2009 Massachusetts State Cup Champions Emigrantes Das Ilbarhas booked their place in the USASA Region I Open Cup tournament next Spring by defeating Boston Olympiakos (2007 National Amateur Cup champions) 4-2 on penalty kicks on a rainy evening in East Boston. The build up to the game needed no extra incentives as the two teams had just met 48 hours earlier in a fiercely contested US Amateur Cup game in Brockton. The game ended in a 2-2 tie with Emigrantes advancing to the group finals ahead of Olympiakos on goal difference.
The game would prove no different. Emigrantes were first out of the blocks and on the scoresheet within the first eight minutes of play after some delightful skill by Edens Chery down the left flank. His cross into the box was met by Almir Barbosa whose shot was superbly saved by the Olympiakos keeper, but the rebound kindly fell to Cherry who needed no second invitation to shoot and score. It was a fantastic start for Emigrantes considering they began the game without a goalkeeper or any substitutes as many of their players and fans were stuck in the city of Boston’s notorious rush hour traffic.
By the 25th minute Emigrantes were down to 10 men when Jose Veiga picked up a foot injury in a challenge with the Olympiakos keeper. Fortunately their missing players began to arrive and Emigrantes were back to full strength with goalkeeper Jordan Mota coming on for injured Veiga and replacing Aderito Pina in goal who then took up his normal position in defense.
Instead of pushing for a second goal, Emigrantes eased off and Olympiakos began to make a push for an equalizer through playmakers DaSilva and Walker. But the execution of their final pass was poor. Frustration began to mount for twin strikers Jessey and Justin Fernandes as they couldn’t muster any chances against a solid Emigrantes defense. They settled for long range shots which were handled comfortably by Mota. With the evening temperature dropping and rain falling, both teams seemed to be looking forward to the halftime whistle which came after four minutes of injury time.
The second half started with Emigrantes forming an assault on the Olympiakos goal. Wave after wave they attacked. First with Barbosa coming close after some nice work by Daniel Xavier down the right. Then it was Zico Veiga to carve out a decent shot that sent the Boston keeper sprawling to his left. And before he could get on his feet, Iuca was there to rattle his crossbar. It seemed like only a matter of time before Emigrantes would score. But credit to Boston Olympiakos who somehow found a way to weather the storm. Those opening 20 minutes of the the second half must have felt like two hours to them.
Their fortunes would get better as Carlos Amado of Emigrantes pulled a hamstring and had to be replaced by Ernesto Lopes. With only one substitution available, Emigrantes were forced to shuffle their midfield by moving Carlos Semedo to left back. This would become his third position of the night after filling in at center back and midfield. This opened up the center of the park and Olympiakos began to find some space. As time ticked closer to the 90-minute mark, Olympiakos began throwing numbers forward forcing the Emigrantes defense to drop deeper onto their own 18-yard box. Two minutes into stoppage time, a failed clearance fell to the feet of Justin Fernandes who scored the equalizer to send the game into extra time.
It was tough blow to Emigrantes as Olympiakos created a limited number of scoring chances. With overtime looming and Emigrantes dejected, Olympiakos now felt they could win it. Within the 2nd minute of overtime, they used their momentum to go up 2-1 thanks to a cracker of a free kick from 25 yards out by Joshua Grenier. Mota had no chance.
Now Emigrantes were left to chase the game. With time winding down in the second half of extra time, they would find an opening through Chery, who put together a ‘man of the match’ level performance. He made a run down the left wing and sent a cross into the box that was met and turned in by Barbosa to bring the game level. Following the tying goal, each team took a defensive approach into the final minutes, sending the match into a penalty kick shootout to decide the Massaschusetts state championship.
Emigrantes won the toss and opted to shoot first. The defending champs scored on their first three attempts with Lopes, Chery and Daniel Xavier beating the goalkeeper. Olympiakos scored on their first two, but Mota guessed correctly and saved the third try by Geoffrey Walker. Following the save, Zico Veiga stepped to the spot and sent the ball into the back of the net putting the pressure on Jessey Fernandes to score or go home. Once again, Mota dove the right way and made the save to give Emigrantes their second straight Massachusetts Open Cup championship.
Emigrantes Das Ilhas will represent the state at the USASA Region I Finals, which will take place next Spring.
Emigrantes Das Ilhas lineup:
GK: Aderito De Pina(normally central defender and later went back to his regular position replaced by #1 Keeper Jordan Mota)
RB: Carlos Amado(came off injured replaced by Ernesto Lopes)
CB: Carlos Semedo, Carlos Semedo
LB: Sandro Pina
LW: Edens Cherry
CM: Claudino Barros, Zico Veiga
RW: Ze Veiga
ST: Almir Barsosa, Daniel Xavier