Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (2-2-7) scored a couple goals to go up by two, but Ottawa Fury FC (6-2-4) came storming back to draw, 2-2, on Saturday at Highmark Stadium. A couple of old familiars led the scoring efforts for the Hounds, as Kevin Kerr and Neco Brett each found the back of the net. Here’s the buildup to each tally.
34’ Kevin Kerr assisted by Ryan James
Split outside, Ryan James sprinted to a ball along the sideline, which was placed by Robbie Mertz.
With a collection of Fury FC defenders nearby, James (yellow arrow) elected to boot a cross into the penalty area. As seen above, Kerr (green arrow) sneaks behind to the back post. This instinctive run frees up the longest-tenured Hound to place a header past Ottawa goalkeeper Callum Irving to put the Hounds up 1-0.
62’ Neco Brett assisted by Robbie Mertz
Receiving a through-ball from midfielder Kenardo Forbes, Mertz had a choice to make.
As pictured above, Mertz (yellow arrow) had both Brett (green arrow) and Steevan Dos Santos (orange arrow) poised to make a run into the penalty box. The rookie elected to bat the ball to Brett, who made a perfectly timed run past the backline. Then left alone one-on-one with the goalkeeper, the striker finished to the bottom left-hand corner to give the Hounds a 2-0 advantage.
Tale of the Tape
The Hounds outshot Ottawa, 12-to-9, and placed more takes on target, 6-to-4. Furthermore, 26 percent of the match was played in Ottawa’s defensive third compared to 20 percent played in the Hounds’ defensive third.
Despite these advantages, the Hounds could not hold on to a two-goal lead. A penalty kick goal in the 66th minute helped jumpstart the Fury FC offense, which scored again just three minutes later to bring the score to its final result, 2-2.
