Complete U.S. Open Cup Coverage

Michael Anderer

2025 US Open Cup Round 3: Tampa Bay Rowdies survive PK shootout with FC Naples

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Players from FC Naples and the Tampa Bay Rowdies battle for the ball in the Third Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: FC Naples
Players from FC Naples and the Tampa Bay Rowdies battle for the ball in the Third Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: FC Naples

It took until the 10th round of penalty kicks for the struggling Tampa Bay Rowdies to show that they were the better side on the night against the lower division hosts, FC Naples.  This game proved that the slightest of margins divides the bottom of the Championship division from the top of League One.  A fitting match-up for the two leagues that have agreed to bring promotion and relegation to at least part of the United States soccer pyramid. 

Promotion was not at stake on Wednesday night in Florida, but what was at stake was the opportunity for the victors to advance into the next round and possibly face an MLS side as that league joins the US Open Cup.  

Tampa Bay Rowdies interim head coach, Steve Coleman, did not think his team was the better one on the night.  He added, “It’s not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s important to build momentum in games like tonight. I think in this game in our week of three games in seven days is likely to be one of the tougher ones with the big crowd here tonight looking and smelling for an upset.”  His message emphasized why this tournament is so important for the fans and the teams to win.  Because it does come in the midweeks and during the regular season.  It was a Wednesday night and still the FC Naples crowd showed up en masse to the tune of 3418 in stadium that at capacity holds 4600.  

Tampa Bay earned the lead in the 26th minute when Manuel Arteaga fed a ball to Pacifique Niyongabire inside the FC Naples box and Niyongabire found the far post.  The celebration for the visitors would be short-lived when Luka Prpa scored the equalizer just two minutes later.  The teams would trade chances for the rest of the game but it would end tied and go into extra time.  FC Naples had one of their best chances to win in the last minute of regulation as Jayden Onen would find himself running past the Rowdies backline into space.  The defense recovered only to have Onen pass off to Naples striker, Karsen Henderlong, who then gave it up to Andres Ferrin.  Ferrin would beat the Tampa Bay keeper with his effort but center back, Forrest Lasso, was there on the goal line to save the moment.

Lasso would be the hero of the match for the visitors eventually putting away the game winning penalty.  The captain praised his teammates for their effort saying, “We used a lot of guys that maybe have not been used through out the year and everybody carried their weight. We made it to 10 PK’s so literally everyone on the field had to do something tonight.”  He added, “The Open Cup is magical, there’s chaos, there’s opportunities left and right.  Every team brings everything they have.”  When asked about the next round of opponents Lasso ended in saying that as a team they don’t really watch the other results, they focus on themselves and getting ready for the next league match on the weekend.

 

2025 US Open Cup Round 2: FC Naples scores early, defense shines in shutout of Little Rock Rangers

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Players from FC Naples celebrate after scoring a goal against Little Rock Rangers in the Second Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: FC Naples
Players from FC Naples celebrate after scoring a goal against Little Rock Rangers in the Second Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: FC Naples

FC Naples waited until the 91st minute of their First Round US Open Cup match to score the game-winning goal against local rival, Sarasota Paradise. Last night, in front of an energetic home crowd, the USL League One leaders needed less than one minute to put away the game winning goal.

Midfielder Jayden Onen received a ball from Ian Cerro just outside of the visiting Little Rock Rangers’ box. Onen’s speed created the space he needed to score while most of the crowd of 2,174 fans were still settling into their seats.

Head coach of FC Naples, Matt Polland, started a rotated line-up for the Second Round match including giving a start to FC Naples Academy player, Roscoe Rubinstein, at the striker position. The balance of regular starters and reserve players was the right mix to breakdown the USL League Two opponent.

In the 14th minute, FC Naples defender, Brecc Evans, rose above his mark off a corner kick to head the second goal of the game. The goal gave FC Naples some breathing room but Polland said post-game that “After scoring the second goal we kind of went into cruise control for a little while which I wasn’t happy about, but the second half response was excellent. The defensive pressure, the effort was there obviously scoring another goal kind of put the game away.”

The third goal came for the home team came in 77th minute as substitute Andres Ferrin dribbled his way into the box and threaded a right-footed shot past Henry Hampshaw to seal the victory. 

“Anytime we can give guys meaningful minutes it’s important,” said Pollard. “It allows for development. It’s a long season and you never know when you’re going to need to call on people so the ability to get more and more players meaningful minutes in these sorts of moments in very important for us for continuation through out the year.”

Little Rock played almost the entire game chasing a goal. Being the visitors, having to travel and face a team from a higher division was always going to be tough, but Little Rock did create problems for Naples. 

