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Five Things that Mattered – League One Week 18

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 07/29/19, 2:21PM EDT

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Greenville’s triumph turns heads, while Lansing fails to close out opportunity

We’re two-thirds of the way through with the inaugural season in USL League One, and while some playoff contenders continued to tread water over the past weekend, the action also produced maybe the biggest surprise of the year so far. Here are five things we learned:

1. TRIUMPHANT NOISE: With North Texas having hit a slight dip in form at the attacking end of the field this month, you could have made a good argument for Greenville Triumph SC emerging with a result from Toyota Stadium. But the moment Edwin Cerilllo was sent off for the hosts in the 20th minute, something more was immediately on the cards for Head Coach John Harkes’ side. It took a while for Triumph SC to get things figured out – North Texas actually registered more shots over the remainder of the first half despite being down to 10 men – but after Aaron Walker scored in the 62nd minute the floodgates opened for Greenville’s best attacking performance of the season. There are still going to be questions over Triumph SC’s ability to finish chances consistently – prior to Friday night it had slipped back, only scoring two goals in three games after a brief breakout at the end of June – but if you can’t get confidence from thumping the league-leaders on the road, where can you get it?

2. CLOSING THE GAP: Greenville’s victory – and the 1-0 win by Forward Madison FC against Orlando City B on Saturday night – allowed both teams to gain on the playoff positions, where both Lansing Ignite FC and Chattanooga Red Wolves SC’s pushes to reach the playoffs continued to stagnate on Saturday. Lansing added to the pressure it will feel as it recorded a third consecutive draw despite having by far the better of the game on the road against South Georgia Tormenta FC at Erk Russell Park. The hosts had goalkeeper Pablo Jara to thank for getting anything out of the game; even before Shinya Kadono’s late equalizer on Tormenta FC’s only shot on target of the game, the league’s shutouts leader had made a handful of crucial saves. Jara’s penalty kick save in the seventh minute of stoppage-time on Lansing’s Elma N’For, however, was a moment that Ignite FC is going to look back on with regret if it misses out on a top-four finish.

3. UNDEFEATED, BUT…: Chattanooga Red Wolves SC has the longest current undefeated streak in League One at nine games, but after a fourth consecutive draw in a 1-1 result at home to FC Tucson on Saturday night it is no closer to sealing a postseason berth than it was at the start of this month. In fact, the result may have been more useful to Tucson, which has reached the midway point of its six-game road trip with five points to show for it, a very good return indeed. Tucson, Toronto FC II and Greenville are now all two points behind the Red Wolves, with Madison three points back, while all five have 11 games to go. Chattanooga’s streak is certainly impressive, but the lack of wins puts plenty of pressure on a week where it visits third-place Lansing before hosting first-place North Texas.

4. BANNER NIGHT: Over the course of a season, there are going to be some nights where despite everyone’s best efforts things just don’t seem to be falling into place. That certainly felt like the case for Forward Madison FC on Saturday night. A missed penalty kick by Don Smart – the first the club had been awarded all season – and a disallowed goal by J.C. Banks were the tip of the iceberg when it came to the Flamingos failing to take advantage of the constant pressure it applied against Orlando City B. In situations like this, however, it always helps to have something extra to spur you on, and that’s just what the club’s fans provided. “Our guys live off of this – they really do thrive off of what our fans bring to us,” said FMFC Head Coach Daryl Shore. A crowd of 4,536 – the highest League One attendance for the Flamingos this season – exhorted its team forward in the second half. In the 57th minute it got its reward as Banks found the net for what proved to be the winner, keeping Madison’s playoff hopes on track and its fans entertained. “I think the fans are realizing whether we win or lose or tie, we’re bringing everything we have,” added Shore. “It’s very exciting, so you have to give credit to the fans that keep coming and keep coming.”

5. ALIVE AND KICKING: Given their undefeated home record, when Toronto FC II took the lead against the Richmond Kickers on Friday evening to kick off the weekend’s action it felt like the Reds were on their way to a victory that would put pressure on the teams around it in the postseason race. So, what transpired after that as the Kickers rallied for a 2-1 win was on course to be the biggest surprise of the weekend before Greenville decided it wanted that crown. It might have taken a little good fortune, TFC II goalkeeper Eric Klenofsy’s own goal to let Richmond equalize was one for the blooper reel, but the Kickers did enough to deserve their win. A playoff run is still way off in the distance, but Richmond could relish the chance to play spoiler over the final third of the season.


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