It was a classic Cup Game battle. Two teams going toe to toe, trying to find a way to score goals on a field more suited to quarter horse racing in the mud. Players on both sides worked extremely hard as they went up and down the pitch, their legs getting heavy from all the mud on their cleats and from trying to run on soft mushy conditions. Maritimo had the early pace as they got off 8 shots in the opening half, but South City struck first when Blair Smith making a run inside the area was bowled over and awarded a penalty kick. Smith stepped up to the spot, placed the ball and turned his back on the keeper. After taking a moment to gather himself, he turned towards goal and made his run striking a blistering shot that found the left corner of the frame. The keeper could only look and then retrieve the ball and SSFAC had a 1-0 lead at the half. Maritimo quickly answered after the break to equalize at 1-1. Then the match turned into a somewhat controlled struggle as both teams tried to find the winner. The defense of South City was again very good as Dom Hites, Scott Ellis, Thoeun Huy-Chan, Kenny Ewbank & Howard Choy limited the opportunities Maritimo would have. Meanwhile the midfield for SSF was working hard to break down the Maritimo defense. Bobby Quinlan, Andrew Pantano, Stephen Shaw-Smith, Ryan Wiegmann, Cesar Maldonado, & Rafa Arguello worked tirelessly to provide scoring chances for the forward pair of Leandro Monteiro, and Fabio Marques. Although they made numerous dangerous runs at goal and put great pressure on the backline of Maritimo, the Brazilian pair of "Batman & Robin" were unable to find the net this day. Abner Ramos had another stellar day in goal for the team, as he came out many times to challenge and clear away attempts on net. As the teams headed to what appeared to be penalty kicks to decide the outcome, Maritimo struck for the game winner with just under a minute to play providing them with a 2-1 win and advancement in the PSL Cup. For South City, the boys gathered themselves up and acknowledged a good effort from the team as they played hard and battled until the final whistle. Now the players will take a break to enjoy the Christmas Holidays. The season will resume in mid January, and training will start back up just after New Years. The 2010 portion of the season comes to a close, but 2011 looks very promising as SSFAC has established themselves as a very good club, with the tools needed to be successful...chemistry, passion, dedication, hard work, and most importantly the desire to play together as ONE.
It was a classic Cup Game battle. Two teams going toe to toe, trying to find a way to score goals on a field more suited to quarter horse racing in the mud. Players on both sides worked extremely hard as they went up and down the pitch, their legs getting heavy from all the mud on their cleats and from trying to run on soft mushy conditions. Maritimo had the early pace as they got off 8 shots in the opening half, but South City struck first when Blair Smith making a run inside the area was bowled over and awarded a penalty kick. Smith stepped up to the spot, placed the ball and turned his back on the keeper. After taking a moment to gather himself, he turned towards goal and made his run striking a blistering shot that found the left corner of the frame. The keeper could only look and then retrieve the ball and SSFAC had a 1-0 lead at the half. Maritimo quickly answered after the break to equalize at 1-1. Then the match turned into a somewhat controlled struggle as both teams tried to find the winner. The defense of South City was again very good as Dom Hites, Scott Ellis, Thoeun Huy-Chan, Kenny Ewbank & Howard Choy limited the opportunities Maritimo would have. Meanwhile the midfield for SSF was working hard to break down the Maritimo defense. Bobby Quinlan, Andrew Pantano, Stephen Shaw-Smith, Ryan Wiegmann, Cesar Maldonado, & Rafa Arguello worked tirelessly to provide scoring chances for the forward pair of Leandro Monteiro, and Fabio Marques. Although they made numerous dangerous runs at goal and put great pressure on the backline of Maritimo, the Brazilian pair of "Batman & Robin" were unable to find the net this day. Abner Ramos had another stellar day in goal for the team, as he came out many times to challenge and clear away attempts on net. As the teams headed to what appeared to be penalty kicks to decide the outcome, Maritimo struck for the game winner with just under a minute to play providing them with a 2-1 win and advancement in the PSL Cup. For South City, the boys gathered themselves up and acknowledged a good effort from the team as they played hard and battled until the final whistle. Now the players will take a break to enjoy the Christmas Holidays. The season will resume in mid January, and training will start back up just after New Years. The 2010 portion of the season comes to a close, but 2011 looks very promising as SSFAC has established themselves as a very good club, with the tools needed to be successful...chemistry, passion, dedication, hard work, and most importantly the desire to play together as ONE.