It was not until the 60th minute when a foursome of FC Naples regulars subbed on that the imbalance between the two sides was truly exposed. In that last 30 minutes the home team constantly created dangerous chances barely letting the opposition out of their own half.

For FC Naples, the solid defensive performance combined with sustained attacking pressure was effective to secure their place in Round 3 in the club’s first appearance in the US Open Cup.

“We are feeling good, we are rolling right now,” said FC Naples defender Gustavo Fernandes. “Our mentality before the game was come out strong, come out with a lot of energy and I think we saw that in the first minute when we were able to get a goal so it was a good showing from us.”

2025 US Open Cup Qualifying: NY Renegades qualify for first USOC after PK shootout win

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The New York Renegades celebrate after beating Lansdowne Yonkers 4-1 in a PK shootout (after a 1-1 draw) to clinch a spot in the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: Michael Anderer
The New York Renegades celebrate after beating Lansdowne Yonkers 4-1 in a PK shootout (after a 1-1 draw) to clinch a spot in the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: Michael Anderer

With a qualifying spot in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup on the line, both the visiting team, Lansdowne Yonkers FC and hosts, New York Renegades were ready to play a physical game with elevated intensity. The game would end in a penalty kick shootout but that scoreline does not tell the full story.

In the end, the Renegades qualified for the US Open Cup for the first time in club history with a 4-1 win in the shootout after a 1-1 draw.

Within the first two minutes of the match, the play would go from end to end with both sides trading early corner kicks. At first glance the teams showed themselves as evenly matched but it quickly became apparent that Lansdowne relied heavily on the play of defenders Musa Bala Danso and Jack Mulhare. The two were often forced to defend in one-v-one situations. When the New York attack could find overloads, goalkeeper Daniel DiMarco was up to the task.

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The teams would settle in and the Renegades would prove to be the stronger side, constantly winning the midfield battles and creating chances. New York’s best chance to take control of the game came in the 29th minute.  A ball over the top would leave Renegades striker, Rances Reneau Bardales, in a foot race with Danso. A foot race that Reneua Bardales would win leading to a one-v-one against the goalkeeper. What, at first look, appeared to be a clean save by DiMarco would result in a penalty kick call by head referee, Gurkan Dolugan. Oscar Rivas Romero would take the spot kick, but he was unable to put it past the diving netminder. The teams would end the first half knotted up 0-0 despite three big chances including the penalty kick that was wasted by the Renegades.

Renegades head coach Christian Turizon would make his first change at halftime displaying the obvious advantage of his team depth bringing in Matthews Carriel for Milton Campos.  Lansdowne Yonkers FC head coach Matt Kane, would counter the move by replacing Liam Walsh with veteran player Daryl Kavanagh. Kavanagh, who played professionally for a number of years in his native Ireland, came into an advanced midfield role to both offer more attacking options but also to help control some of the possession for Lansdowne.

It would be Kavanagh that eventually broke the deadlock between the two sides in the 78th minute. A Lansdowne corner kick would find the head of its target Danso. Danso nodded the ball back across the goal area where Kavanagh was standing unmarked allowing him to beat goalkeeper Eric Edwards with a strong right-footed shot from close range.

Less than 15 minutes to play and it would seem like the visitors from Yonkers might add another Open Cup appearance. The Renegades would again use their bench and bring on Alex Palais in the 80th minute and he would have an immediate impact. A poor turnover by Lansdowne in the middle third of the field would allow New York to connect two passes to Palais wide on the right side with time and space. Palais found the head of attacker Jeison Solano for the equalizer in the 82nd minute.  
The score was 1-1 at the end of regulation and the teams would have to decide the game in extra time each delivering chances to seal the victory but neither side could find the back of the net.

Tempers would flare in the 113th minute after Renegades goalscorer, Solano, was issued a violent conduct red card. The glory of his earlier shining moment was dulled by his lack of discipline late in the affair forcing his team to play a man down for the last seven minutes plus injury time in an attempt to get the game into penalty kicks. The strength and depth of the Renegades would prove to be enough to carry the game to the end of the extra time periods and the winner would come from the PK spot.

Just as the homeside showed their advantage in the regulation play they would also show it in the shootout. Each Renegades shooter calmly approached the area and scored their chances beating DiMarco despite the keeper diving the correct way in two of the four attempts. Lansdowne’s Kyle Galloway put his attempt over the bar and after Patrick Burns scored to quiet the enthusiastic home crowd, early hero, Daryl Kavanaugh, would have his shot saved by Eric Edwards giving the Renegades a chance to win on their next attempt. 

“Our boys are hungry and they want to show the nation why we feel that we can be amongst the best amateur teams on the East Coast,” said New York Renegades head coach Christian Turizo. “The game showed our grit and ability to grind out these games.”

