Windy City Slugfest

Redemption & Opportunity

In the third round of qualification games for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup saw a collision of MWPL Heartland Conference foes for the second round in a row as Chicago House AC battled Edgewater Castle FC on October 21, for the right to progress to the fourth round of qualifying at Taft High School in Chicago, Ill.

CHAC, looking to continue building off its noteworthy 2023 USOC success by beating their conference rival, while ECFC was looking to prove that there is more than one club in Chicago that can make noise for the prestigious silverware. For this game CHAC Head Coach Matt Poland was unavailable as he was overseas pursuing a UEFA B license and in Poland’s place was former Chicago Fire Assistant Coach Junior González. The temporary gaffer was no distraction for his outfit as they beat the shorthanded Rooks team 3-1 where the scoreline did not tell the whole story.

Photos courtesy Chicago House AC Instagram

Get Knocked Down & Get Right Back Up

González knew Poland through former CHAC’s first technical director and head coach, CJ Brown. While studying for his UEFA A License he linked up with Poland and he’s been volunteering his time with the team. The license is not the only motivation for González, his desire to stay sharp and be ready for the next coaching opportunity after being a part of Ezra Hendrickson’s coaching staff with the Fire. Spending time with the team has given him an emotional revival of sorts, simplifying what makes this game the most followed on the planet.

“Amazing group of guys that do it for the love of the game,” he said. “It’s one thing when you come from a professional environment and some guys are in it for different reasons and making big money. You lose a little bit, sometimes, the sight of the passion and why we do it in the first place. That is what I regained with the House group because some of these guys are coming from the graveyard shift at their jobs and come right to training or coaching on the side. They’re doing all sorts of amazing stuff just to stay involved in the game.”

“I have been able to see Matt work and he is an excellent young coach that I feel will get the opportunity in the USL and second division and coach professionally,” lauded González. “I really like how organized he is and how he teaches, it is similar to how I teach so the transition was seamless.” As a father of three, along with preparing for his future coaching endeavors, he began to arrive at training a couple times a week to lend his services. Managing to balance these obligations with other endeavors, the reignited passion is much more than spoken word.

González was informed of Poland’s two-week departure from the team to complete his UEFA B license in Germany and was more than willing to step in and lead the club in the most historic soccer tournament in American history. “It was a stressful situation! You come into volunteer with the team and obviously they made it really far in the Open Cup last year with Matt’s leadership, so I didn’t want to blow it,” González admitted. “Last thing I wanted was for him to be gone and not get the result, so I am really happy that the game ended the way it did.”

When it Rains, It Pours

The Rooks came into the match after winning 2-1 over MWPL rival, Berber City, in the previous qualifying round. Unfortunately, the red card they would see in this round would not come to their benefit. A rainy & cold October night in the Midwest is very much “par for the course” in a meteorological sense, and this ChiTown showdown was no different. You wouldn’t think conditions were less than stellar by the way both teams came out with high tempo hoping to catch the other napping. Each team was up for the task as they traded attacks and cycled possession waiting for an opening, it was CHAC who began probing with more intent. Mother Nature would not grab all the attention, however. The Rooks were the first ones to cause their opponent’s heart to skip a beat with a give-and-go down the left side leaving a 1-on-1 opportunity that saw their cross attempt roll across the entire face of goal untouched but was skied over the crossbar by incoming winger Aljosa Stankovic.

CHAC seemingly took that attacking chance as an affront to their defensive shape. As one minute later, a turnover by ECFC just outside their box saw Bukola Abdulwahab “Strategically Transfer Equipment to an Alternate Location” and fizz a low cross for a clean Alejandro Mentasti tap in to go up 1-0.

After a yellow card to ECFC in the 10’ the officials did the right thing by bringing both teams together attempting to control emotions before anything got out of hand. With two league and conference rivals playing in a “win or go home” match, the potential was there for this to go off the rails.

Cavalheiro was sent off in the 23’ for alleged violent conduct with an elbow. It was the last thing the Rook’s Head Coach Andriy Berezovchuk and Player/Assistant Coach David Abidor wanted to see as CHAC had them on the back foot for a majority of play up until that point. “The game plan was to find the right time to press as a team, but the early red card made us play more conservatively,” they said. “We knew that they wanted to try and play, and our goal was to try and disrupt them and their build up through the middle.”

ECFC were energetic and intelligent through big stretches despite being down to ten after just over 20 minutes, picking their spots and trying not to let the CHAC further disrupt their gameplan. “We were patient and managed to create chances despite being a man down,” said the Rooks’ staff.

Despite the score at halftime, ECFC would have been the side that was ahead using the eye test. Quick passing and constant movement created numerous chances for the Rooks, making lung-busting runs down the wings into the corners and putting balls in dangerous areas. Ten minutes before halftime Abdulwahab made his presence known once again with a run down the right wing and a deflected near post shot by Captain A.R. Smith nearly made it 2-0 to CHAC.

Second half action saw the Rooks cranking up the temp to 11 in an attempt to bring the scoreline within reach. In a game that was closer than the score indicated, ECFC utilized quick passes to harass the CHAC defensive shape. Their relentless effort was rewarded as former CHAC player David Abidor slammed a header past his old club to pull within one in the 75’ but that would be the only offense that the Rooks could manage. With Nico Williams shielding the defender, Smith placed the ball where Williams could take a step for separation and hit a low skirting shot past the keeper in the 83’ leaving no doubt.

Same Time Next Year?

Although their journey ended sooner than they would have liked, the Rooks took a big step in showing their capabilities in the most prestigious competition for amateur clubs. Participating in the USOC for amateur clubs shouldn't be a “Been there, done that, got a t-shirt” post-tournament mentality. Unknown may very well be waiting to be opened with the assistance of being able to proudly say you were in the dance...let alone advance. “Most of our players have never had the opportunity to play in a tournament of such magnitude and it was a great learning experience for them,” said the coaching staff.

“It is what this is all about,” said ECFC Club Director Tom Arniston. “Being able to be a part of that tournament that is over 100 years old, makes us very proud to be a part of that American soccer history.”

The 2022 USASA Amateur Cup was the Rook’s first competitive game of the season, and their date was the one of the regional juggernauts, RWB Adria. Arniston remembers falling 3-1 to the legacy club but it was that one goal, a late penalty, that had significance on multiple levels. “I remember at that moment our player, Toby, who scored...now he is in that record book for this tournament.”

The most attractive club would be the club that provides opportunities to be involved in the best competitions. Arniston is aware of that and wants ECFC to be one of those operations that, in his words, raises our hand and says that we are serious. Club density in the Chicago area can make it tough to bring in new faces so being able to add “USOC Participant” to the CV will help in reaching players on a national scale.

by Rich Schenck