Queenston FC 4, Celtic United 1

The Parliament are now winners of their last 10 elimination/tournament games after a comprehensive 4-1 victory over the hosts Celtic United at Ellicott Creek Park yesterday.  The team is getting hot at the right time if we are in fact trying to defend the Cup.

Last night we showed with 15 players donned in bright neon and Celtic United, dressed in all black, either had 13 or 14, but a quality lineup at that, as Matt Stedman showed up for this affair.  We were supposed to have 16 but Donner went MIA during game time.  Unfortunately, despite both being available to play, we couldn't suit up Miguel Rodrigues or Eric Barnes due to NCAA rules in that Brandon Galanti was playing on the other team.

It didn't take too long for Queenston to strike first, as Joe Farrell picked out our gamer Curtis Dorian on a low cross and Curtis pushed it into the net, maybe about 5 minutes into the game.  But Curtis wasn't done yet as he was hungry for a brace.  About 5-6 minutes later, one of the prettiest offensive sequences took place in our illustrious (well, maybe let's not go that far) history when we one touched the ball from player to player in the offensive third with a string of maybe 9-10 passes side to side among 5 or 6 guys. It ended up on Dorian's feet from Farrell, and he, from maybe 12' to 15' out and perhaps 10 feet wide of the near post said 'ooooooh I like that far side netting, gimme some of that' and kept Kurtz motionless as the ball zipped into the goal for a really early 2-0 lead. We had morphed into Barcelona for 30 seconds.

Celtic United didn't fold up shop though; they turned up the pressure for the next 10-15 minutes and were rewarded with a slithery goal from Chris Berardi who took advantage of a tired Queenston defensive spell.  Reminded me of hockey when the same unit is on the ice for too long and you can't clear the puck from your side.

With maybe 8 minutes left in the half, we got a fortuitous bounce from a loooooooong John Netter punt that likely Greg Hoffman lost in the sun as the ball bounced directly behind his head around their defensive 18'.  Farrell was tracking the ball the whole way in and read the play, got behind Hoffman and beat Kurtz to the ball with his head, lofting it into the empty net.  3-1 Queenston at the break.

The second half began and United turned up the pressure quite a bit.  For the balance of the half, they held most of the possession as we fell back into a more defensive mode (not necessarily a shell, but definitely a counter attacking style considering what United was forced to do).  United had a few dangerous build ups and shots on net, including a few headers that sailed over the cross bar from in or around the 6' and two shots that knicked the far post.  Neither of those shots were ever a threat to go in, as each hit the post and basically hugged the touch line towards corner afterward, but hearing that sound is scary nonetheless.

We would tack on a 4th goal with about 10 minutes to play when Nick Dumond, who was located just past the 18' arc dead center found Sims just inside the 18' dead center, and Sims turned his body, took a step and tucked the ball away neatly into the right corner to put the nail in the coffin.  The rest of the game played out with United coming at us in numbers and our team clearing the ball forward or kicking it out of bounds.  4-1, final.  The defense held up strong yet again without two starters, as we continue to plug in whomever wherever and get the job done.  Pat Eadie starred last night in the back four, but they were all solid in their own ways.

Looking forward to next week's semi final against Boomslang FC.  They won an eye opener against Roos last night and they're potentially up for promotion next year so we won't be taking this one lightly, as we've seen them before.  Plus, they haven't lost a Tehel Cup game since they played our team early last year, so I'm sure they'll be hungry.