Reading United News Release -- www.readingunitedac.com
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
SHIRLEY, N.Y. – Reading United’s feverous attempts to regain control of their playoff destiny fell short on Wednesday evening, as their second straight 0-0 tie against the division leading Long Island Rough Riders now has the United playing the waiting game. Nine of Reading’s 12 shots came during a second half where they controlled the run of play and dominated on both ends of the field, but simply couldn’t find the back of the net.
Reading was working with a short deck, starting with a makeshift lineup after the opening whistle. Midfield substitute Tyler Witmer was forced to play left back for the majority of play, after some unfortunate circumstances had some of the typical starting XI scrambling to make it on time. United struggled to put together any kind of consistent attack, as Long Island pressured and stretched Reading’s depth.
The Rough Rider’s best chances came midway through the first half, as United keeper Brian Holt made a pair of crucial stops on Keith Detelj. Both times he showed why he is near the top of the Premier Development League leaderboard in goals against average, making a sliding stop at the top of the box to snuff one attempt, and a diving stop in net to save the other. Holt recorded six saves on the evening for his sixth shutout of the year.
The United then decided to throw the kitchen sink at Long Island in the second half, but still couldn’t find any luck. Their best opportunities came late, starting with Brian Ackley’s point-blank header that was saved by Alex Naples in the 77th minute, as Evans Frimpong served a perfect ball to the far post to find the former Indiana Hoosier.
Murphy’s Law officially took effect the remainder of the evening despite pinning the Rough Riders in their own half for the rest of the evening. Brian Ackley had a shot lined up minutes later, but his blast deflected off teammate Josh Rice inside the box. Christian Barreiro, Sean Peckham, and Ged Quinn all had their chances on net, but all narrowly missed.
The “law” also seemed to take effect for Long Island, who was able to counter in stoppage time on a two-on-one opportunity. Their initial shot was saved off the line by Ackley, and the rebound was punched high of a wide open net. The goal would have sealed the No.1 seed for the PDL Eastern Conference Playoffs for the Rough Riders, but after a game where the teams combined for 25 shots, it seemed only fitting that whatever could happen, did happen for both teams.
The tie now forces the United to sit back and wait to see Saturday’s result between Long Island and Westchester. A loss or tie by Long Island reopens the door for Reading, who would then need a win on Sunday’s matchup at Central Jersey to clinch the No.1 seed. A Rough Rider's victory would clinch the seed for themselves, and drop Reading into a play-in match against the Jersey Express on Tuesday evening (8 p.m.) at Exeter’s Don Thomas Stadium. The winner of Tuesday’s match would advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, a place Reading has been the past few seasons.
Reading returns home for a friendly match against the New York Cosmos U23 team on Friday evening at Don Thomas Stadium. $10 general admission tickets can be purchased online at readingunitedac.com or at the gate.