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Tobacco Road FC Draws Charlotte Eagles in Independence Day Contest

MATTHEWS, NC- Two first half goals from John Nelson and Oscar Moreno were not enough as an Eagles’ penalty kick in the 90th minute allowed them to steal a point in Wednesday night’s Fourth of July contest at Matthews Sportsplex in Matthews, N.C. 

WHAT HAPPENED:

Tobacco Road FC opened the match on the right foot. John Nelson proved to be a pain in the right side of the Eagles’ defense all night. In the sixth minute of the match Nelson pushed forward and received the ball from Oscar Moreno and powered the shot into the bottom right corner of the net. 

The Charlotte Eagles answered just a minute later to equalize in the seventh minute. Todd Fidler received a pass from Rafael Vacas and fired a close-range shot from the edge of the six-yard box to the bottom right side of the net. 

In the 38th minute the visitors would strike again to regain the lead. Nelson pushed down the left wing and crossed a ball into Eli Garner. Garner pushed it on with his head to find Oscar Moreno. Moreno didn’t stutter and cooly finished to the back post. Tobacco Road kept the lead into half time. 

The second half started with both teams pushing up the field. Moreno created a couple more looks but the Eagles’ keeper Wiktor Lasota stayed strong with a total of six saves on the night. Tobacco Road keeper Zac Scott also played well, making four saves in his 2018 PDL debut. 

Charlotte found an equalizer in the 89th minute. The referee granted the Eagles a penalty after multiple players went up to win a header. It was an unfortunate break for Los Toros. Lucas Rosa stepped up and converted to give the hosts a point. 

HEAD COACH CEDRIC BURKE:

“We have not conceded a loss in the last three games. Obviously, there is some level of disappointment as those were all very winnable games. But, let’s focus on the positives and continue to finish the season strong. I thought we executed our game plan and played well for most of the evening. I thought Max Moser and John Nelson did outstanding. They did exactly what we expected them to do. Unfortunately, we conceded a late goal on a questionable PK and we move on and come out hard against Myrtle tomorrow.”

 

“Zac [Scott] was great. He has been in our system for four years now. He’s been the back up for our first team for the last two years. We always know he’s reliable and we have full confidence in him. Absolutely no drop off whatsoever from [Ryan] Cretens and we are going to ride with him the rest of the year and see where we finish. I thought he made some really good stops and the game could have gone a different way if we didn’t have him back there.”

POST-MATCH NOTES:

  • Tobacco Road FC and the Charlotte Eagles share a record of 3-5-3.
  • It was Tobacco Road’s third draw of the season. 
  • John Nelson scored his first goal for Los Toros.
  • Oscar Moreno scored his second goal of the 2018 campaign.
  • Eli Garner earned his second assist for Tobacco Road, tying Mustapha Wadda for most of the season. 
  • The Eagles’ penalty in the 89th minute made 11 goals that Tobacco Road has allowed in the 80th minute and on. 
  • Three players made their Tobacco Road FC PDL debut: Zac Scott, Matthias Frick and Max Moser. All three players started and played the whole match.  
  • Tobacco Road stays at fifth in the South Atlantic Division in the PDL with 12 points, sitting behind Charlotte Eagles (12 points), Lionsbridge FC (15 points), Myrtle Beach Mutiny (21 points) and NCFC U-23 (22 points).

UP NEXT:

Tobacco Road FC has a quick turnaround and hosts the Myrtle Beach Mutiny on Friday at Durham County Memorial Stadium in Durham, NC. The match begins at 7 p.m. and a live stream will be available on tobaccoroadfc.com. Follow Tobacco Road FC on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get updates on Los Toros season.