Motagua of New Orleans

2019 US Open Cup Qualifying: NTX Rayados’ Kevin Ellis redeems himself in PK win vs. Motagua of NOLA

January 13, 2019 by Josh Hakala

NTX Rayados pose for a team photo before their 2019 US Open Cup qualifying match against Leon FC. Photo: NTX Rayados

It was all about “redemption” on Saturday night in New Orleans.

The North Texas (NTX) Rayados, who are attempting to qualify for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup for the eighth year in a row, needed 11 rounds of penalty kicks to survive and advance their 2019 Open Division Local Qualifying match against Motagua of New Orleans. After the match finished in a 1-1 draw, Kevin Ellis of NTX Rayados stepped to the penalty spot in the opening round and had his attempt saved. A couple rounds later, Motagua’s Nestor Peralta had his attempt ring off the crossbar which helped level the shootout at 3-3. No one missed until Round 11 when Rayados goalkeeper Emmanuel “Bebo” Frias dove to his right to stop Brandon Chagnard’s attempt to open the door for the visitors.

This left North Texas player/manager Tito Salas with a tough decision. With the shootout on the line, he had the choice to put Ellis back out there for a second attempt, or to choose another player to take the shot.

Salas didn’t hesitate: “I told him, ‘It’s time for redemption’.”

Ellis stepped to the spot, fired it to the right of Motagua netminder Jose Santos Jr. and into the back of the net to send Rayados to the final round of qualifying.

Motagua finished the game with 10 men after a second yellow card was issued to Leo Barros late in the second half, so when it came time for the shootout, the rules state that once the shorthanded team finishes with their last player in the shootout, the team with 11 players has a choice. They can either allow their 11th player to shoot, or they can choose someone else.

For Salas, it was an easy decision and Ellis was more than confident that he could seal the deal.

“He usually scores his PKs,” said Salas. “There’s a reason why he went first . We are very confident in him.”

That confidence paid off as NTX Rayados will advance to the final round of the qualifying where they are likely to face off with the El Paso, Texas-based Southwest FC at a venue that will be announced by the US Soccer Federation in the coming weeks. The date of the fourth and final round is scheduled for the weekend of April 6-7.

The Rayados are attempting to qualify for the US Open Cup for the eighth consecutive season, which would extend their Modern Era (1995-present) record for an Open Division Local team.

This rivalry has been growing since they first met in 2012. NTX Rayados are unbeaten against Motagua in US Open Cup qualifying since their first meeting, and every match has had a lot on the line. This was the first time that the match between the two clubs didn’t decide who got into the US Open Cup. However, the overall rivalry isn’t dominated by the Rayados. In Amateur Cup play, Motagua has had the edge, winning all three meetings, including a win in the USASA Region III Amateur Cup Final that sent the Crescent City club to the national finals.

“It’s been a great rivalry,” said Salas. “But it’s been more of a friendship. We get along with them.”

NTX Rayados arrived in New Orleans with just 12 players, but it was their play in the first half that gave them confidence, including the opening goal in the later part of the first half. The play started out of the back where Salas fed the ball to Jose Antonio Hernandez on the wing. Hernandez took the ball to the endline and crossed it into the penalty area where it took a deflection in front and fell to the feet of the team’s all-time US Open Cup goalscorer, Alberto Rodriguez. Rodriguez, who scored two goals in the club’s upset of the Oklahoma City Energy (USL) in the Second Round of last year’s tournament, slotted the ball past the goalkeeper to put the visitors in front.

The Rayados went into the halftime break with the lead and with plenty of confidence.

“We had some good chances early,” said Salas, who hit the crossbar in the first half. “It seemed like it was going to be a different outcome from the beginning. But once they scored their goal they got really hype and they were all over us.”

That equalizer came for Motagua in the with about 10 minutes left in regulation.

Motagua’s player/manager Steven Morris was the hero for the home team. He played a through ball to Samir Garcia down the left wing, who took possession and dribbled inside the box. Garcia laid the ball off with a back heel and Morris finished from the corner of the six-yard box to the near post.

