Railhawks lose again, come to screeching halt in cellar

Montreal Impact v. Carolina Railhawks

USL-1

8 August 2008

Cary, NC

Wake Med Soccer Park

Do RailHawks bounce when they hit the ground?

The numbers are not pretty, but do tell the story. In the last 6 games, the Railhawks have scored two goals, suffering five shutouts. They have scored just 19 goals in 22 games, conceding 31. They have not won since June 27, and since then have taken 3 out of a possible 27 points. The strains of Ozzy Ozborne’s “Crazy Train” that play as the team is introduced should be replaced with Tom Petty’s “Freefalling”. It might soften the blow for the crowd.

At the end of another anemic performance marked by mental lapses, bitching at the ref, another churlish red card for Stokes (3^rd in 10 games), and a gear grinding attack, the disgust was about as palpable as it is likely to get in Cary. A dozens fans took their souvenir Frisbees and heaved them onto the pitch, a strong statement in staid suburbia.

This was the first choice team for coach Schweitzer and on paper one that looks the business. But after an opening five minutes of nice possession and good movement, the wheels fell off as Montreal countered, breaking the trap. Segovia lost precious ground as he remonstrated with the linesman. Jefferson took full advantage, turning the Chilean in the box and slotting past McClellan into the far corner. That really made an Impact. Having NEVER won after going a goal down, the only remaining work was to chart the positives and negatives of the players in terms of possession and influence.

Player	Positive		Negative
McClellan	3		2
SanFilippo	3		9 hideous going forward
Segovia	2		2 ball and fwd, not ref!
Stokes	2		3 another red card!
Worthen	2		0 pulled hammy, really odd luck there
Fusilier	0		5 subbed at ½ time
Low	7		3 solid in DCMF role
Watson	4		7 lost on right wing, more comfortable in middle
Nunez	5		4 no service in 2nd ½
Cerritos	3		5 static
Antoniuk	2		1 lack of service, hard work
Diallo	1		1 sparked attack briefly
Norkus Curfman		1	5 not a left back, easily gave away poss. Late sub, some nice touches
		2

It’s hard to know what to say about a team with no clear direction. For now, the only way to go is up, but that seems increasingly unlikely given the force of the impact of their crash into the cellar. Next up: Miami FC and the return of Connaly Edozien. Has enough time passed to call him prodigal? No matter, he’ll likely score a brace.