2019 US Open Cup Round 4: New York City FC blank North Carolina FC to win first US Open Cup game

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Keaton Parks of NYCFC scored a pair of goals in the club's 4-0 win over North Carolina FC in the Fourth Round of the 2019 US Open Cup. Photo: Sebastian Ramirez
Keaton Parks of NYCFC scored a pair of goals in the club’s 4-0 win over North Carolina FC in the Fourth Round of the 2019 US Open Cup. Photo: Sebastian Ramirez | IG: @sebasbk | sebasbk.com.

For the first time in the club’s relatively short history, New York City FC was able to taste victory in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. NYCFC pulled away from North Carolina FC in the second half on the strength of a pair of goals by Keaton Parks to beat the USL Championship side, 4-0 to advance to the Round of 16.

If you knew New York City Football Club’s history, then the first 25 minutes of this match would have made you nervous that the club was headed toward US Open Cup disappointment for the fifth year in a row. In their first two seasons, NYCFC lost to the North American Soccer League’s New York Cosmos in the Open Cup. The next two seasons would see NYCFC fall to cross-river rivals New York Red Bulls. This year’s edition didn’t start with much indication that City would be able to get over that Open Cup hump.

Early chances for NYCFC were either saved by North Carolina FC keeper Alex Tambakis, or didn’t even challenge his net, missing the target completely. Although the Boys in Blue dominated the game from the first kick, the lack of goals gave their supporters a long stretch of nervous moments. A fabulous Tambakis fingertip save on a close range chip shot from Jesus Medina was followed up by striker Valentin Castellanos’s attempt ricocheting off the crossbar.

The nerves were exacerbated because – for the second time in their short history – NYCFC was fielding a predominantly-reserve squad. Of the 11 players on the field, only Anton Tinnerholm (out of position at centerback instead of his usual right back) and playmaking midfielder Maxi Moralez are regular starters in league play. The rest of the team was composed of spot starters for injured players, or first-time starters including professional debutante Daniel Bedoya – on the same pitch he called home during his two seasons with St. John’s University.

The anxious energy would be released in the 25th minute. NYCFC moved the ball through the midfield, opening up Castellanos, who moved the ball out wide to the often-overlapping left back Tony Rocha. He drove a low cross into the box where both midfielder Keaton Parks Moralez were collapsing. It would be North Carolina’s Aaron Guillen that would ultimately deflect the ball into the far side netting for an own goal.

The next 20 minutes would be more of the same, with North Carolina’s best chances coming from corner kicks while NYCFC continued to dominate possession. North Carolina coach Dave Sarachan could not find a way to allow his team to capitalize on the fact that multiple NYCFC players were in new positions to cover for teammates who are either hurt or on international duty. That was in part because of the strong play of a young trio of NYCFC midfielders in their first starts of the season: Parks, Daniel Bedoya, and homegrown 17-year old Justin Haak. The first half ended with North Carolina losing control of the ball deep in NYCFC territory thanks to the tenacious work of Bedoya and Rocha. Rocha left the ball for Moralez and sprang down the line  A simple ball back to Rocha allowed him to look up and spot the run of right winger Jesus Medina. A beautiful curling cross from Rocha would land on Medina’s foot at the top of the box for an easy shot past Tambakis. NYCFC took a 2-0 lead into half time and it seemed that the team from the Bronx was on their way to an easy victory despite the heavy squad rotation.

Photo: Sebastian Ramirez | IG: @sebasbk | sebasbk.com
Photo: Sebastian Ramirez | IG: @sebasbk | sebasbk.com

It was all smiles for NYCFC, as again they held majority possession of the ball and scored two more goals to seal the victory. In the 52nd minute, Medina and Castellanos linked up to possess at the top of Carolina’s box, allowing right back Torres to advance and find space wide. He received the ball and placed a high cross to the back post, where Keaton Parks headed it down and into the net past a lunging Tambakis. Parks added his second goal in the 76th minute, rewarded for a 50-yard sprint when Moralez placed a short pass through the Carolina defense leaving Parks one-on-one with Tambakis. Parks would coolly place the chance in the far corner.

NYCFC head coach Domènec Torrent praised his players for their performance.

“I was happy the players played really well,” the Frenchman said. “I was sure because when I say they deserve to play because they train very very hard every single day. I have confidence with these players. The shame for me, like a coach, is that I have to choose 11, not 18 but every player deserves to play because they have quality.”

“I think a lot of credit goes to training,” Haak said of his ability to integrate into the starting lineup just a week after his professional debut. “We do a lot of passing, a lot of movement with each other, creating chemistry there, but also playing games with the academy a couple of times when I need to get a game in helps me be more prepared for this.”

“We work hard every day in training,” added Parks. “We have a lot of chemistry in the team. We have a lot of good friendships in the locker room and everything.  The chemistry is there, it’s just about giving us the opportunity.”

