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Aztex Overcome Injuries, Altercation to Win 2-0 Against El Paso Patriots

June 16, 2009 - USL First Division (USL-1)
Austin Aztex News Release


AUSTIN, Texas - The Austin Aztex FC overcame a pair of last-minute pre-game injuries and an altercation that resulted in four second-half red cards to notch a 2-0 victory over El Paso Tuesday night in U.S. Open second-round action in a contest that was anything but routine.

After what transpired over the weekend including a pair of road losses to Puerto Rico and Miami, Austin head coach Adrian Heath will take what he can get.

"It hasn't been a good night I have to tell you," Heath said. "On the pitch, it's been okay. Advance and move on."

The night turned sour early when A.J. Godbolt and Yordany Alvarez, both originally scheduled to start the match, were struck by the injury bug moments before kickoff. Godbolt pulled a hamstring during warm-ups and was replaced by Zack Pope while Alvarez hurt his foot despite nobody being around, forcing Ciaran O'Brien to step into the starting rotation.

Without the two late scratches and other key players on the sideline, the Aztex managed to control possession throughout the first half but failed to create quality opportunities as their long-ball approach proved ineffective. El Paso didn't fare much better and both sides played even for the majority of the half.

Austin finally broke the deadlock when a long ball just before stoppage time finally found Kyle Brown with position on an El Paso defender. Brown laid the ball off for a streaking Ryan McMahen who had slipped behind the Patriot backline. McMahen netted the uncontested goal to finally put the Aztex on the board.

That momentum carried over into the second half as just a couple minutes in and O'Brien shook off a pair of El Paso defenders to create space 30 yards out. O'Brien, on loan to the Aztex from the Colorado Rapids for the season, took a go at the ball and doubled the lead with a shot that sailed into the top half.

From there, the Aztex offense opened up. Brown unleashed a shot in the box less than five minutes later that was parried away by El Paso goalkeeper Jorge Muniz and O'Brien again took a shot shortly after, that carried over the crossbar.

"For us, it was definitely a big win, especially with A.J. and Yordany going down," O'Brien said. "The guys who came in definitely stepped up."

The game played out plainly after that until an incident in the El Paso box resulted in multiple cards. Sullivan Silva attempted a bicycle kick in the 73rd minute with players around him that led to a shoving match with El Paso defenders.

Eventually, players from both sides got involved in the scrap. When the dust settled, Silva, El Paso's Muniz and defender Mario Garcia all earned red cards. Austin's Wes Allen earned a yellow.

The tension continued when a late tackle from El Paso's Jonathan Camarena on Jeff Harwell earned him a red card in the 77th minute.

The Aztex used its 10-8 man advantage and played conservative the rest of the match, sealing the win and a trip to the Open Cup's third round to host the Houston Dynamo in a match on July 1 at Nelson Field.

"This wasn't a light game for sure," O'Brien said. "We needed it. It's a confidence booster."

Heath said after the game he suspects Alvarez could have a possible fracture in his left foot, adding to a long list of injuries for the Aztex. Kieron Bernard (hamstring), Eddie Johnson (quad), Gifton Noel-Williams (hamstring), Miguel Gallardo (leg), Jarius Holmes (knee) and now Alvarez and Godbolt are all currently on injury watch.

"We're in a situation now where we aren't even filling the roster up," Heath said.

The Aztex return to USL-1 play on Friday night hosting the Carolina RailHawks. Kickoff is set for 7:30pm.



USL First Division Stories from June 16, 2009


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