ACFC take 9th & 10th wins; Blue Eagles forfeit makeup game

Angel City FC's passing game was again in top form Tuesday at Griffith Park, with the squad breezing past the Silverlagos 6-2 for its ninth win on the season.

Backed by a solid midfield and strong defence -- including Captain Tom Bry and Bryan Moore, who were named co-match MVPs -- ACFC generated countless chances on goal over 90 minutes of play.

Ben O'Meara -- who racked up a hat trick on the day -- opened ACFC's account at the 12-minute mark with a shot off a David Woirhaye pass, Woirhaye's eighth assist of the season. Six minutes later Bry scored from just inside the box.

The Silverlagos struck back on one of their few first half chances -- at the 20-minute mark -- lobbing the ball over the defence to a sprinting striker. Keeper Dave Styles tried to knock the shot over the crossbar, but it dipped just under to make the score 2-1. O'Meara notched his second effort off a pass from Brandon Cole at 31-minutes sending the teams off at the half at 3-1.

ACFC again dominated the final 45, even though the 'Lagos notched a second -- against the run of play -- around the 66-minute mark off a lob into the goalmouth. Dan Sapienza, back from an extended injury leave, struck back less than a minute later off a pass from Dan Klein to make it 4-2. Cole and O'Meara each added goals in the final 10 minutes to cap off the 6-2 win.

ACFC's record now sits at 10 wins and a tie for 31 points with only three games left in the season. Angel City's makeup match against the Blue Eagles, Thursday, March 26, was a wash with the Eagles electing to forfeit after beating Dinamo Lokomotiv 4-0 on Tuesday. Regular season matches left include: Silverlake, March 31; Blue Eagles, April 7; and Zig Zag Jaro, April 14. All of ACFCs matches are against top four squads, or teams vying for a top four position. The top four teams make the playoffs with semi-finals set for Griffith Park on April 21.


GAME STATS

Goals: Ben O'Meara (3), Tom Bry, Dan Sapienza, Brandon Cole
Assists: David Woirhaye, Brandon Cole, Dan Klein (2), Dan Sapienza
ACFC MVP: Tom Bry, Bryan Moore
Shots: ACFC (22), Silverlagos (7)
Corners: ACFC (6), Silverlagos (2)
Yellow Cards: ACFC (1), Silverlagos (1)
Red Cards: ACFC (0), Silverlagos (0)

ANGEL CITY 7s back to winning ways

Angel City earned a trio of wins Saturday, putting all three squads back in contention for division titles this season.

The AC Allstars kicked off the run with a convincing 6-0 win over a tired and undermanned Double Impact squad. Ben O'Meara racked up four goals and an assist in the match, which saw Volkert Besseling and Michael Magid share shutout honors. The win was particularly gratifying as it eliminated the early game jinx which has haunted Angel City squads over the past few weeks.

The second match saw Angel City FC run all over JP Morgan for the second time this season with an 11-2 result. Estonian import Tiit Tikenberg notched an amazing four goals and five assists while David Woirhaye added a hat trick, and Ben O'Meara a pair, including one diving header in the box.

ACFC capped the morning with a hard fought 4-1 win over the then table leaders Featherless Bipeds. The game was tied 0-0 at the half with chances at both ends failing to tweak the twine. Michael Gemballa finally broke the stalemate early in the second half off a pass from Jaime Chavez. But the Bipeds struck back soon after, knocking in a loose ball in the box. ACFC maintained its composure (except for a slight outburst from one loud defender) and pressed the play. Dan Klein then scored a cracker from outside the box, followed by goals from Tikenberg and Chavez to seal the win.

The AC Allstars, ACFC and Angel City FC return to play next Saturday with games at 9:30, 10:30 and 11:30 AM. All three squads have identical records of five wins and two loses.

Times and fields are available on the team's website Fixtures page.

GAME SCORES AND STATS

AC Allstars (6) vs Double Impact (0)

Goals: Ben O'Meara (4), Volkert Bessling, Jonny Ibanez
Assists: Ben O'Meara, Matt Onheiber, Brad Colwell (2)

ACFC (4) vs Featherless Bipeds (1)

Goals: Michael Gemballa, David Woirhaye, Jaime Chavez, Tiit Tikenberg
Assist: David Woirhaye, Jamie Chavez

Angel City FC (11) vs JP Morgan (2)

Goals: Tiit Tikenberg (4), David Woirhaye (3), Ben O'Meara (2), Ivan O'Neil, Volkert Bessling
Assists: Tiit Tikenberg (5), Ben O'Meara, Tom Bry, Ivan O'Neil (2), Volkert Besseling, David Woirhaye

ACFC notches eighth win

Realists say there is no luck ... people make their own luck.

If that's true, then Angel City FC were back in form Tuesday night taking an impressive 5-2 win against Dinamo Lokamotiv to bring their record up to eight wins and a tie on the season.