NYCFC advances to the US Open Cup’s Round of 16 for the first time in club history where they will play on the road against D.C. United on June 19. The winner of that game will have a Quarterfinal road game against the winner of Orlando City SC and the New England Revolution.

“It feels great to be part of history like winning the first game for New York City,” Rocha said. “I mean it’s awesome. People are always going to talk about the first one and being a part of it, and it is something that I am going to be able to tell my kids and grandkids about so it is definitely a good feeling.”

2018 US Open Cup Round 1: Long Island Rough Riders’ offense tramples Kingston Stockade in extra time

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usoc_lirr_finalIt looked like it was going to be a long night for the host team, the Long Island Rough Riders.

Kingston Stockade FC took the three hour plus drive from Kingston, NY and along with their fans, the Dutch Guard Supporters Group, they set the tone early in the match. After already beating his mark twice, Pedro Espindola would win the endline battle against Long Island’s Jeffrey Medina and slot a cross that Stockade’s Bruce Jeter would stuff into the back of the net for an early 1-0 lead in the 11th minute.

What possibly could be one of the turning points of the game, Espindola on his next attempt to attack the Long Island goal went down after a tackle and would not be able to finish the game. David Lindholm, head coach for Stockade would be forced into an early substitution replacing Espindola in the 25th with Matel Anasta.

Lindholm said after the game about the switch, “We felt good about the guys we had coming off the bench even though you don’t want to have to make a change like that. You hope that you can cope with that, a team in more than just one player.”

The Rough Riders would be able to hold the visitors at one for the remainder of the half and created a few of their own chances, usually utilizing the pace and skill of left winger Charlie Ledula. Despite their effort Long Island would go into the break trailing 1-0.

Recognizing that he had to be proactive Rough Riders’ head coach, Stephen Roche, would make his first substitution at half time replacing right back Jeffrey Medina with Jacob Bohm. The change would not yield the desired result as Joshua Maley got free on the left side and find Michael Creswick for an easy goal and Stockade FC would double their lead in the 52nd minute.

All they had to do in order to advance is hold on for the remaining 38 minutes. Stockade couldn’t even hold Long Island for five minutes. Shortly after thinking they had already punched their ticket to Louisville for Round 2, Stockade would concede their first of the night. Alex Dexter found himself inside the box near the endline and, from a tight angle, drove a cross into the box where he found Tyler Botte who put it in the back of the net to give the Rough Riders life. Long Island now found themselves trailing 2-1 with just over a half an hour left in regulation.

In the 58th minute, the center referee would issue his first yellow card of the game to Long Island’s Thomas Wharf. After that, the cards just kept coming. Stockade’s Bernardo Mattos would get one in the 63rd and a few minutes later the Rider’s Tyler Botte and Stockade’s Juan Gatti would go into the book.

Realizing that time is running out, Roche would make his second change replacing captain and center back Dan Gwyther with midfielder Colin Murphy in the 68th minute. The change would pay off. Just over ten minutes later, after it felt like most of the game was being played in the Stockade FC goal box, Wharf would knock in the equalizer with 10 minutes plus stoppage time remaining.

Long Island defensive midfielder Shaun Foster, was outstanding in the game, protecting the back line and forcing the Stockade attack to rely on their wing play. Foster would get a yellow for a hard tackle in the 88th minute. And then a minute later, the game would change completely as Bernardo Mattos would get his second yellow after Charlie Ledula forced him into a risky tackle. With just stoppage time remaining the work horse Foster would go down unable to finish the game and give way to Junior Rosero. Rosero’s first touch was a blistering shot from distance that rose too much ending out of play, but it wouldn’t be his last chance at goal.

Regulation ended all square, two a piece and the team would begin their two 15 minute extra time periods. While Long Island poured on the pressure and kept Stockade on their back foot the entire first ET period, the only benefit they could yield from it was a yellow card against Stockade’s Michael Creswick in the 100’.

Lindholm said after the game, “I told my boys, we had 105 minutes of game in our bodies, but unfortunately we had to play for 120.”

Long Island would take over in the second extra time session with Junior Rosero scoring the go-ahead goal just three minutes in making it 3-2. Four minutes later, Charlie Ledula would find himself one on one with Stockade keeper Steve Skonieczny and beat him to the left giving the Rough Riders a 4-2 lead. And two minutes after that, Tyler Botte would put away his second giving the home team a comfortable 5-3 advantage with five minutes to play. Stockade were still pushing forward and earned a PK for their efforts that Matt Koziol would stick into the lower left corner giving Kingston a glimmer of hope for the waning minutes of the game. That hope was extinguished when Charlie Ledula would find himself in a similar position, 1v1 with the keeper and just like last time, easily past him to the left. Rough Riders would win 6-3.

