Following the loss to Hartford full of questionable officiating, Louisville City had yet another road test before they could return to the fortress that is Lynn Family Stadium. It would be North Carolina who would serve as an opportunity to rebound after the loss. Having just returned to the USL Championship after self-relegating themselves to League One, it was LouCity’s first trip back to Cary since the opening match of the 2020 season. The meeting between these two earlier this year was a fairly standard affair. However, the latest installment was anything but standard.
You don’t get wild ones like this often. The 6-4 Louisville victory featured a USL Championship record of three own goals. It also marked the second-ever time the boys in purple conceded four goals and still won, equaling a 6-4 victory over New York Red Bulls II back in August of 2018 (which happened to be the last match for the Triumvirate). “I guess it was good for the neutrals and the spectators, but it’s certainly not the way we anticipated the game was going to go or the way we drew it up,” Simon Bird said after serving as interim head coach as Coach Danny Cruz served his one match suspension for his red card the previous match. “We’re obviously happy we got the win. We showed character when we conceded goals — bounced back immediately — but we lacked control of the game.” The first 30 minutes were fairly standard, albeit trending to be a little high-scoring. The wheels really came off in the final 15 minutes of that first half. Own goals in favor of LouCity at 32’ (thank you, sleeper agent Paco Craig) and 36’ with NC getting one via Kyle Adams right before halftime.
If either side attempted to adjust for some stability or normalcy, it didn’t work as there were still 4 more goals to be scored in the match that was beginning to resemble a track meet with the repeated runs up and down the pitch. Although the home side took the lead at 56’, Morados channeled one of their best strengths; grit. Conceding 4 may impact the play of other squads, but LouCity turned the match another notch and went on to score 3 straight to secure the win. Wilson Harris missed a couple of huge chances early in the match, but he remained focused and ultimately ended the night with a brace. Jansen Wilson continued to add to the history of his mesmerizing rookie campaign with a brace of his own. Nearly a hat-trick had the own goal at 36’ been awarded to him.
For as fun as scoring 6 goals is, conceding 4 is certainly something that can’t be overlooked. In defense of Kyle Adams, his own goal was unfortunate. His header to eliminate the corner kick play was not only put on target but unfortunately well placed in the top corner. Headers can be risky due to the lack of control compared to kicking the ball. These things happen. The other three goals and additional opportunities created by North Carolina (2.28 xG for the home team) will surely be major points of emphasis in training sessions to come. Coach Cruz and his staff take great pride in defense and that wasn’t a defensive outing that will be celebrated. “That’s certainly not us, so we need to make sure we learn from it,” Bird stated. “Ultimately, it’s three points, and we’re happy with the three points. But it needs to be better.”
With that result and a CHS draw, Louisville City has already begun to work back the lead they had before HFD. 56 points for the good guys with 25 matches played with the Battery, their next closest opponent, with 53 points from 27 matches. That is 2.24 Pts/G to 1.96 Pts/G. The boys in purple inch closer to history, however, there is still plenty of time for things to change. With the regular season title becoming more and more a real possibility and the playoffs looming, this is the last opportunity for the squad to sort out any kinks in the armor. There will be little room for error come October and November. For now, we take things one match at a time and enjoy what has been a wild and fun ride.
Parting Thoughts
Want more reading on LouCity? Check out the following:
Be sure to check out the Vamos Morados Podcast featuring myself, Benton, and Zach Allen-Kelly. It’s available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcast, Audible, and Spotify. Everything you need to listen can be found on the Podcast page. Subscribe so you don’t miss an episode!
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