Clemens scores late equalizer to earn well deserved draw under new Head Coach Matt Weston
Charleston, August 8 2014 - The Dayton Dutch Lions FC tied the Charleston Battery last night 2-2 after coming back twice. Goals were scored by Brock Granger (header off a corner kick by Cameron Vickers) and David Clemens. Both teams had a chance to claim three points with Felix almost adding the 3rd goal of the night after newcomer Karamba dribbled his opponent to play the ball into the box. Williams and Harada came up big in the closing minutes of the game when Charleston tried to get the needed goal themselves in their chase of a play-off spot.
The Dutch Lions came out a bit tentatively, adjusting to a new starting line- up they would lose the ball in the midfield in the fifth minute. Charleston’s Dane Kelly would take the ball and using his speed move past the Dayton defense and put the ball in the back of Dayton’s net. The Lions however came back organized and showed their tenacity and determination. Earning a corner in the tenth minute, Dayton’s Cameron Vickers would take the ball and find the head of a waiting Brock Granger for the equalizer. Charleston was not done however and in the twenty third minute, Maikel Chang would run down the left and beat the defender to the end line. He would whip the ball across and Adam Mena would step forward and put the ball in the Lions goal putting the Battery back up by one. The Lions would have a chance again in the thirty first minute and Vickers would take the shot but a save by Charleston’s keeper Odisnel Cooper would deny the goal and keep the Battery in the lead. Dayton’s keeper Matt Williams would come up with a save of his own in the thirty ninth minute when a Charleston corner would lead to a shot on the Lion’s goal. The teams would go into the half with the score Charleston Battery 2 and the Dayton Dutch Lions FC 1.
The second half would see Dayton with an opportunity in the fifty fifth minute when Dayton’s Jenneh Karamba would get past the Charleston defender but would not see his teammates waiting in the box and his chipped shot would go over the goal. The Lions would find themselves under heavy pressure from the Battery in the seventy first minute when Quinton Griffith would cross but nobody would find the end of it and the Lions would clear the ball. As the half continued, the Battery leaned back more and more sitting on the lead with Dayton getting stronger. That would result in the equalizer in the eighty fifth minute when Dayton’s Guilherme Felix would get through and pass the ball to David Clemens who would score to tie the game up for Dayton. Again in the eighty ninth the Lion’s Felix would chip a ball to Karamba who would run down the left and pass back in to Felix who would shoot, but the ball would be blocked by the Battery keeper Cooper to save the tie for Charleston. The Battery would come on strong in stoppage time and would create havoc in front of the Lions goal. Haviel Cordoves would get shots off but Dayton’s Shintaro Harada would make a save and the other Dayton defenders and keeper Williams would hold strong. The game would end with the score: Charleston Battery 2, Dayton Dutch Lions FC 2.
Dayton’s new Coach Matthew Weston had this to say about his first game with the team. “After being with the team less than 48 hours, I was pleased to see the players respond positively to the way I see that the game should be played. They quickly placed trust into one another which translated to a good performance on the pitch. We have to raise the bar though now throughout the program as there is talent inside this locker room. We have to quickly move from being a good 60 minute team conditionally to being able to sustain a high quality of performance over 90 plus minutes. That will come in time. We move on now to a tough contest tomorrow evening in Wilmington which we are all looking forward to.”
The Dayton Dutch Lions FC (5-15-2) will travel up the road to play the Wilmington Hammerheads FC (6-4-8) on Saturday at 7:30pm. Dayton will be on the road again Saturday, August 16th at 7:00pm as they play the Richmond Kickers (12-1-9). Dayton returns home to DOC Stadium to play the Colorado Rapid Reserves on Saturday, August 23rd at 7:00pm.
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Chris Burke, Media Relations: c.burke@ddlfc.com
Photo Credit: Charleston Battery
Dayton Dutch Lions FC-Charleston Battery 2-2
5’ Kelly 0-1
10’ Granger, Vickers 1-1
23’ Mena, Chang 1-2
85’ Clemens 2-2
Dayton Dutch Lions FC: Williams, Friedman, Bowlin, Harada, Granger, DeLass, Thuriere, Cruyff (Karamba), Walker (Hertsenberg), Vickers (Clemens), Broekhuizen (Felix)
Charleston Battery: Cooper, Griffith (Cordoves), Ferguson, Mueller, Wilson, van Schaik, Portillo, Mena (Adjetey), Cuevas (Marini), Chang (Prince), Kelly (Diouf)