“We’re delighted with the win,” said Roche of the result. “Stockade were what we expected, ferocious, hard working and very difficult to break down. Especially after going two-nil down, I’m very proud of our guys getting back into the game.”

It should be noted, Long Island’s Shaun Foster entered the field of play during the goal celebration of Rosero’s goal. For his action Foster who was already on a yellow was shown a red card. Roche said of Foster, “We’ll be appealing the referee’s action. He ran on the field thinking it was a golden goal and the game was over. He was given a straight red, that’s an incorrect decision, so we’ll definitely be appealing that one.”

Another player that stood out for the Rough Riders was Ledula with his two-goal performance.

“He had a great game, even without the goals,” said Roche. “He’s got a lot of ability and he’s here to showcase himself. Hopefully he’s one of the guys we can push on to the next level. We believe he’s got what it takes to be a professional player.”

Long Island will travel to play Louisville City FC in the Second Round on May 16.

2016 US Open Cup Round 3: New York Cosmos begin Cup run with second straight shutout of Jersey Express

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New_York_Cosmos_2010.svgPrior to the start of the 2016 MLS season, Jason Davis from Soccer Morning asked a variety of soccer reporters for their preseason predictions. One of the questions was, “Who’s going to win the Lamar Hunt Open Cup?” Brian Dunseth picked the NASL’s New York Cosmos. There are some members of the media who think that the Cosmos have bolstered their roster enough to make a run at the US Open Cup.

The Cosmos began their quest for the cup with a 2-0 Third Round win against Jersey Express on Wednesday at St. John’s University’s Belson Stadium in Queens, N.Y.

Despite being the favorite, the Cosmos did not take anything for granted playing a strong lineup including regular season starters like Carlos Mendes, David Ochieng, Ayoze, Danny Szetela, Ruben Bover and Sebastian Guenzatti. By all accounts, the decision to go with a balance of starters and reserve players proved pivotal. Jersey came out with a well organized defense that allowed the Cosmos to control the tempo and possession, but most of the chances from the home side were on crosses that were blocked or long range shots parried away by keeper David Greczek.

Jersey’s backline was anchored by solid play of both Chris Krez and Jonathon Onyeaka. An early yellow card to midfielder Pinto Goulart added extra stress for the visitors, but solid attacking play by Angser Otto would force the Cosmos to recognize how well these teams matched up to each other.

In the 35th minute, the Cosmos broke through on a fantastic free kick from Ayoze after Bover had been taken down just outside the eighteen-yard box. With a four-man wall in front of him, Greczek was completely screened. Ayoze’s placement and pace were perfect and the ball sailed into the upper corner to give the Cosmos a 1-0 lead.

That’s how teams would enter halftime after exchanging low percentage shots as both defenses set the tone for the match. The Cosmos thought they had another goal as Lucky Mkosana put a cross into the goal in the 54th, but the goal was offside. Feeling the pressure, Jersey made its first change bringing in Rajrir Khalon for Jack Ponce, but it would be Jersey’s second substitution that cost them. After a strong 66 minutes but still trailing by a goal, Jersey swapped Tyler Morris for Jonathon Onyeaka. Six minutes later, the long-awaited assurance goal for the Cosmos came as substitute Yohandry Orozco was left wide open on the back post for a simple tap-in header. With the second goal, Jersey was forced to press more and the tired legs could not keep the pace up. The Ayoze goal would stand as the game winner.

The Cosmos now set their sites on finishing up the Spring NASL in first place and then look ahead at a rematch of last year’s Open Cup derby with NYCFC.

“Our goal is to win every game, whether it be in the regular season, or in this competition, so obviously we are happy with the result and we can focus on the next opponent,” Mkosana said.

Cosmos Captain Carlos Mendes said that while it’s great to win the Open Cup game, the focus has to remain on the spring season, but he is excited to play against NYCFC later in the month.

Cosmos coach Gio Savarese was very pleased with the performance. He noted earlier in the week that the match was of the most difficult in the Open Cup format.

“It’s hard because some players and sometimes whole teams, overlook this round of the competition,” he said. “The players get soft mentally and think that they are better, and that’s dangerous. Jersey had a lot of good chances, more than we wanted them to have.”

Savarse calls the derby against NYCFC, the type of game that is really good at growing the sport with a lot of passion and drama.

The Cosmos will visit NYCFC on June 15 at 7:30 p.m. at Coffey Stadium at Fordham University.

