The momentum the Oakland Soul had in their 6-2 victory over Academica SC surely transferred over to the Roots at Pioneer Stadium, as the 6,400 strong crowd witnessed a two-for-one win special. It was a beautiful baton pass of passion and skill displayed by our two favorite clubs.
The biggest lineup news going into this game was Paul Blanchette sidelined due to a concussion and Dominic Dwyer being available on the bench for the second time. The former meant another opportunity for Timothy Syrel to start. Syrel, 20, was also in net when the Roots earned an impressive 2-2 draw on the road in San Antonio. On Saturday, he did one better by earning a clean sheet, marking the second in three games for Roots.
Despite a seldom error here and there, Syrel made some good saves including an early chance from Arteaga in the 18th minute.
Before Syrel’s save, Johnny Rodriguez forced Rowdies GK Jordan Farr into the first meaningful save of the game in the 11th minute. The latter stage of the first half saw a 15 minute spell where Tampa had more of the ball, requiring Gagi Margvelashvili’s precise tackling and Neveal Hackshaw’s headers to repel searching balls. Three minutes of first half stoppage time saw Cal Jennings shoot right at Syrel, Memo Diaz cross right into Farr’s arms, and Camden Riley finish the half with a shot blocked.
Oakland Roots started stronger in the second half, although Lindo Mfeka appeared to pull a hamstring during their first attacking spell around the 55th minute. Mfeka would be able to carry on, as would Roots as they looked for that first goal. Jeciel Cedeño took a great shot from a free kick won by Diaz, which forewarned the eventual goal. Cedeño’s shot from a couple of feet above the penalty area was nearly as good as he could’ve hit it, requiring a leaping save by Farr.
Then in the 72nd minute, Diaz had plenty of time and space on the right side to pick out the perfect cross toward the back-post area where Cedeño headed the ball home into the net, sending the crowd into a frenzy. The second half as a whole highlighted how important the Ecuadorian midfielder is to the Roots.
“Cedeño is so important to us because of his versatility. He can play many different positions and roles, and his ability to run at defenders is key,” interim head coach Gavin Glinton said.
That wouldn’t be the end of the story for Roots as Dwyer made his long awaited debut in the 79th minute. He had a smile on his face all night long to match the fans who were happy to see him take action in this game.
On the field, he did well to get involved. He finished with 12 total touches, won three duels, and drew two fouls in just 12 minutes of action.
“Dwyer needed a long ramp up since he hadn’t played in a while. He performed well in training and it was great to see him ready to play today,” Glinton said.
Oakland Roots did such a good job holding the ball up in the Rowdies defensive third that Baboucarr Njie managed to bring the ball into the box where Daniel Crisostomo brought him down in the final minute of stoppage time, earning a penalty.
Njie was so determined to take the kick that Rodriguez eventually conceded the opportunity to him after a long discussion. Unfortunately, Njie hit the crossbar but the Roots saw the rest of the game out to win 1-0.
After Saturday’s USL Championship action concluded, only two points separated third place Monterey Bay FC with ninth place Oakland Roots. Furthermore, Las Vegas Lights beat Miami FC 3-1 to move into 2 points behind the Roots. Up next is a trip to the capital to face 2nd place Sacramento Republic on Saturday, June 15th at 8 pm.
RootsBlog Man of the Match – Jeciel Cedeño
We name Jeciel Cedeño our RootsBlog Man of the Match for his impact in Oakland’s attack. He finished with an 8.3 rating on FotMob, generating three scoring chances with two of his three shots finishing on target, completing 90 percent of his passes, won five duels, and had three successful dribbles against defenders in four attempts.
Cedeño nearly bagged a second goal, but his long shot was just wide to the left. His tenacity from start to finish along with the crucial goal earns him our RootsBlog Man of the Match award.
Match Facts
Oakland Roots Lineup (Gavin Glinton) 4-2-3-1
Timothy Syrel; Memo Diaz, Gagi Margvelashvili, Neveal Hackshaw, Justin Rasmussen; Napo Matsoso, Camden Riley; Jeciel Cedeño, Lindo Mfeka, Trayvone Reid; Johnny Rodriguez
Subs: 46′ Daniel Gomez (Matsoso), 69′ Baboucarr Njie (Mfeka), 79′ Dominic Dwyer (debut) (Reid), 90′ Kieran Bracken (Cedeño), 90′ Niall Logue (Riley)
Unused Subs: GK Edwin Rodriguez, MF Ilya Alekseev, ST Miche-Naider Chery
Tampa Bay Rowdies Lineup (Robbie Neilson) 3-4-3
Jordan Farr; Jordan Doherty, Freddy Kleemann, Aaron Guillen; Pacifique Niyongabire, Daniel Crisostomo, Lewis Hilton, Eddie Munjoma; Cal Jennings, Manuel Arteaga, Charlie Dennis
Subs: 46′ Damian Rivera (Niyongabire), 73′ Joshua Perez (Dennis), 82′ Leo Fernandes (Hilton)
Unused Subs: GK Philip Breno, MF Nathan Worth, MF Zachary Herivaux, FW Cristian Ortiz
Oakland Roots: 46 percent possession, 13 shots, four on target, two big chances, one big chance missed, 285 (78%) passes completed, eight fouls committed, six corners drawn.
Tampa Bay Rowdies: 15 shots, four on target, three big chances, three big chances missed, 342 (79%) passes completed, 13 fouls committed, four corners drawn.