Featuring several standout standins this week, with at least four starters either away or injured, Angel City took quick advantage of some three-touch passing drills from last practice to dominate play on the night. And despite going down 1-0 midway through the first half against the run of play, ACFC stayed calm and true to form for the remainder of the match with tight passing and quick runs up field.

Marius Sandvik struck first for ACFC, 22 minutes in, to tie the game. And three minutes later Russ Muratov added to the tally to take the lead 2-1. Muratov now has a team-leading nine goals on the season.

The second half was equally impressive with Michael Gemballa -- voted ACFC player of the match -- striking twice early in the half off passes from Sandvik and Ben O'Meara, who replaced an injured David Alarcon. David Woirhaye closed the ACFC scoring at the 65-minute mark with a shot from the wing which went right between the keeper's legs. Dinamo managed a second goal off a PK at the 75-minute mark after one of their forwards was taken down in the box.

But overall Dinoma shots, and even goal opportunities, were kept to a minimum with strong defence and solid play in the midfield.

Angel City's next game will be a return match against the Silverlagos, Tuesday, March 24 at Griffith Park with an 8:45 PM kickoff.


GAME STATS

Goals: Marius Sandvik, Russ Muratov, Michael Gemballa (2),
David Woirhaye
Assists: Brandon Cole, Ben O'Meara, Marius Sandvik
ACFC MVP: Michael Gemballa
Shots: ACFC (lots), Dinamo Lokamotiv (hardly any)

Angel City Suffer Mixed Bag of Results

Angel City suffered a mixed bag of results Saturday, taking one win out of three matches.

Early game (9:30 AM) jitters again got the better of the AC Allstars, which lost a heartbreaking 5-3 decision to a stronger "That's What She Said" side despite several comeback attempts and a pair of goals from Ben O'Meara.

ACFC evened the score taking their second season win against McDermott 6-2 in the 10:30 AM matchup, with help from Estonian import Tiit Tikenberg. Serge Baranov and Michael Gemballa each netted a brace. Keeper Dave Styles played solidly in both of the opening matches.

Angel City FC rounded out the games with an 8-5 loss to Matador FC. While constantly chasing Matador for the tying goal, Angel City's efforts were foiled midway through the second half when an obvious goal off the crossbar -- which bounced about three feet inside the net and then came out again -- was ignored by the referee.

(Editorial note: if referees ... and I'm talking about one in particular ... moved around the field and didn't stay rooted to the midfield sidelines they might make better calls ... they also wouldn't rely on cries from the opposing team to make calls they didn't see themselves).

The missed goal left Angel City back on its heels, and Matador subsequently netted a final pair for the win.

The AC Allstars, ACFC and Angel City FC return to play next Saturday with games at 9:30, 10:30 and 11:30 AM.

Times and fields will be announced this week.

GAME SCORES AND STATS

AC Allstars (3) vs That's What She Said (5)

Goals: Ben O'Meara (2), Matt Onheiber
Assists: Ricardo LeDoux, Ben O'Meara

ACFC (6) vs McDermott (2)

Goals: Michael Gemballa (2), Sergei Baranov (2), David Woirhaye, OG
Assist: David Woirhaye, Tiit Tikenberg, Jamie Chavez, Marius Sandvik

Angel City FC (5) vs Matador FC (8)

Goals: Tiit Tikenberg (3), David Siraj, Ivan O'Neil
Assists: Mike Sharp, David Alarcon

ACFC battles to seventh win

It wasn't pretty ... but Angel City racked up its seventh win of the season with a 3-1 victory against bottom-dwellers the Sentinels Tuesday night at Griffith Park.

At the game's start, and for much of the first half, ACFC seemed unable to settle into a playing groove. The Sentinels struck first at the six-minute mark, knocking in an uncleared ball off a corner kick ... the team's lone shot of the game ... and then added a second goal into its own net off a bad clearance two minutes later to make it 1-1.

ACFC were then the beneficiaries of a welcome offside call which called back another Sentinels scoring opportunity moments later.

At the half coach Billy Alarcon fired up the squad with some choice words of wisdom, prompting ACFC to finally enter the field with some much needed focus.

For the remainder of the match the Sentinels' offense was shut down by a strong defense, led by great efforts from Kirby Adams, Leo Wallach, Pete Wasek and Bryan Moore.

On the offensive side, David "Puma" Alarcon - voted game MVP - finally opened the ACFC scoring machine, with a well placed shot off the inside of the left post at the 60-minute mark. David Woirhaye earned an assist on the play. Seven minutes later Alarcon put a ball across the Sentinels' goalmouth which Ben O'Meara slid into to make the score 3-1.

While ACFC had many more chances before the final whistle the score remained the same. Overall the game was cordial, save for a single red card given to an off-field Sentinels player for verbal dissent.