2016 US Open Cup qualifying: Three-time champion NY Pancyprian Freedoms edge Jersey Shore Boca, 2-1

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Randall's Island in New York City. Photo: Instagram (@nct1029jr)
Randall’s Island in New York City. Photo: Instagram (@nct1029jr)

MORE: Five teams advance to final round of qualifying in first weekend

The New York Pancyprian Freedoms are one step closer to its first US Open Cup berth since 2011 after defeating Jersey Shore Boca 2-1 Saturday in a qualifying match for the 2016 tournament.

On a cold evening on the turf field at Randall’s Island, former New York Red Bulls and Long Island Rough Riders player Chris Megaloudis scored what proved to be the game-winner just before halftime.

The Freedoms, who won the US Open Cup three times in the 1980s, advance to the final round of qualifying against an opponent to be announced sometime after Jan. 1. The final round is scheduled for early April.

The teams spent the first five minutes feeling each other out, keeping the play mostly between the boxes, but that soft tempo would not last long. In the 12th minute, winger Keith Dejetl found some space just outside the Boca box and blasted a shot into the upper corner beating keeper Charles Cunliffe to take a 1-0 lead.

The play got physical when former New York Cosmos player Stefan Dimitrov went up for a header with James Nelson. Nelson came down holding his eye after an errant elbow caught him causing some bruising. The Boca midfielder had to come off for a few minutes for treatment.

The Jersey team ratcheting up pressure continuing to press forward into the Pancyprian half. In the 20th minute, defender Bryant Avalos pushed up during a Boca corner attempt and after New York failed to clear the ball, it bounced out to Avalos who fired an open shot over the bar from about 20 yards out.

The increase in intensity would pay off for Boca in the 41st minute when a through ball from Chris Katona beat the New York defense leaving Thomas Gray one-on-one with keeper, Nick Takarny. Gray pushed the ball smoothly past the sliding goalie to pull New Jersey level.

It looked like the game was headed into the halftime break all even until the final minute of the half arrived. New York striker Yannk Reyering would find Megaloudis open on the back post for an easy tap in that gave the Pancyprians their second lead of the game, 2-1.

New Jersey came out knowing they needed to change their strategy to get a second goal. They brought on midfielder Sean Casey to help direct traffic from in front of the defense. He would replace Christian Bonzinos to start the second half.

The second half played much different from the first. During the first 45, the referee called a handful of fouls for some aggressive play. In the second stanza, not only were there more fouls, but also more cautions. About 10 minutes into the half, Jersey Shore’s Katona was cautioned and nearly picked up a second five minutes later for a hard tackle.

In the 64the minute, Boca would change the formation again adding Michael Lyons to the team replacing James Nelson. A few minutes after that, Bryant Avalos would pick up a yellow caution as the referee worked to keep the play physical but fair.

New York would bring in their first substitute in the 73rd minute as Frank Spanos replaced Vasillis Atoniou giving the Pancyprians some fresh legs to keep up with the runs of the Boca attackers. It would prove to be a smart move by head coach, Stratis Mastrokyriakos. Even with New Jersey applying more and more pressure they were never able to put away the equalizer. Two more late subs, Panagiotis Halkidis for Keith Detejl and John Koutsounadis replaced former MLS player Jeff Matteo to eat away the final two minutes of stoppage time.

Following the game, Mastrokyriakos through a translator, commented that despite having to play at a neutral site (their home field, Belson Stadium at St John’s University, was unavailable for the match), the Pancyprians were still the better team for the majority of the game and had more opportunities. He is very happy that the team won and is advancing to the next round, it’s very important to the players and to the club.

Michael Anderer writes for Soccer Long Island Magazine. Follow him on Twitter @SoccerLIMag

2015 US Open Cup Round 1: Joe Holland carries Long Island Rough Riders to 3-1 win over Brooklyn Italians

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Long Island Rough RidersIn what used to be a regular occurance in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, a battle between two teams from New York City has become more rare in the Modern Era (1995-present). For just the fifth time since 1995, two teams from the Big Apple squared off as the Long Island Rough Riders defeated the Brooklyn Italians 3-1. Long Island’s Joe Holland was involved in all three goals as he led the team with a pair of goals and an assist as the Rough Riders won their first US Open Cup game since 2012.

Rough Riders head coach Paul Roderick highlighted Holland as a player to watch in tonight’s US Open Cup match.

“Joe can sometimes be a hot and cold player, but when he’s on, it’s special”, Roderick shared as the teams warmed up. Another notable player for Long Island was Jimmy Nealis. Nealis was drafted in 2013 by the Houston Dynamo but injured in the preseason of that year. After rehabbing, he was signed by the New York Cosmos and played for two seasons.

Tonight was definitely one of the better performances for the emerging star. Holland and the Rough Riders wasted no time taking the game to visiting Brooklyn side scoring in the first minute. This was Joe Holland’s first US Open Cup goal. Long Island controlled the game for most of the first half with quick, smart play, but also helped by a Brooklyn attack that was constantly caught offsides and a slew of unforced turnovers by the back line.

