RECAP | Armada Fall Short After Mounting Stunning Comeback Against New York Cosmos
Mike McCall, ArmadaFC.com​ | Oct. 15, 2016
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Armada FC dropped their clean sheet streak, allowed three goals in the final 12 minutes, saw one of their most veteran players sent off for losing his composure, and fell 4-2 to the New York Cosmos on Saturday night at Community First Park.
It was downright encouraging.
Why?
They showed the kind of quality, passion and toughness that no one should expect from a team sitting at the bottom of the NASL Fall Standings. They fought from behind to take a 2-1 lead against the first-place Cosmos. They played a match that was mostly even until New York’s Juan Arango started banging in free kicks (two of them) in the final minutes.
And afterward, the Armada had the kind of frustration that can only come from belief and hope, not depression.
“Heartbreak, man. That’s like getting broken up with in middle school by the girl you’ve loved since kindergarten,” said midfielder Zach Steinberger, who notched the would-be winning goal in the 79th before New York’s comeback. “That’s a kick in the mouth.”
That boot to the face came via two left-footed free kicks by Arango, who holds the record for most goals in Venezuelan national team history and is one of the NASL’s top scorers this season.
His first, in the 83rd, took a deflection off Armada forward Charles Eloundou’s head, then hit the crossbar and fell just inches beyond the goal line to tie the score 2-2.
That set off a massive protest from the home side, which felt the ball hadn’t crossed the line since it bounced back out of the goal and into keeper Miguel Gallardo’s hands.
Amidst the commotion, Gallardo and Alhassane Keita picked up yellow cards, which saw Keita sent off for his second of the night.
Down to 10 men, the Armada (3-8-8 NASL Fall, 4-12-13 Combined) fell behind for good after Eloundou gave up a foul just outside the box, and Arango delivered a curling strike just inside the far post.
“(I saw) nothing,” Gallardo said. “On any of the free kicks, they do a good job of blocking the keeper’s view. You just hope that when you see the ball, it’s not too late. … [Arango is] a quality guy. If you give him five or six opportunities, that’s six opportunities too many.”
The final blow came in the 95th, when Jairo Arrieta snuck in a low, long-distance shot to set the 4-2 score line.
Head coach Mark Lowry lamented the loss of composure and the refereeing decisions that led to those three late goals, saying it was a “bit of both.”
He felt that earlier in the match, when Steinberger had a clear breakaway stymied by New York keeper Jimmy Maurer sliding into his path (but not the ball’s), it should have been a red card or at least a free kick.
He also felt the third and fourth Cosmos goals were preceded by New York fouls.
Regardless of the reasons, the result is a setback.
The Armada saw a 293-minute shutout streak come to an end, as well as a five-game unbeaten run. But they did show tremendous fight in taking control of a match that once looked like a surefire 1-0 loss.
Yohandry Orozco opened the scoring in the 23rd when he poked home a rebound, and Jacksonville didn’t truly threaten for the first hour besides Pekka Lagerblom nearly chipping Maurer from midfield and Mechack Jérôme forcing a save at the post on a free kick.
That all changed in the 66th, when Eloundou poked a loose ball into the box. Keita stepped in front of it, shielded Cosmos defender Jimmy Ockford away, turned toward goal and blasted a shot past Maurer.
That set up Steinberger’s go-ahead goal, which touched off one of the celebrations of the season for the Armada.
“This was the highest of highs and the lowest of lows,” Steinberger said. “We played so well against the best team in the league. … It’s so unfortunate to not come out with at least a point.”
There isn’t much time to lament the loss, as the Armada must turn around and host Miami FC on Wednesday at 7 p.m. — the third in a run of four matches in 12 days.
But there shouldn’t be a concern about confidence, as recent form and Saturday’s attitudes showed plenty of self-belief.
“There’s massive belief in the locker room,” Lowry said. “Before the game, they were acting a little bit differently than they have all season. We were like, ‘The guys seem really relaxed tonight.’ I put it down to just confidence. They have a belief that, ‘Alright we’re playing the Cosmos, but we’re a good team. We’re five unbeaten for a reason.’
“There was a good confidence about the group tonight, and it showed in the performance.”
Match Report
Starting XI:
JAX (4-2-3-1): Gallardo, Burke, Lagerblom (Eloundou 42’), Johnson (Wallace 89’), Ruthven, Jerome, George (Gebhard 72’), Bahner, Maripuu, Steinberger, Keita
NYC (4-1-4-1): Maurer, Moffat, Richter, Ochieng, Roversio (Ockford 57’), Flores (Szetela 90+3’), Bover, Perez, Arango, Orozco (Diosa 66’), Arrieta
Scoring Summary:
NYC: Orozco 23’
JAX: Keita 66’
JAX: Steinberger 79’
NYC: Arango 83’
NYC: Arango 88’
NYC: Arrieta 90+5’
Discipline:
JAX: Bahner (caution) 37’
NYC: Ochieng (caution) 54’
JAX: Steinberger (caution) 62’
JAX: Keita (caution) 70’
JAX: Gebhard (caution) 81’
JAX: Gallardo (caution) 83’
JAX: Keita (ejection – second caution) 84’
JAX: Eloundou (caution) 87’
Attendance:
3,044
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