Recap: Steel FC Fall to TFC II

I’ve really tried to not start an article by blaming officiating for a poor result. I also don’t want to come across as if I’m just riding off the back of Louisville City coach James O’Connor after his rant (worth a listen here) about officiating in the league.

That being said, last night’s officiating was horrible. With all due respect to the squad that put three goals on the board, Jason Bent, Toronto FC, and even MLSE, that game was gifted to them. Josh Heard got pulled down in the box at least twice in the opening 20 minutes right in front of Jaime Herrera and he didn’t seem too interested. Obvious hand balls were missed on both sides and Jason Bent got ejected from a game that his team won. Yes, Anderson got torched by Shaan Hundal. Amoy Brown missed a sitter or two and Angelo Cavalluzzo was good in net, parrying away six out of eight shots on goal he faced. Brendan Burke summed up the game with few words, mainly disappointment, but he also added that Goodman Stadium doesn’t feel like home.

He’s not wrong. Taking into account that Steel FC has played 20 different lineups in 21 games (hard to believe but it is true) this team needs to figure out what they’re doing quick. Promising wins against Wilmington and Pittsburgh mean literally nothing anymore and they have one more shot to find any sense of footing at home before that task gets much more daunting later in August during a four-game away stint.

I’ll end on a few positive notes, because Steel FC is about players making progress and we do see some of that in every game:
-Nick Bibbs has been a really pleasant surprise in the wake of the Daly loan and Trusty’s national team duty. His goal was a nice little reward for some great defensive play
-Taylor Washington has an endless motor, and if he can work on his crossing, he might be a guy to really watch out for next year
-Ryan Richter put in another stellar performance personally, with a goal and the assist on the Bibbs tally. He doesn’t care about his own accolades (not after the last series of losses) but he’s been a stud this year for BSFC.

It’s do-or-die next week when the Independence come to Goodman Stadium on Sunday at 4:00 P.M.