Tuesday, July 17, 2012
READING, Pa. – Reading United advanced to the Eastern Conference Championships with a 3-1 overtime victory against they Jersey Express on Tuesday night at Albright College. In a game that was anything but a repeat of their 2011 playoff match in Reading, a dramatic encouter took 120 minutes and saw 11 cards, 25 combined fouls and 39 combined shots to decide the outcome as Dante Marini’s 119th-minute game-winner sent United to their fourth PDL Eastern Conference Championship in five years.
United was left shorthanded just nine minutes before Marini’s late goal, as defender Jonny Raj was sent off after a studs-up attempt at a sliding tackle, his second yellow card of the game. Reading has seemingly played their best soccer this season with only ten players, taking a 2-0 victory on Friday night against Ocean City while playing shorthanded for nearly two-thirds of the match.
It was also the second straight game Reading has won after 90 minutes of play, as the United clinched this home playoff game in the 93rd minute in a 2-1 victory at Central Jersey on Sunday.
Reading took a 1-0 lead just before the half, as midfielder Ian Christianson tracked down a Steven Neumann through-ball and poked it past Jersey goalkeeper Rafael Diaz in the 39th minute. The ball just cleared the line, and initially Jersey thought they had gotten to it in time, but it was deemed a goal by the assistant referee along the far sideline.
Diaz kept the Express within a goal with a handful of diving stops in a 13-minute stretch to start the second half. First, he denied Stephen Okai with a dive to his left, then came out to the edge of the box to deny Neumann and pulled out back-to-back stops on a Raj header and a David Rodriguez attempt on the doorstep.
The Express finally broke through in the 75th minute, as Jersey’s Jake Keegan punched in a loose ball in the box off a corner kick to knot the game 1-1.
Jersey then nearly found the game winner in the 84th minute, as the ball seemed to be moving in slow motion towards the far post off a deflected shot in the box. Emmanuel Martin’s fingertip save to knock the attempt away had the home stands breathing a sigh of relief going into overtime.
Martin followed up one great save with another in the first overtime, coming off his line to challenge Jersey’s Jason Watson in the box in the 105th minute, and coming away with the tremendous diving stop to preserve the tie.
Marini’s game-winner in the second overtime was followed by goal by Stephen Okai from the penalty spot in the 120th minute, which sealed 3-1 victory for Reading.
The victory marked the first in four tries against Jersey since a 3-1 victory on the road last season.
Reading’s will learn its opponent, location and date/time of the PDL Eastern Conference Championship on Wednesday as they join division rival the Ocean City Nor’easters, the Ottawa Fury and the Carolina Dynamo to compete for a place in the national semifinals.