovic, Mares, Paterson, Larrea, Gordon, Zayed, Braun
- Substitutions: Lacroix 74' (Paterson), Keller 90+2' (Zayed)
- Unused: Cardona, Shaffer, Ubiparipovic, Miller, Reinoso
- Goals: None
- Bookings: Larrea 83' (Yellow), Franco 90' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

The goal seemed simple. Head down to Florida for the fourth time this Spring Season, win against one of the teams in the lower tier in the league, and go into the final game at Carroll Stadium against Carolina in complete control, provided that Fort Lauderdale help out by beating the New York Cosmos. Fort Lauderdale was the only part of that scenario that did their part. In another week where the results of the other games benefited the Eleven, the team didn't take full advantage.

I find myself in a rare and awkward predicament. I find myself disappointed with a road draw in a league where seemingly anything can happen on any given week. At the start of the season, if you told me that the Eleven would be going into the final weekend of the Spring Season with a chance to win it, I would have been ecstatic. If you told me that they would be in that position and be undefeated, I would have laughed at you. Yet, the two draws this week against Jacksonville and Miami seem like points lost that could have already put this Spring Season to bed.

So when a team finishes in a draw with one of the bottom dwellers, there tends to be some negative aspects of their play. I'm going to stop talking about losing the possession battle, the duel battles, and the long ball percentage, because those are just a function of the way this team plays. However, 9% shot accuracy and 0% successful cross statistics indicate an offense that was never really that threatening to Miami goalkeeper Vega. Indy was credited with 1 shot on target and that happened in the first half. For a team that has created a reputation for getting chances late in games, they never really threatened.

Despite the slight disappointment that the Eleven didn't make a much larger step towards securing the automatic bid into The Championship, there were some good things to see. While I love me some Cory Miller defensive headers, there is a good connection between Falvey and Janicki and the backline seems more stable with them together. Despite having to play 90 minutes on Wednesday, Gordon's, Mares', and Franco's energy levels were still very high. Mares, in particular, had some great passes and defensive effort in the midfield, even if his shot selection wasn't the best. Busch was credited with three official saves, but wasn't really tested all game.

This was a game that had the potential to be so much more for the Eleven in terms of the league standings, but neither team was ever really that threatening. A game where the Heat Map is an accurate depiction of the game; very heavy in the middle of the field, but nothing too substantial in the offensive third for either team. So the Eleven finish their Spring Florida tour with a single goal and four draws, but still with a chance to win the Spring Season with a win and a goal heavy output against Carolina next weekend. The Eleven need to overcome a 3 goal differential next weekend to secure the spot, but at least they will be playing a Carolina team that is not in the good form they were in to start the season. Carolina has given up 3 goals this season and Indy has scored more than 3 goals so as we've seen all year, anything is possible.

Hopefully, that "anything is possible" is a 4-0 win by the Eleven (a 3-0 win still gives the tie-breaker to NY, while a 4-1 win gives it to Indy since they have the head-to-head on the 3rd tie-breaker).

Congratulations to Vukovic for his 5th Team of the Week selection!

Highlights:

Indy Eleven vs Louisville FC - 2016 U.S. Open Cup

- Opponent: Louisville City FC
- Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
- Attendance: 2,145
- Final Score: 2-1 W
- Starting XI: Cardona, Franco, Miller, Vukovic, Shaffer, Smart, Mares, Keller, Lacroix, Gordon, Reinoso
- Substitutions: Braun 41' (Reinoso), Zayed 45' (Smart), Larrea 82' (Lacroix)
- Unused: Busch, Falvey
- Goals: Gordon 58', Zayed 68' (assist Lacroix)
- Bookings: Zayed (Yellow 81'), Keller (Yellow 84')
- Adage goals: None

With Janicki on the bench, I believe there were 8 players from each team that were involved in last year's game. So while there has been a lot of change for both teams, that's a majority of the players who remember the Eleven's loss in last year's U.S. Open Cup. Combined with Louisville FC's wins over the Indy Eleven in preseason matches, LCFC came into Carroll Stadium with a ton of confidence. With some injuries to Ring (MCL sprain), Janicki (facial fracture), Ubiparipovic (hip), and Lovel (leg), and a three-games-in-eight-days stretch, Coach Hankinson was forced to play a different lineup than we've seen this season. Even with the players that we have seen regularly, they were in different positions. Vukovic was moved inside to left central defense and Gordon was up top alongside Reinoso.

