So be aware that it will contain spoilers. Wilmington now leads with 2 points to 1 each for Charleston and Charlotte.This article will go over the film in greater depth. The match counted in the standings for the fan-administered Southern Derby Cup. With the win, the Battery improved to 6-1-5 overall and 2-1-3 on the road. The match ended in a hurry, too, with the double-whistle blowing before the Battery could take an attacking throw-in from the the left touchline. At one point, after picking up a yellow card for time-wasting on a goal kick, Cooper had to reset the ball again when it was blown three feet off the spot where he'd placed it. With the wind blowing at gale force toward Cooper's goal, there were moments of surreal anxiety in the four minutes of stoppage. A storm with lightning in the distance and 25 mph winds that pulled up stakes, scoured loose paper, and sent pop-up event tents rolling through the stadium concourses like tumbling tumbleweeds.Īs the Hammerheads clawed at fate for a winner on the pitch, Hammerhead fans scattered from the stands and ran toward the parking lot. That's a literal storm, not a metaphorical one. Then, in the final minute of regulation, a storm blew up over Legion Stadium. Hammerheads forced Cooper into action repeatedly, and the quick Cuban picked up crucial saves in the 88th and 89th minutes. The match would conclude with both teams down to just 10 men.Īs the fans groped to understand what had just occurred, Wilmington lashed out at the Battery in a desperate attempt to find the match winner. And with all his subs used, Porter had no one left to replace the defender. Jackson had no play as Fairclough's weird own-goal bent into the net to his left.Īfterward, Fairclough limped and grimmaced, and eventually left the pitch with an injury sustained at the critical moment. Substitute defender Ashani Fairclough poked an awkward leg out at it, redirecting its flight back toward the near post as he crumpled to the ground. Jamaican winger Boyd began the move, getting upfield quickly and sending a hopeful ball diagonally toward the center of the pitch. That seemingly sensible hope collapsed into stunned silence and despair just eight minutes later. That moment set the tone for what would follow, with Charleston pushing for the equalizer and Wilmington trying to hold on for its first home win of the season. It beat substitute goalkeeper Larry Jackson, but caromed off the far post and out of bounds. But his first sub almost rewrote the match on his first touch.įorward Heviel Cordoves came on for Ricky Garbanzo in the 76th minute and instantly surprised Wilmington with his pace down the right touchline, getting far enough ahead of his mark to blast the team's best shot of the night. Battery Coach Mike Anhaeuser threw on some attacking talent in Navion Boyd and Dante Marini. With the lead, Wilmington Coach Carson Porter made a defensive substitution and settled back. But the swift counter had stretched Charleston's defensive shape, and Cooper's save merely redirected the ball to attacking midfielder Sunny Jane, who easily headed into the empty net. The speedy Cameroonian created just enough space to blast a shot/cross at a tough angle, which Cooper managed to deflect away. Chang's dribbling attack set up a nice give-and-go with Justin Portillo, who played Chang into the penalty area - where he crumpled after contact with a Hammerheads defender.Īs Battery players argued for a call, Wilmington launched a counterattack that eventually reached substitute striker Christian Bassogog on the Hammerheads' left. Then, in the 69th minute, Charleston midfielder Maikel Chang - who appeared to struggle with his passing off Legion Stadium's artificial turf for much of the night - took acres of space up the left with the ball at his feet. But when Charleston did the same thing at Wilmington, the ball literally bounced the Battery's way.īattery goalkeeper Odisnel Cooper wasn't forced into a save until around the hour mark, and despite playing a man down the Battery looked fairly commanding in their defensive third. Wilmington lost a forward to a red card in the first half at Charleston last Saturday, played a man down, and just missed a stoppage-time equalizer. It also mirrored - in a funhouse way - the outcome on last week's meeting between the two old coastal Carolinas rivals. The third game of 2015 between the host Wilmington Hammerheads and the visiting Charleston Battery featured a goalkeeper lost to injury and a forward lost to a red card on the same play in the 26th minute, a contentious but otherwise uneventful remainder of the first half, and a second half in which all hell seemed to break loose after the 70th minute. WILMINGTON, NC - A bizarre own-goal equalizer in the 85th minute and some frantic Battery defending in the final chaotic action gave shorthanded Charleston a 1-1 draw, a memorable USL point on the road - and a surplus of skewed symmetry.
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