ACFC's record now sits at seven wins and a tie for 22 points with only six games left in the season, including two matches against the Blue Eagles. The Eagles settled for a 1-1 tie against FC Perya, leaving them two points behind ACFC.

Angel City's next game will be a return match against Dinamo Lokamotiv, Tuesday, March 17 at Griffith Park with a 7 PM kickoff.


GAME STATS

Goals: OG, David Alarcon, Ben O'Meara
Assists: David Woirhaye, David Alarcon
ACFC MVP: David Alarcon
Shots: ACFC (10), Sentinels (1)
Corners: ACFC (1), Sentinals (2)
Yellow Cards: ACFC (0), Sentinels (1)
Red Cards: ACFC (0), Sentinels (1) (off field)

Football shooter offers tips on 'the beautiful game.'

by Mike Sturk

John McDermott, a 30-year veteran of the soccer pitches, offers some tips in a multimedia presentation on shooting strategy and gear in The Canon Professional Network's Masterclass series.

(for those who want to improve their football photography skills)

About John McDermott

In the 1970s John McDermott became one of the photographers of the North American Soccer League (NASL) where he photographed the likes of George Best, Franz Beckenbauer and Pelé. He became a regular contributor to Sports Illustrated and Newsweek and has covered every World Cup since 1982. He was a member of the FIFA Photographers Pool at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.

Angel City loses a pair, wins third

Angel City outcomes were a reverse of last week's results, with Angel City FC bouncing back from an 8-1 loss to take a hard fought 6-4 win against Esbjerg FC. ACFC and the AC Allstars did not fare as well.

The Allstars dropped their first loss of the season 6-5 to the Slutty Buffalos, despite leading 4-2 at the half. A breakdown in the midfield saw the Buffalos stampede to score a trio of second half goals. A return solo effort from Kirby Adams appeared to tie the game 5-5 in the dying minutes, but the Buffalos managed one more goal before game's end to take the win.

ACFC also found themselves in a tight matchup against Valhalla, but led 1-0 at the half off a Jaime Chavez goal. The game remained end-to-end until midway through the second half when Valhalla converted a free kick from just outside the box. Valhalla pressed for the winner and in two seperate incidents involving crazy deflections, the squad managed two more strikes before the final whistle, handing ACFC its second loss of the season.

The AC Allstars, ACFC and Angel City FC return to play next Saturday with games at 9:30, 10:30 and 11:30 AM.

Times and fields will be announced this week.

GAME SCORES AND STATS

AC Allstars (5) vs Slutty Buffalos (6)

Goals: Marius Sandvik (3), Ben O'Meara, Kirby Adams
Assists: Ben O'Meara

ACFC (1) vs Valhalla (3)

Goal: Jaime Chavez
Assist: David Woirhaye

Angel City FC (6) vs Esjberg FC (4)

Goals: Matthew McCallum (2), David Woirhaye (2), Michael Gemballa,
David Siraj
Assists: Matthew McCallum (2), David Woirhaye, Craig Nichols

ACFC settles for 3-3 Perya draw

Angel City dropped its first points of the season, settling for a 3-3 tie with a scrappy and somewhat screamy FC Perya side Tuesday night at John Ferraro.

The game started on a surprising note with forward Brandon Cole lobbing in a cross from the far right side, deep in Perya territory, only to have it fly over the keeper and into the net. The goal came in the first minute. However, four minutes later, Perya were awarded a controversial penalty kick after one of their aging forwards took a dive and rolled around screaming in the box. Seconds later the forward bounced up to take the penalty, which brought the score up to an even 1-1.

The manoeuver would be repeated several times throughout the match, though not to the same success. A yellow card for repeated diving, however, was not forthcoming from the officials.

A Perya own goal -- following a mad scramble in the box at the 37-minute mark -- and a shot from Peter Wasek -- off passes from Russ Muratov and Matthew McCallum -- left the score 3-1 at the half.

The second half saw chances on both ends, and several key acrobatic saves by ACFC keeper Dave Styles ... who was voted MVP of the game.

A mis-communication in the box saw Perya net one back at the 58-minute mark, and much to the disappointment of the men in blue, a third goal was conceded minutes before the final whistle off a failed clearance and subsequent deflection off a shot into the goal mouth.

ACFC's record now sits at six wins and a tie. Angel City's next game will be a return match against the Sentinels, Tuesday, March 10 at Griffith Park with an 8:45 PM kickoff.


GAME STATS

Goals: Brandon Cole, OG, Pete Wasek
Assists: Russ Muratov, Matthew McCallum
ACFC MVP: Dave Styles
Shots: ACFC (9), FC Perya (6)
Corners: ACFC (1), FC Perya (5)
Yellow Cards: ACFC (0), FC Perya (0)