What is different about this team than in the past is the depth and the player's ability to play multiple positions. Despite all that depth, with the other injuries, the team only fielded 16 players for this game, with two of those being the goalkeepers. So Coach Hankinson's in-game adjustments were tested early when two of the Eleven were hit with knocks. Where the Eleven lined up to start is not how they finished.

By my recollection, Reinoso appeared to be limping somewhere around the 15-minute mark. He never looked like his normal quick self after that and Coach Hankinson was forced to sub him out at the 41-minute mark for Braun. There was a noticeable difference in the effect of Louisville passes back to the goalkeeper with Braun's increased pace after he was inserted. Then Smart took a hard challenge around the 26th minute and was out for a few minutes as the trainers re-taped his ankle. Smart made it to halftime, but then he was subbed out for Zayed immediately after halftime.

Both Braun and Zayed spent the entirety of the halftime out on the field instead of in the locker room as the Eleven found themselves down a goal as a defensive breakdown for the Eleven let Louisville's Hoffman get behind them for a goal in the 21st minute. I'm guessing both players had been hearing what Hankinson had been saying on the sideline and were better served getting physically ready due to the early substitution pattern. Zayed for Smart was not a like-for-like substitution and Coach Hankinson couldn't have done a like-for-like if he wanted. So he placed Zayed in his normal forward position alongside Braun, and moved Gordon back into the midfield, more his recent position. At some point, and I can't recall exactly when it happened, Vukovic and Keller switched giving Vuko the ability to push forward in the midfield and allowing Keller to remain defensive.

The moves created a drastically different dynamic for the Eleven in the second half. Louisville still had chances of their own in the second half, but the in-game adjustments by Hankinson seemed to create a much more settled midfield. That helped create more chances going forward and with that midfield and forward lineup, I don't recall seeing Shaffer pushing forward as much as he did in the first half. During the first half, there were times when he was even with the forwards, attempting to not get called offsides.Vuko has arguably been the best player for the Eleven this season (though I would argue that Falvey's leadership has been just as important...and was missing on Wednesday) and his insertion into the midfield was vital and may be the one decision that helped swing this game.

Death, Taxes, and __fill in the blank__. I'm going to settle the "fill in the blank" once and for all. Death, Taxes, and a Defensive Aerial Duel won by Miller. After Cory Miller's first defensive header, I decided to keep track of how many times he didn't win one. Zero. Every single time a ball comes to Miller, he seems to take it as a personal challenge to send it back as far as possible. He's also going to make sure that the guy he's defending starts thinking about it every time future balls come their way. You may want the ball, but he wants it more. I guarantee it.

The Zayed goal was gorgeous. It was one of those moments when you can see it developing from the seats in the stands and just hope that it all gets rewarded. This time it did. Mares stole the ball near midfield and immediately looked to attack the goal. He found an open Lacroix on his left, who calmly slotted it towards the middle for Zayed to run onto for a one-touch shot on goal. Gorgeous soccer.

LCFC provides something that none of the NASL team's can provide for the Eleven and that's something that resembles a regional rivalry. They may be in different leagues, but the team's records and close proximity are starting to create something that could be interesting moving forward. The short distance also allows the LCFC supporter's section to make the trip to Carroll stadium and make their presence known. I don't have any major complaint about the LCFC supporters, but you might want to rethink chanting "we can't hear you" as you're doing so with a megaphone. To the BYB's credit, they followed that up a short time later with "we don't need a megaphone." Well played BYB, well played.

One last comment.about a topic that I don't normally discuss. Both supporter's sections were vocal from start to finish and both sections chanted "THE GREEN TEAM SUCKS!" within the first 30 minutes of the game. That's all I'm going to say about that.

Great game. Great result. The Chicago Fire await in two weeks, during the break between the Spring and Fall Seasons. That's a great time to take a U.S. Open Cup match seriously.

