Rosenberry, Union bounced from Open Cup by Red Bulls
HARRISON, N.J. » In a cup competition, a hot goalie can go a long way toward determining a team’s fate.
Ryan Meara showed Wednesday.
The New York Red Bulls backup made seven saves and produced the only stop of the penalty-kick shootout, denying the Union’s Fafa Picault as the Red Bulls prevailed from the fifth round of the U.S. Open Cup on PKs, 5-3, in a game that ended 1-1 after extra time.
A goal by Roland Alberg in the 86th minute pegged back Sacha Kljestan’s firsthalf strike. The Union owned the better of play in extra time and fired a fusillade of 27 shots at the Red Bulls, but they couldn’t figure out a way around Meara.
The 26-year-old local product and longtime backup has long pined for a shot at time behind stalwart Luis Robles, who has played 157 consecutive games and signed a new long-term contract Wednesday. Meara made his point in the spotlight.
“He’s a great goalkeeper,” Union manager Jim Curtin said. “He played excellent. Again, give him a lot of credit. Couple of big saves and obviously in PKs, he made a big one on Fafa.”
Picault, who was arguably that
Ryan Meara,
match. Long-awaited first
Sacha Kljestan.
The rust on showed. Before the PK miss, was the best player on field.
Picault
the man of the goal from
Josh Yaro Fafa
the best player over 120 minutes, thought he had beaten Meara with a shot tucked just inside the post to Meara’s right. But the goalie unfurled all 6-foot-4 of his frame to nudge the effort off the outside of the woodwork and out.
“I did think it was going in,” Picault said. “He made a fingertip save, and I still thought it was going to go back in off of him, off the post and back in on him. But he made a good save. There’s not much to do.”
Kljestan and Union nemesis Felipe followed Picault’s miss with kicks to clinch the win and advance to the quarterfinals to tangle with New England, a 2-1 winner over D.C. United.
McCarthy guessed to the correct side on three of the five attempts but couldn’t quite come up with a stop.
“That kind of sucks,” he said. “I got a hand on one of them and went the right way on three of the five. I think they were pretty good penalty shots right in the corner. Hopefully next time I save one or two of them and it’s a different story.”
Meara produced a pair of saves in quick succession in the 18th minute, when Jay Simpson cancelled two defenders by winning a headed duel, spurring a run in alone by Picault. The midfielder’s first shot was steered upward by Meara, and Picault won the ball with a header that bounded off defender Damien Perrinelle and forced a flailing one-handed denial from the keeper.
With the Red Bulls having to sub off half their backline with injuries — Aurelien Collin in the 23rd minute, Aaron Long in the 72nd — the Union belatedly warmed to the attacking challenge. Meara stymied a drive from distance by Picault in the 62nd and got his palms to a sharp-angle drive by Alberg off a free kick in extra time. Meara also pawed away a long-range attempt by Chris Pontius is the second extra-time period.
Picault missed a golden chance in the 98th when Keegan Rosenberry played him in, and Marcus Epps scooped a shot over the bar in the 109th on a cross by Picault, who struck the woodwork two minutes later. Picault had the ball in the back of the net in the 115th as the Union had the better of play in extra time, but it was waved off for an offside.
That’s why the Union lamented even allowing the game to get to the “crapshoot” of PKs.
“We showed a lot more fight, a lot more heart, a lot more grit, whatever your (noun) is, balls, guts, whatever it is,” Curtin said. “We had more of it on the evening. So it’s tough to come out on the wrong end. Penalty kicks, once it goes there, it’s a bit of a crapshoot. Had them on the ropes in their building, but didn’t quite finish them off.”
The Red Bulls took the lead in the 42nd thanks to a defensive misstep by the Union. Sean Davis applied pressure on Josh Yaro, won a turnover and squared a ball to Bradley Wright-Phillips, who touched a pass into the path of Kljestan, left alone by a backline warped by the quick turnover. Kljestan picked his spot, burying his first goal of the season and unleashing a cathartic leaping celebration.
Alberg cut the joy short in the 86th, popping up for a moment of brilliance. With CJ Sapong throwing a screen, Alberg found a ball from Jack Elliott at the back, touched it down and buried a shot to the far post. It’s Elliott’s first professional assist.
But the Union couldn’t exhort a second goal past Meara, who took the star turn.
“That’s just football,” Picault said. “You get unlucky. Sometimes you pay for it. In this case, it’s penalties.”
*** NOTES » Alberg, Pontius and a composed Marcus Epps scored in the shootout. Epps and Adam Najem looked composed in their appearance in extra time. … Derrick Jones left the game with an apparent knee injury that Curtin said wasn’t serious. Sapong likewise exited with a leg injury, which Curtin attributed in part to cramping after an awkward landing on an aerial duel. … Andre Blake missed out with a rib injury carried from last week’s D.C. game, but with xrays returning negative, Curtin expects Blake to be ready for Sunday’s game with New England. Ilsinho (calf) is likewise only a minor concern.