NTX Rayados players Christopher Escalera (left) and Cedric Nickerson get ready in the locker room before their 2019 US Open Cup qualifying match against Motagua of New Orleans. Photo: Goose | NTX Rayados

The energy ramped up for Motagua, who were playing against a road team who only had a backup goalkeeper Lorenzo Guillen on their bench (he would later enter the game as a field player in extra time). The momentum they gained from the goal, and the Rayados’ heavy legs, took a hit minutes later when Leo Barros was issued his second yellow card for a tackle from behind leaving the home side down to 10 men.

The match would go into extra time and NTX Rayados appeared to regain the lead but they had a goal taken off the board. On a set piece in the first extra time period, the ball was crossed in and after North Texas put the ball into the back of the net, celebrated that goal and started to head back to the center of the field for the kickoff, the referee and one of the linesman stopped them in their tracks. The two officials had a meeting and determined that the Rayados had committed a foul in the box prior to the goal.

The match would have to be determined at the penalty spot where NTX prevailed 10-9 to keep their five-game US Open Cup qualifying unbeaten streak alive against Motagua of New Orleans.

“It was a hard-played game like we expected,” said Motagua player/manager Steven Morris. “It’s the type of game everyone gets up for. Congratulations to the Rayados and we wish them luck going forward. It’s tough when you play with 10 men and once you get to PKs, it’s a gamble. I’m really proud of my boys and we will be back.”

“They fought hard,” said Salas about his Rayados club. “You could tell that our legs were giving up on us , but I’m proud of the guys. It definitely wasn’t what we expected, and it definitely wasn’t easy.”

These two teams have been scheduled to play each other in every US Open Cup qualifying tournament since 2013, with NTX Rayados winning four times along with another match finishing in a draw (that helped the Rayados clinch a spot in the US Open Cup). In their first meeting that took place in New Orleans in 2013, NTX Rayados cruised to a 4-0 win in the USASA Region III Open Cup Semifinals, which punched their ticket to the 2013 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.

There was no qualifying tournament in 2014 as the USASA was changing their qualifying method, but the two teams met again in June of 2014 in Montgomery, Ala. to decide the entries for the 2015 US Open Cup. In group play, NTX Rayados just needed a draw against Motagua in the final game to clinch their fourth straight Open Cup berth, and they got just that, as the game finished 3-3.

The USSF created the current Open Division Local qualifying tournament in 2016 and the two teams were scheduled to play before the federation decided to cancel the final round and enter all of the remaining clubs into the tournament. The two teams met in the final round in each of the last two years with NTX Rayados winning both games in Balch Springs, Texas, 2-0, in 2017, and by the score of 2-1 last year.

2019 US Open Cup Qualifying Round 3
Motagua of New Orleans 1:1 NTX Rayados
NTX advances, 10-9 in penalty kicks

Penalty Kick Shootout
NOLA: Brandon Chagnard (GOAL)
NTX: Kevin Ellis (SAVED)
NOLA: Steven Morris (GOAL)
NTX: Jose Antonio Hernandez (GOAL)
NOLA: Nestor Peralta (MISS)
NTX: Mychel Jones (GOAL)
NOLA: Scott Burris (GOAL)
NTX: Victor Pinal (GOAL)
NOLA: Samir Arzu (GOAL)
NTX: Cedric Nickerson (GOAL)
NOLA: Hisham Aldbziz
NTX: Chris Escalera (GOAL)
NOLA: Anthony Peters (GOAL)
NTX: Alberto Rodriguez (GOAL)
NOLA: Patrick Lynch (GOAL)
NTX: Tito Salas (GOAL)
NOLA: Fernando Vargas (GOAL)
NTX: Brandon Pfluger (GOAL)
NOLA: Jose Santos Jr. (GK) (GOAL)
NTX: Emmanuel “Bebo” Frias (GK) (GOAL)
NOLA: Brandon Chagnard (SAVED)
NTX: Kevin Ellis (GOAL)

2019 US Open Cup Qualifying Round 2: Motagua of New Orleans lose luggage, find win vs. Celtic Cowboys

November 14, 2018 by Mark Wright

Since the Open Division Local Qualifying tournament for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup was launched in 2015, Motagua of New Orleans have been a force in the competition. Motagua qualified for the full tournament in 2016, the team from the Crescent City has reached the final qualifying round in each of the last two years, only to fall to NTX Rayados on the road both times.

On Sunday, Nov. 11, Motagua traveled more than 500 miles to Round Rock, Texas and defeated the Celtic Cowboys Premier, 3-2 to advance to the Third Round of qualifying. Brandon Chagnard led the way with a pair of goals as they move one step closer to returning to the US Open Cup.

