Own Goal Costs Crew in Home Opener
By Mark Hofmann, Columbus Wired Contributor, Photos by Dave Liggett (Columbus Wired)

The Crew left two on the pitch for the second time in as many games. The two left behind refers to points not people. However, watching Goalkeeper Will Hesmer storm off the field and straight to the Crew’s locker room as soon as the game over whistle was sounded gave me no indication it was not a special operations mission that had gone terribly wrong.  Crew 1, Toronto 1.

Early first half disjointed plays reflected both sides were missing key players. Though the Crew looked to be controlling the run of play, several minutes were spent by both sides adjusting their own replacement players. Errant passes (by both teams) to their own teammates stymied effective play, not the opposition’s defense.

The Crew got things rolling after grabbed the lead in the 30th minute with a play that was orchestrated and performed by Guillermo Schelotto. He curled left in front of Jed Zayner, who was picking out a target for his throw in. Once Schelotto cleared to the left of Zayner, he connected with Eddie Gaven. As two defenders collapsed on Gaven, he touched it over to a beckoning Guillermo who had completed his half circle loop and was now facing him.

With Ball in toe, the crafty Argentine slide past Gaven on his right side, in a move that on a hardwood court, would look a lot like a pick. Touching the ball forward he crossed into the top of the penalty box from the left flank. Next, Schelotto attempted a pass in the direction of the center of the box, but it deflected off the outstretched arm of Toronto midfielder Kevin Harmse.

Referee Michael Kennedy blew his whistle and immediately pointed to the penalty spot signaling a PK be awarded to the Crew. Schelotto lined up and, matter of factly, drilling the ensuing penalty kick into the back of the net for his second goal in as many games.

“He is a talented footballer and when he is on the ball you got to worry about him. He has got great ability,” was the comment from Toronto’s coach Carver when asked about Schelotto’s ability to control the midfield.

Once in the lead the Crew chose to keep pressing, launching several promising attacks in an effort to extend their lead. Eddie Gaven tested the soundness of a left side post with a blistering shot. Schelotto, following the shot, attempted to redirect the ball on the goal. A Toronto defender blocked his attempt, and tried to clear the ball wide left. The ball was intercepted and controlled by Emmanual Ekpo, who maneuvered into position and launched a second volley from just out side the box that started straight into the keeper’s body, then curved up and to the right as it neared impact. Stefan Frei had to contort his body up and to the left to nab the quick silver projectile.

The impact knocked him off balance and induced a not so comical pratfall to the hard turf. Though Emmanuel did not score the goal, Frei was not able to shake off the effects of the hard landing. He gutted out the rest of the half’s play but did not return to the pitch for second half action. Veteran keeper Greg Sutton answered to call when the sides returned to action.

“I was going to change one or two things at half time but because he (Frei) was injured I didn’t want to gamble and put three substitutes in at the same time,” Carver said. At the 62nd minute he decided he had waited long enough, first by replacing his mid-fielder Rohan Rickets with forward Johann Smith in an attempt to bolster Toronto’s offensive abilities.

The first substitution helped turn the tide of play and with Toronto now getting more free kicks and penalties. The time of possession started to shift in the visiting teams favor. Carver made his last chess move by swapping forward pieces Chad Barrett with Danny Dichio in the 68th minute.

The final substitution garnered Carver about three stones of muscle and four inches of height advantage in anticipation of future flighted balls into the Crew’s penalty area. Hopefully, it would work to keep defender of the year Chad Marshall busier covering the beefier forward when defending any future Toronto set piece plays.

Crew Head Coach Robert Warzycha worked to sure up his midfield as Toronto started taking the play to the Crew. “He was tired (Alex Grendi) so we decided to go with Cory Elenio,” was the justification for making the 73rd minute swap. Toronto continued to push play on the Crew but was being held in check by fine reads from Will Hesmer and strong work rate from Chad Marshall who seemed throughout the game to win every aerial challenge in his proximity.

“He was limping a little bit after the tackle in the second half, in the beginning of the second half. As the game went on he was limping more so we didn’t want to take any chances” was Coach Warzycha’s reason for pulling out Schelotto in favor of Steven Lenhart at the 76th minute mark.

“They had some crosses and throw-ins, but we had defended that well and the second balls we won also” were some reasons Coach gave discussing some positives of the Crew in response to Toronto’s second half attempts to draw even. The game could have resulted in a win for the Crew, “But you know a fluke happens” is why the Coach is choosing to not push any panic buttons at this time in the season and focus on the positives.

By all rights The Crew was turning back Toronto’s every charge. The thing that spoiled this otherwise festive home opener was an own goal tallied by defensive man Gino Padula in the 84th minute. When asked after the game if he felt he needed to apologize to the team for scoring the goal Gino said “I am not happy I scored the goal, I can’t say I am sorry, I try to play the ball and clear the ball.”

“I feel bad for Gino, it was a good ball in”, was Hesmer’s response to the own-goal.

So, how did the Crew get robbed of two? Toronto had surged initially with the changes induced by their strapping lad of a footballer coach. I was marking time in my head by watching a strong defensive line or Hesmer snuff each challenge, and expecting to be cheerfully saying nice game to the guys in red as they slinked out of our stadium for their long journey home.

Then a weird quiet was heard on the south end of the field. It was very peculiar because the section of the stadium occupied by rowdy hooligans in red had been abuzz with chanting and singing like Gregorian monks all afternoon.

Then the white flares began to ignite. The whole center sections sporting the “WEE” (West End Elite) banner looked like they were willing to die of smoke inhalation to somehow will their team to a goal as they held their banner high keeping their members in a shroud of thick smoke.

Were they invoking a spell behind that banner? Yeah, go ahead and laugh, but not three minutes after they started their bizarre ritual did our team do to ourselves what they could not do all afternoon, score a GOALLLLLLLLLLLLL!

If you put a bong (Padula’s head), swirrrrrrr (flight of ball in), bank (touch off Hesmer’s finger tips) bing (bounce off the cross bar) boing (carom off Hesmer’s back) and blueeeeep (two points swirling down the drain) it almost sounds funny. But play those sounds in reverse and see what you hear!

More evidence that this could have been some mystic shenanigans at work can be found in the dissipation of the smoke after the game. The trade winds this time of year would have taken approximately five hours to carry the devil’s dust to El Salvador.

What happened in crew stadium was as normal as a muddy parking lot after the rain compared to the absurdity that went down at Battery Park, or is it Pee Bag Stadium I can’t recall. First, El Salvador who hasn’t scored on the US team since 1996 tallied two goals.

Then, I love you Frankie Hejduk, the Crew’s captain was responsible for first delivering a perfectly weighted and placed ball to Jozy Altidore head, which if Jozy had his eyes closed the ball would have hit him and still found the back of the net. Though Frankie does a lot of crosses into the box, they normally have high energy behind them and are not so deftly placed.

The coup de gras of any doubts you still hold in regard to something mystical and sinister not being in play is when Frankie scored the tying goal of the FIFA qualified. A feat he does more infrequently then the coming of a Blue Moon, on a Tuesday evening, in weather conditions under 37 degrees.

His last time, the first time, was twelve years ago. Need I say more? Dr. Watson, something criminal was afoot behind that WEE banner!