Royal Oaks, MI, 6/13, 2018 - Dayton Dutch Lions FC (5-1-1) rebounded nicely from their loss last weekend with a hard fought 1-0 road win against the Michigan Bucks (1-3-2). Chris Dupont (Canada/CDLFC/Dyanmo) provided the game winner in the 27th minute and goalkeeper, Alex Popovich (Louisville, KY/Vermont) had a huge second half to preserve the victory.
The Lions headed back up north for a rematch with the Bucks just three weeks after beating the hosts 2-1 in the second game of the season. The skies were clear and the temperature perfect for Match Day #7. The opening minutes belonged to the home team as they created several chances early. A missed header, several corner kicks and a shot blazed over the top kept the Lions on their toes, but scoreless. In the 18th minute, the Buck's forward broke through and was one-on-one with Popovich, but was flagged offsides.
The Lions were trying to stretch Michigan's backline playing a bit more direct than usual. Jackson Dietrich (Las Vegas, NV/Wright State) forced the first Bucks save in the 25th minute with a low shot outside the box. The Buck's keeper distributed the ball quickly with a throw down the right flank where David Lianes (Spain/Dayton) was carded for his tackle on the Michigan winger. The restart was intercepted by Dietrich at midfield and after a couple short passes Schluter played a long ball down the right channel. Tate Robertson (Springfield, OH/Bowling Green) was able to get to the ball first and his first touch got him to the endline. He passed back to the middle where Dupont was coming. Dupont hit a perfectly placed one touch shot past the keeper for the opening score.
"We had yet to find a rhythm in the match when we scored," said Head Coach Dan Griest. "Schluter's pass was excellent, Tate's dribble and pass were very good, but Dupont's desire to score is what completed this scoring chance. Chris ran almost 50 yards to get in position to receive the pass and then to hit it first time was clinical. The goal definitely put us a bit at ease."
"Tonight was the first match where we conceded long periods of possession to our opponent, bending but not breaking in the attacking third. Michigan created chances, but our backline played well and Popovich was real solid in goal. The shutout was important for us and was a total team effort. Our midfield and wingers covered a lot of ground to make sure we got numbers behind the ball. Great team defending and a very important win."
Neither team created much else prior to halftime. Michigan led the halftime stats with 6 shots and 3 corner kicks, but Dayton led on the scorebaord 1-0.
Coach Griest, as he has done all season, made substitutions early in the 2nd half to bring on fresh legs. Abdul Kooistra (Madison, WI/Northern Kentucky), Connor Hughes (Wichita Falls, TX/Cedarville) and Emiel Wendt (Netherlands/v.v. Noordwijk) came on to solidify each line of the formation.
The second half had a simple ebb and flow with most of the action in the midfield. In the 61st minute, the host team got a golden opportunity to tie the match. A Michigan forward was able to weave his way into the box, collided with center back Jake Stovall (Centerville, OH/Puerto Rico) and went down. The referee pointed to the penalty spot. Popovich guessed correctly and dove to his left and pushed the shot wide.
This was the first of three excellent saves for Popovich in a 15 minute span. The Bucks had a direct kick 20 yards out and hit it to the upper right corner. The Lions keeper had to go full extension to push the shot over the bar. A second goal saved. And then in the 78th minute, a deflection from point blank range caught the Lions keeper going the wrong way, but he got a hand on it to keep it out of goal and to keep the shutout in place.
The energy of the match picked up and the Lions just missed on a JJ Williams (Montgomery, AL/Kentucky) shot off a corner kick. A few minues later, Dietrich jumped on a loose ball at the arc, but his shot sailed over. The Lions were much more active in the attacking third and were finding openings. With 8 minutes left in the match, Robertson found Wendt ten yards out , but his shot went directly at the keeper.
The centerback pairing of Harvey Slade (England/Wright State) and Stovall held strong, kept their spacing and closed the long balls into the flanks. The home team pushed forward in numbers, earned a couple corner kicks, but not the equalizer they so desired.
Coach Griest shared, “It was very satisfying for us to see out the win, earn the shutout and to move back to the top of the Great Lakes division. I do not know if anyone in the league will have a more difficult run of games as we have this week. The Michigan 3-game gauntlet in 8 days is not something I want to do again. At the same time, we have two behind us and look forward to coming back this weekend for the rematch with Lansing United. I believe tonight will go a long way for our confidence as we handled the pressure much better.”
Popovich was selected Man of the Match. Coach Griest shared, “Alex was in the zone from the opening minute. His communication, shot-stopping and distribution were right on. Three for sure goals were saved in the second half and he just got better and better as the match progressed.”
The Lions next match is Saturday, June 16th away versus 2nd place Lansing United. Kickoff is at 7:00pm at the East Lansing Soccer Complex. This rematch comes just a week after United's come from behind 3-1 win in Dayton.
Dayton will not be home again until Saturday, June 23rd when they play host to the Cincinnati Dutch Lions. Kickoff is 7:00pm. Tickets are $10 adults and $6 youth, military and veterans at the gate (5 and under free). Specially priced discounted tickets are available for groups of 12 or more by calling the ticket office at 937 530 2123.
To keep up with all the latest news on the Lions, follow us on Facebook @DaytonDutchLionsFC and on Twitter @DaytonDutchLion.
FULL MATCH STATS - Dayton Dutch Lions vs Michigan Bucks
MATCH SUMMARY
Venue: Royal Oaks HS, Royal Oaks, MI
Referee: NA
Attendance: NA
LINEUPS:
Dayton Dutch Lions FC: Popovich, Schluter, Lianes (Koositra 45′), Stovall, Slade, Dietrich (Lenius 84'), DeRoy, Bayo (Hughes 57′), Williams, Dupont (Wendt 57′), Robertson. Unused substitutes: Steele and Moore
Michigan Bucks: Wilson, Dimairo, Mukuna, Osumann (Hart 69') Ruff, Timmer, Charalambous (Cisse 69'), Goldsmith, Fathazada (Cerda 59'), Taye (Ricci 57'), Guitar Unused substitutes: Hague, McNulty, Verrakone
SCORING SUMMARY
DDL – Dupont 27′ (Robertson)
DISCIPLINE
MB – Charalambous 8′ Unsporting Behavior
DDL – Lianes 26′ Unsporting Behavior
MB – Goldsmith 35' Unsporting Behavior