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Team USA to Play in Tulsa

March 26, 2015 - Major Arena Soccer League (MASL)
Tulsa Revolution News Release


It was announced last night that the USA National Arena Soccer team will play in the World Cup Quarterfinals in Tulsa against Germany, Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the Expos Square Pavilion. Media is encouraged to cover this World Cup event. Use your stations credentials and enter the door on the West End (receiving/loading dock area) of the Pavilion, under the canopy.

Tonight (Thursday), at 7:30, at the Expo Square Pavilion, Mexico takes on El Salvador in another quarterfinal match of the WMF (World Mini Football), also known as the World Cup of Arena Soccer. Tonight's Canada vs. Romania match, scheduled for 6:00 p.m., has been canceled.

Below, you will find a game story from last night's USA victory over Czech Republic, played in San Diego.

Jeff Brucculeri | Director of Media Relations| Tulsa Revolution: PRO Arena Soccer | 918-810-8999 | www.TulsaRevolution.com

WMF World Cup: Team USA takes Group A with comeback 5-4 win over Czech Republic

SAN DIEGO, CA--Pat Healey scored a sixth attacker goal with 2:22 remaining and Evan McNeley's power play goal 38 seconds later was the game winner as the U.S. National Arena Soccer Team rallied for a 5-4 win over the Czech Republic at the Valley View Casino Center.

"It's a great experience to play for so many people and to represent yourself at the highest level and play for your National Team," said McNeley, a San Diego Sockers veteran who had a goal and assist on the night, "You just want to represent to the fullest."

A spirited crowd of 2,770 saw Team USA score twice inside the final three minutes to win Group A and advance to the quarterfinals of the WMF Arena Soccer World Cup against Germany on Friday in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The U.S. had squandered a first half 3-0 lead, seeing the spirited Czechs rally with four straight goals. including a short-handed score with 4:48 remaining that put them temporarily ahead.

Healey, a first-team all-MASL performer and the league's Defender of the Year, donned the keeper's jersey to attack with 2:45, manning the point of attack before getting close enough to launch a rocket straightaway from the attacking red line, beating keeper Marek Gruber top shelf for the equalizing goal.

"I'm comfortable with (being the sixth attacker)," said Healey, the captain of the MASL finalist Baltimore Blast, "We only had to do it a couple times this year but we work on it all the time. They sagged in a little low and I had room to shoot."

After a series of Czech meltdowns on field led to a red card (for headbutting a ball at the official) and two yellow cards for subsequent dissent, the U.S. went on a 5-vs-3 power play, converted when McNeley beat Gruber back post on a left-footed wing shot off of Healey's pass.

"My mother always says 'a cool head wins a hot contest' and I think there was a prime example of that in this game," said McNeley.

With three games in three days for all teams in Group A, heavy legs and more contact was in store for Wednesday night's action. Team USA saw midfielder Matt Clare (Wichita B52s) net his team-leading sixth goal of the tournament to open the scoring. All-MASL defender Brian Harris (Missouri Comets) extended the lead to 2-0 in the second quarter with a left wing drive on Czech goalkeeper Petr Visek.

When the United States' Enrique Tovar (Las Vegas Legends) finished top shelf on a McNeley assist, Team USA was up 3-0 and in cruise control. Suddenly the Czechs forced the U.S. to tap the breaks, springing a counter-attack strategy that led to several quality chances.

Cenek Cenek's goal with 1:25 before halftime made the scoreline 3-1 USA at the intermission. Ondrej Padera scored early in the third, and Cenek's second goal of the night leveled the score at 3-3 and put a murmur in the pro-USA crowd, while a healthy contingent of Czech fans started to celebrate.

"I think we started well, doing right things for the most part," said U.S. defender John Sosa, "They got a goal and some momentum, and we maybe started feeling the heavy legs from the week. I'm just glad we were able to pull out the win."

Learning the intricacies of the American indoor game proved problematic for the Czechs, who finished third in the European Mini-Football Championships in 2014. In particular, improper player changes in the run of play led to an illegal substitution warning, and when head coach Radek Pokorny came on the field, a yellow card led to a USA power play with 6:40 left in the game.

The man advantage backfired, however, as the Czech Republic was improbably able to take the lead. The Czechs used a tweak in the international rulebook allowing their keeper and defenders to relentlessly kick the ball out of bounds from the defensive zone. Instead of the free kicks awarded for such a violation in the MASL, the resulting downfield kick-ins under WMF rules wasted time on the U.S. advantage.

"It's different for us," said Healey, "We're so used to keeping it in bounds so you don't get a "top of the box" (free kick against), I had a couple chances where I just could have blasted it and I didn't. I don't ever really want to kick the ball out of bounds."

After one such restart, the Czechs were able to steal and spring Jan Koudelka on a breakaway, who beat co-captain and goalkeeper Danny Waltman on a chip shot for a 4-3 Czech Republic lead.

After the comeback and the victory, Team USA celebrated on the field with the San Diego chapter of American Outlaws, singing, chanting and dancing together while taking a team photo. The spirit and the festive scene was inspiring to Sockers and Team USA captain Kraig Chiles.

"It's great that the Outlaws are backing our team," said Chiles, "They had a chapter supporting us in Ontario (the first site of Group A play) and tonight they were a big factor in helping us. It really makes (being on the U.S. team) feel legit to have their support."

The United States now flies on Thursday morning to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where they will face Germany in quarterfinal action on Friday night. Romania and Canada will play in another quarterfinal, with the winner to face the U.S.-Germany winner. Brazil-Czech Republic and Mexico-Romania comprise the other two quarterfinals, to be played in Tulsa and in Flint, Michigan. The WMF World Cup semifinals and final will be held in Chicago on Saturday and Sunday.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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