NorthWood-Bremen 2-1 (2-1)

FIRST HALF-With the flag not making it all the way up the pole, the national anthem being played twice (almost thrice), it didn't seem like anything would go smooth tonight. But things aren't always the way they appear. NorthWood is able to field an almost healthy squad. Derek is on the mend and able to play some minutes here and there. And when he is on the pitch, it is obvious he contributes in the midfield. NW starts a little shaky and in the third minute the first ball rumbles thru the box and no one gets good contact on the ball, the result is the first of many Bremen corners. All Bremen corners spell trouble. They target big players with heading capabilities near post. In the 6th minute Bremen gets awarded a throw in. It looks like they graduated from the NorthWood school of throw ins......they succesfully place the ball at the feet of a man in all whites. In the 7th, a Bremen breakaway requires an emergency stop from Cody Cripe. Double C makes the stop and keeps us in the game. Not the first time this year and not the last time tonight! Bremen targets their forwards with long passes around or over the NW defense. Their #23 is fast, very fast. At times, Pipp's legs have to go twice as fast as the legs of #23. Pipp plays a very strong game and attacks the ball each time a Bremen player presents the ball while trying to position for a shot or pass. For the next 15 minutes, NW takes more control of the game then Bremen. In the 23rd, NW pressures the ball high, resulting in a bad Bremen pass. Brayton Taylor takes possession of the ball and goes toward the Bremen box. A decisive shot slips by the keeper and into the goal for the unassisted 1-0! Both teams attack the goals with succes when they play the balls over the top. The Bremen defense has some weakness in the speed department. In the 31st minute, David Eshelman drops a ball from the back over the top to Denny Barahona. Dennyz takes the ball directly into the box and challenges the Bremen keeper. The keeper gets a hand on the shot but it is not enough to prevent the ball from hitting the net, 2-0! Bremen responds quickly, very quickly. The next attack from the kick off goes wide. The ensuing cross targets #23 who places the ball with a forceful header past Double C, 2-1 (32"). Despite Bremen pressure, the score stays at 2-1 until it is time for the Tea.HALF TIME- Playing the ball over the top needs to become a focus in the second half but the most important message from Coach Duerksen is that the team needs to get this win, period! SECOND HALF- The 42nd minute of play sports Dennyz with a nice shot at the goal that gets deflected for a corner (Bremen would win the corner battle in decisive fashion tonight but that is not the score that counts). The second half is scrappy most of the time. The long ball is played by Bremen almost exclusively. All this long balling requires physical efforts from our defense (Dylan, Pipp, Conner, David, Juan, Tanner, AC) and midfield (Eli, Derek, Dennyz, Ethan). Even the forwards (Brayton and Isaac) come back and help tackle the ball. NW does not play the ball over the top as much as they probably should have but are able to threaten offensively here and there. The referee calls just about everything. It is somewhat odd to see the Bremen coach complain about bad calls, considering that NW gets called on about 80% of the fouls. Every hand in the back (whether a foul or not) gets a free kick awarded. Coach Duerksen instruction to his boys is to keep their hands down and "put them in your pants if you have to!!!". In the 49th, our ball boy on the team side, Kyle Cripe, spills right in front of the Panthers dug out but he is called "safe" by coach Duerksen. Kyle works as hard as the rest of the team tonight. The hard work, sacrificing for each other keeps the Panthers in the game. Cody has to prevent some shots and crosses and does that in miraculous fashion. In the 61st, Isaac takes a long distance shot (35-40 yards out) but the keeper makes the save. With minutes left in the game, Conner Miller takes a goal kick but goes down right away. An apparent cramp attack in both legs is proof of a hard fought defensive battle. For Conner the proof isn't in the pudding but in his legs. Bananas for breakfast!!!! Coach Douwsma and Dijkstra assist Conner behind the goal after he has been "dumped" there by his compassionate team mates. NW manages to defend the last view desperate Bremen attacks but the half time score also ends up being the final score; 2-1. Good job boys! Pictures to follow later.