Indy Eleven vs Armada - 03.08

- Opponent: Jacksonville Armada
- Location: Jacksonville, Florida
- Attendance: 4,412
- Final Score: 1-1 D
- Starting XI: Busch, Franco, Falvey, Miller, Vukovic, Smart, Paterson, Mares, Gordon, Braun, Zayed
- Substitutions: Reinoso 60' (Smart), Larrea 60' (Mares), Lacroix 82' (Gordon)
- Unused: Cardona, Shaffer, Keller
- Goals: Braun 73' (assist Reinoso)
- Bookings: Miller 28' (Yellow), Paterson 41' (Yellow), Vukovic 70' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

The Eleven took another trip this Spring Season to Florida to play a struggling Jacksonville and came back home with a come-from-behind point. The Eleven were forced into a new lineup using a defensive backline that included Franco and Miller due to Janicki's facial injury last week and Palmer's leg injury, as well as a midfield of Smart, Paterson, Mares, and Gordon. For a team that has been extremely consistent in the lineup of the back four, two changes to that part of the starting lineup in a single week is a big deal.

The good news is that the Eleven's draw at Jacksonville means that they are still undefeated, in second place in the table, with a game in hand on the league leading New York Cosmos. They also have games remaining against Miami, who just won their first game, and a home game against Carolina, whose early season 4-0 win streak has been followed by a 1 draw, 3 loss streak. Not exactly teams in top form at the moment. Their draw on the road against Jacksonville was helped out by Minnesota's loss at home to Tampa Bay and Edmonton's loss to Miami.

The bad news is that the Eleven's draw means that even if they win the games against Miami and Carolina, they may still not win the Spring Season. An undefeated Spring Season could be prevented by the New York Cosmos, who either do or do not, they do not draw. The Cosmos' victory against Rayo OKC means that with the other results on the weekend, the Cosmos are once again in the driver's seat for the Spring. The Eleven still have a chance, but they are going to have to win out and are also going to need help next weekend when Fort Lauderdale plays host to New York. A Fort Lauderdale team that hasn't won at home yet this year.

To keep things interesting, each team has a mid-week U.S. Open Cup game to test their stamina, tactics, and fortitude. Indy, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale all have USL opponents while New York goes against the PDL side Jersey Express. You would have to think the advantage for that one goes, again, to the Cosmos. The Eleven's injuries are going to limit their options as they try to play three games in 8 days since Palmer, Ring, Janicki, and Ubiparipovic are all likely unavailable for action. That's likely why Shaffer, who had been loaned out to Harrisburg City, was back on the bench on Saturday versus Jacksonville. I have a feeling there's a good chance you'll see him at some point in the next couple of games.

So that's what this weekend's result means going forward, but let's look at what happened against Jacksonville.

The two teams came into the game in very different places. The Eleven came in off a 4-2 win against a top of the table Minnesota United, while Jacksonville hadn't won a game in over a month and hadn't scored in just as long. Jacksonville were without key players, while the Eleven really only had the couple of lineup changes and those players have all been starters in the past.

For the first time this season, the Indy Eleven won the possession battle, the Duels Won, and the Aerial Duels Won. From a statistical perspective, everything about this game signified exactly what it became; a 1-1 draw. The Eleven had 319 passes, while the Armada had 321. The Eleven passed long 24.1% of the time, while the Armada did it 24.3% of the time. Even both teams scoring at approximately the 30th minute of each respective half.

What's disconcerting as an Indy Eleven fan is how much the two teams resembled each other in both the stats and the "eyeball test" that I've mentioned in the past on how I evaluate the games. The oldest team in the league with an undefeated season had a very similar look as the second youngest team in the league on a four game losing streak. This team has absolute moments of brilliance. Smart's crosses into the box for Zayed and Braun. Busch's saves. Franco's goal line stop. Braun's goal. This team also has overall games like this one where it would seem like they should win only to come away with the draw.

I suppose the fact that this team has created an expectation of positive results that the fan base has been missing in the past is a good thing, but as I said after last week's game, I believe that this team can be special. I still believe that, but it doesn't mean that it's going to happen in the Spring Season. The Eleven needed to win this game and it's only because of their resiliency that they have kept a glimmer of hope for the Spring Championship instead of a result that would have added them to the list of hopefuls for the Fall Season.

Highlights:


Congratulations to Justin Braun on making back-to-back Team of the Week!