Carolina RailHawks News Release - www.carolinarailhawks.com
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
CARY, NC -- The venue and scoreline were different, but the result was the same. Three days after playing to a scoreless draw in Vancouver, the Whitecaps and RailHawks got together again on Tuesday at WakeMed Soccer Park and fought to a 1-1 tie.
“One of the things that happens in the USL is there are certain times where one team has to win,” said Carolina coach Martin Rennie. “Vancouver feels like they have to win just to make the playoffs. We feel like we have to win to win the regular season. There’s a big battle going on. It’s tough going all the way to Vancouver and then coming here. It tires you out. In the end, two draws was probably just about right.”
Down 1-0 after a 66th minute goal by Vancouver’s Marcus Haber, Andriy Budnyy tallied the equalizer in the 87th minute, nine minutes after checking into the match.
“A that point, you just want to go in and do whatever you can for the team to help,” Budnyy said. “[Vancouver] is not used to playing in this climate and we just put more pressure on them at the end, and it paid off. Unfortunately not for a win, but we got a tie, so that's something.”
The draw allows Carolina (13-5-5) to pull into a second-place tie with Charleston (44 points), and they extended their unbeaten streak to six matches (4-0-2).
The RailHawks outshot the Vancouver 15-9, but much like Saturday’s match, their touch was off all over the park, and, at times, it seemed they tried to force the game.
“We were trying to play so fast that we started playing faster than we can move,” said Carolina goalkeeper Eric Reed. “And so we were trying to whip the ball around the field, but the guys couldn't quite get there in time.”
But they also caught a bad break midway through the first half. In the 21st minute, Gregory Richardson sprung Joseph Kabwe free down the middle of the field. Surrounded by a trio of defenders, Kabwe was tackled 25 yards from goal. Vancouver defender Marco Reda was cautioned for the tackle, though it had potential for a red card. On the ensuing free kick, Daniel Paladini pushed the shot wide.
“It could’ve been a red card. I really thought it was,” Rennie said. “But maybe we got a little luck on our goal, too. It evens itself out, I suppose. We just have to move on.”
In the 43rd minute, Josh Gardner spotted Richardson on the back post from the right flank, but Richardson’s header went wide.
In stoppage time, off a Paladini corner, Brad Rusin headed the ball down and Richardson hit a shot toward the far post that Sallieu Bundu tried to redirect but was unable to get his foot on, and the ball went wide.
“I was disappointed we didn’t score in the first half because I felt like they were quite tired and I thought if we scored it’d be quite hard for them to get back in the game,” Rennie said. “When they got the first goal, it made it quite tough on us. So in the end, I‘m glad we got a point out of the game.”
Vancouver’s Haber, who entered the match in the seventh minute after Marlon James was injured, opened the scoring in the 66th minute, halting the RailHawks’ shutout streak at five matches and 556 minutes. Mason Trafford headed the ball forward. Haber shielded Carolina’s Devon McKenney off the ball and broke in one-on-one with Reed. As Reed charged off his line, Haber tucked it under his grasp. It was the only blemish on Reed’s otherwise sterling night, where he recorded a season-high seven saves.
Knocked on their heels, the RailHawks snapped out of their funk and started generating chances going forward. Finally, in the 88th minute, Budnyy evened the match. John Cunliffe played him through at the top of the box, and Budnyy tucked the ball under Jay Nolly as he charged off his line.
“[Cunliffe] drilled it pretty good, so I was happy that it landed in a way that it dropped right in front of me,” said Budnyy, who now has three goals on the year. “The defender was stuck, so he couldn't make it towards me, and then he couldn't back up, so I just played it in. The keeper was in the same position, so I just slid it in the corner.”
And the goal allowed the RailHawks to salvage a point out of the night, something that rarely happens when they concede the first goal. Of the 31 times they’ve allowed the game’s first goal, they’ve managed 27 losses and four ties.
“We went into the game never looking for a tie, but in games like today, we'll take it,” Reed said. “I think we're still a little disappointed in tonight's result. A game at home, pivotal time at the season, we needed to win. But we'll take the tie.”