In the 38th minute, Brooklyn’s Yannick Laroche drove into the box with a quick change of pace catching defender Danny Kreamer off balance forcing a Brooklyn penalty kick. Yvener Guerrier stepped up and cooly placed the shot past Joe Martin leveling the game at 1-1, a score that would stand for the rest of the first half.

Both squads remained unchanged to start the second half, but almost immediately Long Island would need to make a change. In the 46th minute, midfielder Dan Reid rolled his ankle. The injury would prove to be too much for him to return and Dom Iovino would enter in his place.

The second half was much improved on the first with both teams settling in. The play was organized and each chance was harder to earn, but equally more dangerous as they tried to break the deadlock. The Rough Riders, sensing they were close switched up the midfield again, subbing out Adriana Gabrielle for the fresh legs of Ben Withcomb in the 60th minute.

Four minute later, the constant pressure by Long Island forced another Brooklyn error as Alejandro Penzini was called for a handball in the box. Holland took the kick, but a fantastic diving effort by 19-year-old Michael Bernardi kept the score tied. While some might think the save by the Brooklyn keeper would have put momentum on their side, that was not the case tonight. In the 66th minute, Ben Wignall found himself with a clear look on the left side about twenty yards out. His laser beat a fully extended Bernandi and Long Island would take the lead 2-1.

The more fit and organized Long Island team continued to control the pace of the game and in the 74th minute, the star of the night, Holland scored his second putting the Rough Riders ahead 3-1.

The Italians would not let the game go without a fight. The late substitutions of Armen Katchaturian (Diego Zuniga), Kevin Lue (Yannick Laroche) and Vincent Benzecourt (Martin Williams) gave the attack a little more pace, but many of their chances were the result of individual effort and not team play. Long Island used their last sub in the bringing in Junior Rosero for goal scorer Wignall to keep the pressure and possession in the Brooklyn third.

At the final whistle it would remain a 3-1 win for the home side. Nealis after game while happy with the result knows the team can play better.

“It’s still the start of our season,” said Nealis. “It’s tough, we are still getting comfortable together, but the more we practice and the fitter we get, the better we will be.”

Entering the game, the Rough Riders had just one league game under their belt, a 3-1 home win in league play the previous Saturday. For Coach Roderick, with so little time together as a team, he’ll take the victory.

“In a cup, it’s nice to get any type of win,” said Roderick. “We made it harder than it needed to be. After the early goal we eased up a bit and credit to Brooklyn they fought back.”

Holland was proud of the way the team performed as well.

“Fantastic win,” said Holland. “In the first half we were a little haphazard and all over the place. Despite giving up the goal, we came out for the second half much more organized and compact and in the end it was comfortable.”

After the game the team immediately moved their attention to next week’s match as they will host the Real Monarchs, the United Soccer Leagues reserve team of Major League Soccer’s Real Salt Lake.

Holland knows that the match up against the USL side will be a tough challenge.

“I can’t wait,” said Holland. “It’s a good team, and obviously they have some professional links there so you’re going to see some good players. They move the ball around well as we do when we play right, so it should make for a very good game.”

Roderick gave a brief scouting report looking ahead to next year.

“Well, they will come in more fit and more organized,” said Roderick. “They are a team that trains everyday. But these are the games that our players want to be in, to play against the better clubs so it should be a great match.”

Former Long Island Rough Rider, Tyler Arnone currently plays with the Real Monarchs and will be making his return to Cy Donnelly stadium next week when the teams meet up Wednesday, May 20 at 8 p.m.

2014 US Open Cup Round 4: New York Cosmos dominate Red Bulls in long-awaited Gotham Derby (video)

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Red Bulls manager Mike Petke downplayed the importance and significance of the Fourth Round US Open Cup match-up against the New York Cosmos since the potential meeting was announced. Contrarily, the entire Cosmos organization approached the game as the biggest game to date, since the team re-joined the NASL last fall. A quick glance at the stat sheet and it’s easy to see which approach was more effective.

The Cosmos out-shot the Red Bulls 21-3 on route to a dominant 3-0 win in front of an energized crowd of 9,364 at Shuart Stadium at Hofstra University. The Cosmos jumped out to an early lead of what head coach Giovanni Savarese described as a clinical finish by Mads Stokkelien in the 8th minute.

The teams would share possession for the remainder of the first half, but the Cosmos would have the better of the chances putting shots wide and even one off the crossbar. An early yellow card in the 22nd minute on Ibrahim Sekagaya was the clearest sign of the Red Bull frustration. The teams would go into halftime with Cosmos leading 1-0.

