El Paso kicked off the scoring in 2024 with a beautiful streaking goal from offseason-signing Amando Moreno in the fourth minute. The break came when Justin Dhillon slotted a pass past a defender and Moreno did the rest, sprinting down the middle of the field and to the left of the Monterey keeper. The shot was coolly placed in the opposite corner and Locomotive found itself in the lead for the first time this season.

The weather for the day finally settled down after being windy, gritty, and dusty in the way that spring days are in El Paso, Texas. And after the way the last match had ended, down a goal and desperately outshooting their opponent (15-9), the team clearly came to win its first match of the season. The confidence in Locomotive’s passing and shooting was on display in the early part of the first half, with the team constantly threatening the Monterey goal. But to their credit, the visiting side was getting their own chances, firing crosses into the box that kept just flying wide of their targeted teammates.

As the first half drew to a close, El Paso had several chances in the box, with Dhillon, Moreno, and captain Eric Calvillo. But the best chance actually came when a cross was headed by Monterey’s Walmer Martinez. The shot was a quick one and seemed to catch Locomotive keeper Jahmali Waite off guard. Regardless, he made the save, tipping the shot over the bar. Soon after, just before injury time, Martinez would get another chance at goal from a free kick, ringing the crossbar. The momentum was solidly in the visitors’ favor as the half drew to a close, but didn’t show on the scoreboard.

Coming back from the half, Locomotive made a substitution bringing in Ricardo Zacarias for Justin Dhillon. While the substitution was speculated to be a precautionary move to protect his health as he’s recovering from a preseason knock, post-match Coach Clarhaut mentioned Dhillon was recovering from food poisoning and “we were lucky to get 45 minutes.” The goalscorer, Moreno, would also be subbed out just five minutes into the second half due to cramping. The shortness of time between matches, given it was a midweek fixture, no doubt also played a role in the subs. Monterey had to be feeling good about the direction of the match and made zero subs.

Second half started as the first half ended with Monterey getting the best of possession. El Paso’s Zacarias did get a clean shot at goal and just went wide of the post. Calvillo had a rocket of his own in the 59th that was just touched above the crossbar by the Monterey goalkeeper Antony Siaha. Zacarias had another great chance at the top of the box in the 68th minute, but the keeper blocked it away.

But it was Monterey’s Tristan Trager who found the back of the net in the 87th minute. Approaching the box in traffic, Trager did a slick little give and go with Alex Dixon. The pass back was perfectly teed up and Trager put the ball into the top of the net. Waite had zero chance of stopping it and three points turned into one for El Paso Locomotive.

While it might be easy for Locomotive to be disappointed in the result, it’s a step in the right direction. The attack looked deadly in the first half, but with the two primary attackers coming out mid-match, the team looked less lethal. In his post-match comments, Head Coach Clarhaut seemed unimpressed with the performance and more focused on the health of his team. “I thought it was a poor performance and I think you could see the fatigue levels of our players. It’s tough to get that Wednesday so early.”

Three Thoughts

Dhillon and Moreno up top will be a menace to the rest of the league. Plenty to be excited about in that pairing. When they were on the field, they looked dangerous as hell.
The schedule isn’t helping the team and Clarhaut seems frustrated with it. El Paso was the only team that had to play 3 matches in 8 days and expecting midseason conditioning in the first week is hardly fair from whoever made the schedule.
The timing of the Locomotive’s friendly with FC Juarez (March 20th) couldn’t be worse for a team trying to ease into the season. It will be 4 matches in 12 days for Locomotive. I’d expect a LOT of rotation for that friendly.

- Dan Vaughn