Sunnyvale United 2-4 South San Francisco A.C.

Game Info
Season: 
2012/2013
Date: 
Sunday, October 7, 2012 - 8:00pm
Home Team: 
Sunnyvale United
Away Team: 
South San Francisco A.C.
Venue: 
Mayfield Park - Palo Alto
Competition: 
PSL-Premier Div.
Game Comments: 

SSFAC were on a mission last evening in Palo Alto. Knowing that they had played a good match last week without earning the result, they wanted to respond with a strong effort against a tough opponent in Sunnyvale United. They got what they wanted as they overcame a 1-0 halftime deficit to erupt with 4 second half tallies on their way to a 4-2 win. South City started the match with great energy and maintained the majority of the possession. Unfortunately, United got on the board with a goal 8 minutes from halftime. The 2nd half started with SSF almost leveling the score in the 47th minute when Andrew Pantano drilled a dipping shot that just missed the upper left corner. The equalizer came when Bobby Quinlan laid a ball off to Blair Smith, who then ripped a shot from the right side just outside the penalty area to tie the game. SSF continued to apply pressure as midfield play from Omar Nawabi, Gareth Lea, Leandro Monteiro, & Quinlan started to smother United in their own end of the pitch. At the same time, the defense was pushing up the field, making runs up the wing and connecting with the midfield players to control the possession game. Hany Helmy, Reuben Wartens, Ruben Salazar, Scott Ellis & Ever Alvarez thwarted every United chance and started many counter attacks for SSF. In the 75th minute, Bobby Quinlan gave South City the lead with one of the best strikes you'll ever see. Picking up a loose ball in the midfield, Quinlan advanced to his right, beat a defender and as another United player closed in, he unleashed a ball from 30 yards out that went to the opposite upper corner of the goal leaving the Sunnyvale keeper with no chance to knock it away. Shortly thereafter, Sunnyvale was able to knot the score up at 2-2 with a rush of momentum on their side, but it didn't last long as SSF came right back 2 minutes later to re-take the lead. A ball played into Fabio Marques with his back to the goal at the top of the area was perfectly set into the path of the onrushing Quinlan who slotted it home for a 3-2 lead. Goalkeeper Abner Ramos, who had a relatively quiet night, came up big when he needed to towards the end of the match as United put on some pressure. Ramos made a couple of huge stops to preserve the lead. As SSF worked at keeping possession and killing out the clock, Blair Smith was taken down in the area leading to a penalty kick neatly converted by Fabio Marques to close out the scoring. SSF played a dominant 2nd half and kept making runs into the United area. Varney Johnson also made his presence known up front as he challenged for every ball played into the attack. South City now evens their record at a win and a loss as they prepare for their first home match of the season.

Game Score
Score: 
2-4
homegoals: 

Sunnyvale United, 37"
Sunnyvale United, 80"

Away Goals: 

SSFAC, Smith (Quinlan) 64"
SSFAC, Quinlan 75"
SSFAC, Quinlan (Marques) 82"
SSFAC, Marques (PK) 90+1

Home Yellow Cards: 

Sunnyvale United, (Reckless Tackle) 49"
Sunnyvale United, (Tripping) 52"
Sunnyvale United, (Dissent) 90"

Home Red Cards: 

None

Away Yellow Cards: 

SSFAC, Ellis (Reckless Tackle) 61"

Away Red Cards: 

None

Game Statistics
Shots Home Team: 
8
Shots On Target Home: 
5
Saves Home: 
8
Corners Home: 
2
Fouls Home: 
17
Offsides Home: 
2
Shots Away Team: 
23
Shots On Target Away: 
12
Saves Away: 
3
Corners Away: 
2
Fouls Away: 
15
Offsides Away: 
4