Back at Cass Tech, with 3,012 supporters looking on, in a Rust Belt Derby match, Detroit City FC wasn’t going home empty-handed.
Following a disappointing 3-0 loss in the U.S. Open Cup earlier this week, Le Rouge redeemed itself with a thrilling 3-2 victory over AFC Cleveland on Friday to open the NPSL season.
“Three points is a minimum,” head coach Ben Pirmann said. “That was too close but, in the end, we battled. I told the guys after the game that was a team effort. Great spirit and never give up attitude, which we didn’t have on Wednesday.”
With the stakes high and time winding down, Seb Harris (Oakland) delivered. Off a corner kick in the 88th minute, Cyrus Saydee (Michigan State) delivered a ball to Harris who got enough on the cross to score what would be the game-winning goal.
After watching the ball trickle over the goal line, Harris sprinted toward City faithful and plopped to the ground as his teammates mobbed him with wide smiles.
The match provided back-and-forth action all evening, as AFC Cleveland responded to each one-goal deficit with an equalizer until it was too late. Colin McAtee (Michigan) netted the first goal in the 19th minute when he received a ball from Javier Bautista (Ashford) in the penalty area. McAtee took a touch and slipped a shot past AFC Cleveland goalkeeper Anthony Flowers for the early advantage. It was McAtee’s first goal for Le Rouge in his two seasons with the team.
“Last year, I played right back, so I never got to score,” McAtee said. “I had a few assists, but scoring a goal, I wanted a cheer from the fans. It’s a great feeling.”
Despite AFC Cleveland’s first equalizer coming in the 35th minute, Le Rouge would reclaim the lead by halftime with a goal coming in the final minute of the first half.
It would be William Mellors-Blair (Michigan) on the receiving end of a pass from Tommy Catalano (Oakland) in the 44th minute. As Mellors-Blair proceeded through the penalty area, he fired a shot into the bottom-right corner that Flowers was unable handle.
“We were relentless,” McAtee said. “We kept going. We weren’t always successful, but we never stopped, and we kept pressuring them. That’s why we got three goals today.”
AFC Cleveland would strike its second equalizer right out of the halftime break when a well-executed cross found the head of Tom Beck who finished past goalkeeper Bret Mollon (Temple). At times, the City defense wasn’t up to Pirmann’s standards.
“We gave up some soft goals; we left Bret out to dry a bit. We have to improve individual defending, back four, our unit defending. We have to improve everything.”
But Pirmann affirmed he was most impressed with his team’s play in the offensive third, an area in which City’s possession-laden style and quick pace was well on display during Friday’s match.
“I like energy, I like athleticism, and I like guys who can put the ball in the back of the net,” Pirmann said. “We hit the post twice tonight. With that being said, we had two forwards score goals. We got to keep putting teams under pressure with good forward play.”
City will begin preparing for its first road trip of the season when it visits FC Buffalo for another Rust Belt Derby match on May 23. Le Rouge returns home May 29 when it will host the Minnesota TwinStars.
Get your tickets at https://www.detcityfc.com/tickets and at the front gate of Cass Tech on matchday.