Mads Stokkelien scored two goals for the New York Cosmos in their 3-0 win over the New York Red Bulls. Photo: New York Cosmos
Mads Stokkelien scored two goals for the New York Cosmos in their 3-0 win over the New York Red Bulls. Photo: New York Cosmos

In the end, the Cosmos’ energy and tenacity would prove to be too much for the Red Bulls. The Cosmos would add two goals in the 73rd (Stokkelien) and 78th (Noselli) minutes to cap a dominating performance. The strong midfield play of Danny Szetela and Joseph Nane exemplified the Cosmos game plan of playing hard, strong and fast. The shutout was the first for the Cosmos and goalkeeper Jimmy Mauer in US Open Cup.

The frustration of the Red Bulls came to a boil in the 87th minute when defender Chris Duvall came in hard and late on Cosmos Sebastian Guenzatti. Duvall was shown a straight red card for the challenge. It would take Head Referee Kevin Terry and his team a few minutes to settle down both teams before play could resume.

After the game the Cosmos’ Savarese described the dominant performance as the best complete game that the team has played to date. He added, “We take the US Open Cup very seriously and we feel that we are contenders. We know that we will face a lot of challenges along the way and tonight was one of those challenges.”

The Cosmos now await the winner of the Fourth Round game between the Harrisburg City Islanders (USL PRO) and the Philadelphia Union (MLS).

Michael Anderer writes for Soccer Long Island Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter @SoccerLImag.

HIGHLIGHTS: NEW YORK COSMOS 3, NEW YORK RED BULLS 0

FULL MATCH REPLAY: NY COSMOS 3:0 NY RED BULLS

2014 US Open Cup Round 3: New York Cosmos win Open Cup debut, will host Red Bulls in Round 4

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The New York Cosmos defeated the Brooklyn Italians 2-0 in their US Open Cup debut. Photo: New York Cosmos
The New York Cosmos defeated the Brooklyn Italians 2-0 in their US Open Cup debut. Photo: New York Cosmos014

Reigning NASL Champions, the New York Cosmos entered the Third Round of the US Open Cup with a win against NPSL’s Brooklyn Italians. Brooklyn struggled early on with their composure. Head coach Lucio Russo told reporters after the game that he hoped his team could keep the score level for the first 30 minutes. He knew that the longer it took the NASL squad to score, the more nervous they would become.

Unfortunately,by the time the clock hit thirty, Russo’s squad was already down 2-0. The Cosmos scored their first goal off a short corner play in the 16th minute. Spanish defender Ayoze would end up with the ball just outside the Italian box, sending in a cross that was put away by centerback Jimmy Ockford. While continuing to dominate possession, the Cosmos would add another goal at the 30 minute mark. Hagop Chirishian took a rebound off Brooklyn goalkeeper Parkinson, pushing the ball to the back of the net.

The Cosmos tallied 16 shots in the first half compared to Brooklyn’s three, but the Cosmos also bettered the Brooklyn squad in another statistic that they would not want the lead in: fouls. The Cosmos were called for nine fouls while Brooklyn only five. Both teams would go into halftime which one player each being shown a yellow card: Yvener Diese (Brooklyn) and Hagop Chirishian (NY Cosmos).

Brooklyn would make one change to start the second half with forward Juan Aguiar replacing midfielder Diego Zuniga in an obvious attempt to change the game quickly. The game would change very quickly, but the way the Italians hoped. Italians midfielder Salvatore Barone picked up a yellow card for a dangerous tackle on the Cosmos’ Dane Murphy in the 22nd minute. Head referee Andres Pfefferkorn had just put his cards away and blew the whistle to restart play when Barone took down another Cosmos player drawing his second yellow in less than a minute’s time. Brooklyn would play down a man for the next half an hour.

The Cosmos bombarded the Italians with quick lateral passes and crosses but they could not break through the tough defense solidified by Kirk Scarlett and Tim Parker. Parker, a former St John’s defender, looked right at home on the Belson turf, but it would be Scarlett with the defensive play of the match clearing a ball off the goal line that had made its way past Parkinson.

Not even the addition of substitute Hans Denissen could help the Cosmos put a little more breathing room between them and the nine-man Brooklyn squad. The final whistle would propel the Cosmos onto the Fourth Round which will include another NY Derby match-up. The Cosmos will host MLS’s New York Red Bulls at Shuart Stadium in Hempstead, NY, on June 14. When asked about the upcoming game against the Red Bulls, Cosmos head coach Giovanni Savarese said that he thinks it will great for the sport of soccer. He added that the Cosmos are excited about and that it will be a good thing for New York.

Tonight’s game marked the first ever appearance for the famed New York Cosmos franchise in US Open Cup history . The Brooklyn Italians are no strangers to the tournament winning the Lamar Hunt trophy in 1979 and 1991.

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