The United States Soccer Federation has yet to confirm if Round 3 will be a “Win & You’re In” match, but regardless, the stakes will be high as they will host the NTX Rayados on Nov. 17 with revenge on their minds.

“Despite some arduous traveling which resulted in losing our uniforms and getting to the field late and barely having time to warm up, we were able to put together a good performance, in cold and wet conditions,” said Motagua player/coach Steven Morris, who scored the team’s second goal that put them ahead early in the second half.

Motagua lost one of their bags on the flight from New Orleans to Austin that contained the majority of their team uniforms, which forced them to come up with a backup plan. They were able to find The Soccer Corner, a local soccer store that could create new uniforms on short notice. (In a classy move, Celtic Cowboys offered to let Motagua use their away uniforms, but arrangements had already been made with The Soccer Corner).

As the game began, it was a rainy and frigid afternoon in Central Texas, fairly unusual for this time of year. Motagua arrived late and so didn’t have time to warm up, which was far from ideal for the visitors. As the first half kicked off, the Celtic Cowboys showed the benefits of warming up, as they came out of the gates quickly. In fact, they almost scored in the 5th minute with a low ball across the front of goal only inches from being a tap in.

Anthony Peters and player/coach Steven Morris of Motagua of New Orleans celebrate as the numbers are being added to their last minute replacement soccer jerseys at The Soccer Corner in Round Rock, Texas. Motagua lost most of their original uniforms on the flight to their 2019 US Open Cup qualifier against Celtic Cowboys Premier.

As the match progressed, Motagua grew into the game and looked very comfortable passing quick, short balls and keeping the lion’s share of possession. The Celtic strategy was to get on the wings or play over the top, which Motagua countered by playing a high line, led by Anthony Peters. Peters almost scored in the 24th minute from a blistering strike from 25 yards out, but it missed the target by inches.

In the 32nd minute, Motagua’s Brandon Chagnard, a former star for the PDL’s New Orleans Jesters, scored a wonderfully-placed free kick. The rest of the first half was dominated by Motagua, who outshot Celtic 10 to 5, though they ended the half up only 1-0.

“I felt we controlled most of the game and the ensuing opportunities and fully deserved to be up at half,” said Morris. “But in the second half the Cowboys came to play and made it very hard for us.”

The second half saw a much different Celtic side, as they had changed tactics from looking for a ball over the top to playing directly to Christopher Wright, who had been brought on in the first half for Martin Togher. Wright was effective in using his big frame to bully Motagua’s back line, challengin Peters, himself a large and physical player. Wright’s physical play got him booked in the 50th minute, but he was later rewarded with an equalizer in the 56th minute.

“After the equalizer, the game was in the balance until we struck quickly twice to what we thought would put the game out of reach,” said Morris.

Against the run of play, Motagua regained the lead on a tidy finish by Morris in the 67th minute. Two minutes later, Chagnard scored his second goal of the game off a rebound to put Motagua up 3-1. Motagua had also changed their tactics from the first half by looking to get into the box before shooting, which limited the amount of shots but allowed them to be more clinical in front of goal, forcing saves from Celtic goalkeeper Mitchell McKay.

As the game progressed, Motagua looked to be in complete control, and many Celtic fans in the stands looked to escape the cold, wet weather. However, as the temperature outside dropped, the game warmed up into an exciting finish.

“The last ten minutes was all Cowboys, resulting in a second goal and a very tough last few minutes,” said Morris. “Luckily enough we were able to hang on for the victory.”

In the 87th minute, Celtic’s Taylor Peoples scored, giving them a life line and hope that a third goal would even the score. What followed was an all-out attack, and it almost resulted in a goal from a corner, with a header that was blocked on the line.

Overall, it was clash of two different styles of soccer. Motagua was very pass-orientated, with an almost Central/South American feel, and the Celtic side had a tough, tackling British style. It made for a very fun match to watch, and the game could have gone either way. In the end, it is Motagua that progresses to the next stage of the qualifying tournament.

Motagua will host their Round 3 match against NTX Rayados on Saturday, Nov. 17 at Pan American Stadium in New Orleans. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. Eastern Time.

Josh Hakala also contributed to this report