Sporting the new home kits, Pedro Dolabella scored twice, as RNYFC won their third straight game, beating Philadelphia Union II 3-0. The win for Rochester keeps them in pace with the playoff field, as NYC FC II won to keep themselves three points ahead of Rochester for the final play-off spot. The loss for Philadelphia II saw them fall from 2nd to 3rd place, now four points above Rochester.
First Half:
Rochester controlled the pace of the game in the first half, controlling possession for just over 58% of the time. However, in the first 30 minutes of the match, with only an attempt a piece for the sides, both of which were saved by the opposing keepers. After a hydration break, as a Jacob Akanyirige cross found Pedro Dolabella just inside the box, where he smashed in the bottom corner to make it 1-0 Rochester! Rochester mustered only one chance for the rest of the half, while Philadelphia II would see two opportunities in injury time squandered.
Half time score Rochester NY FC: 1 Philadelphia Union II: 0
Second Half:
Philly II came out firing in the second half, with four shots in the first fifteen minutes of the half. Rochester keeper Caíque, stopped the only one on target. The flow of the game changed in the 61st minutes as Jacob Akanyirige picked up his second yellow card of the match for time wasting/dissent. Rochester then switched towards a more counter-attacking focus that immediately paid dividends for the 10-man side. The next possession for Rochester saw a through-ball to Gibran Rayo lead to a penalty-kick, as he was taken down in the box by Brandan Craig. Rayo then would send the keeper the other way, and score an easy penalty to go up 2-0 Rochester! Philly controlled the ball, with abut 70% of possession for the rest of the match, as Rochester aimed to hold on to a two goal lead. Philadelphia II, would pour on the shots for the remainder of the match, with a total of eight shots. However, non of those ended up being on target, largely due to stellar defense by Rochester's back 3 and the stout play of Caíque. Rochester would earn two more chances in the match, making the last one count as Paulo Soares lead a streaking Dolabella into the box for a sliding goal in injury time, making in 3-0 Rochester!
Stats of the game:
Rochester finished the game blocking three of Philadelphia II's fifteen shots. In all Philadelphia II ended with the same number of blocked shots, as shots on goal. Rochester's defense also cleared the ball from danger 26 times, compared to Philadelphia II's 10 times. The rare times Philadelphia II found an opportunity to actually get a shot through Rochester's defense, Caíque was there to put an end to it, saving all three shots on goal, despite Philadelphia II having an expected goal tally of 1.4.
North Star Ultras' Player of the Game:
This matches North Star Ultras' Player of the Game is Caíque. Thanks to some incredible saves, Caique earned his second clean sheet of the season! Caíque saved all three shots on target, forcing Philadelphia II to go home scoreless despite a 1.4 expected goal (XG) total.
Comments