JATO Media - Jay FitzgeraldBRIDGEVIEW, IL - The Red Stars set the tone early and as the match took shape it was a very entertaining back and forth 0-0 draw. As the rain continued to fall, the match saw multiple opportunities squandered by quality defensive play and goalkeeping. The two teams, both looking for firsts - Chicago their 1st home win and New York/New Jersey their 1st franchise victory. It seemed like Ian Sawyer's Sky Blue side was afraid to make a mistake. They were stagnate and predictable in the first half before they came alive in the 2nd half as US National Team star, and former UNC National Champion Heather O'Reilly showed how dangerous she can be. O'Reilly was flanked by Australian Internationals Collette McCallum and Sarah Walsh. McCallum had 3 quality chances to put their team on the board, the best in the 61st minute where she missed over the crossbar from about 8 yards out. Walsh, back from a broken leg, still not 100% but you would never know it as she took control of the ball in several spots and was very dynamic in the final third of the field. Sky Blue's, Kacey White was able to put the ball inside the box on numerous occasions but to no avail.
Yes, the match was scoreless but not for a lack of action between the 2 teams. The Red Stars outplayed Sky Blue in the opening 45 as Carli Lloyd, Megan Rapinoe, Lindsay Tarpley, Cristiane, and Karen Carney all showed their attacking personalities but none more than Lakewood, CO native, Marian Dalmy and she did it coming out of the back. Dalmy got into the attacking third at will, creating service and dribble penetration. "Dalmy had an outstanding game", commented Lloyd, "She really opened the game up for us." Rapinoe came close to scoring the matches first goal as she took a misclearance under control and biked the ball over her head that Sky Blue goalkeeper Karen Bardsley had to parry over the bar for one of the 12 corners that the Red Stars created (10 in the first half). Brazilian international, Cristiane was replaced by Ella Masar in the 63rd minute adding a different energy. Masar (University of Illinois) is a workhorse but Chicago lost that dynamic aspect they had with Cristiane who got her first start of the season this evening. Cristiane is still in the process of buidling her fitness level back up coming off of an injury. Red Stars Head Coach Emma Hayes said about Cristiane, "At sixty minutes we didn’t want to push it, and she was tired to. It was a good sixty minutes to get under her belt.”
In extra time, Tarpley had a chance to score her 3rd goal of the season as she picked up a lose ball just inside the box and hit a well struck ball that Sky Blue, goalkeeper Jenni Branam cleaned up. Branam replaced Bardsley at halftime. “I was really happy with the way we attacked tonight", commented Tarpley, "I was proud of the team and the effort and I’m looking forward to continuing to build over the next few months.”
This was a new Chicago team, a different team than in the past 3 weeks.
According to Hayes, the Red Stars are a "free flowing and highly technical team." In order for a team like that to be successful they must have confidence in each other and knowing each others tendencies is a key component in the consistency of their play.
This inaugural season is young and you can still see everyone trying to learn each others tendencies - the timing and communication is yet to come. The atmosphere is exciting and the energy is endless.
Players on both teams seemed frustrated with the result because they thought they deserved something for their efforts but a very positive result for Sky Blue as they have struggled thus far without a win and then to go on the road to play against a solid Chicago group and then to add the poor conditions on top of that, they gain a point. Sawyer was pleased with the amount of chances his team had in the 2nd half but still have yet to find that finishing touch. “Coming away with the point on the road is not the perfect outcome. We played much better in the second half and created more chances", said Sawyers.
Up Next:
Sky Blue FC on Sunday, May 3rd at FC Gold Pride (Buck Shaw Stadium at Santa Clara, CA)
Chicago Red Stars on Saturday, April 25th vs Boston Breakers (Toyota Park at Bridgeview, IL)
Line-Ups:
Sky Blue FC – 1-Karen Bardsley (GK) (23-Jenni Branam 45’), 38-Julianne Sitch (D), 17-Keeley Dowling (D), 5-Anita Asante (D), 12-Meghan Schnur (D), 20-Kacey White (M), 4-Jen Buczkowski (M), 7-Kelly Parker (M) (6-Natasha Kai 62’), 14-Collette McCallum (F) (10-Yael Averbuch 85’), 9-Heather O’Reilly-Capt. (F), 8-Sarah Walsh (F)
Chicago Red Stars – 1-Caroline Jonsson (GK), 2-Marian Dalmy (D), 4-Ifeoma Dieke (D), 23-Nikki Krzysik (D), 6-Brittany Klein (D) (24-Jill Oakes 76’), 10-Carli Lloyd (M), 12-Chioma Igwe (M), 8-Megan Rapinoe (M), 5-Lindsay Tarpley-Capt. (M), 11-Cristiane (F) (3-Ella Masar 63’), 14-Karen Carney (F)
Shots: Chicago Red Stars, 18; Sky Blue FC, 7
Saves: Chicago Red Stars, 3; Sky Blue FC, 6
Corner Kicks: Chicago Red Stars, 12; Sky Blue FC, 5
Scoring: None
Referee: Jennifer Bennett
Referee's Assistants: Donald Dellavia; Kristine West4th official: Stephanie Toth
Attendance: 5,824
Weather: Rainy & 49 degrees
Cautions: Sky Blue FC – Julianne Sitch 26’, Meghan Schnur 60’; Chicago Red Stars – Ella Masar 78’
