Player Ratings: Monterey Bay Union 1-2 Birmingham Legion

This was an ironman game for the ages, with the starting eleven playing all but 27 minutes between them. Not to mention it became an edge-of-the-seat watch for the last 20-odd minutes. Quite a performance.

GK: MATT VAN OEKEL – 7. MVO made two good saves and then deserved an Oscar nomination for his well-executed time-wasting theatrics later in the game. He got intimately acquainted with the ground staff’s work.

LB: MOSES MENSAH – 7. 2 clearances and 1 interception was all Moses was forced to do. He could perhaps have done a bit more to get in the way of the crossing assist by Morey Doner. Also 3 of 8 in duels and 85.7% accurate on 49 passes.

CB: A.J. PATERSON – 8. With Phanny out and Alex sent off, AJ became the solo mainstay in the central defense. He stepped up. 1 tackle, 4 clearances and 1 interception. He won 4 of 6 duels (including 3 of 4 in the air). A hefty 65 passes with an 87.7% accuracy rate. Nice work.

CB: ALEX CROGNALE – 4. Amazingly, that was Alex’s first straight red in his 211-game career. He got a second-yellow ejection in March 2022 against Tulsa but that’s it. Must be the baby keeping him up at night. He was also lucky to get away with a PK foul earlier in the game. Not his best night.

RB: DEREK DODSON – 7. Derek has quietly earned a regular starting spot on this team. 1 tackle, 2 clearances and 2 interceptions while winning 5 of 9 duels. He added a scoring chance created and went 33 of 41 in passing attempts.

LW: DAWSON MCCARTNEY – 7. Another wounded warrior., Dawson was playing with a heavily-bandaged left hand. He got the credit for the assist on Kobe’s goal although it was really a misplayed ball. He’ll take it. He got stiffed for the assist on Steafno’s goal though. 2 chances created, 1 shot on target and another off. 78.3% good on 23 passes and he provided some crucial defensive cover as well.

LM: JAKE RUFE – 8. Jake was mostly used in a defensive capacity in this one, as was everybody really. 2 tackles, a massive 4 clearances and 1 interception. .4 of 8 in duels. A sterling effort.

CM: KOBE HERNANDEZ-FOSTER –7.5. Kobe’s goal was pinpoint work. Perfectly played. He picked up a rather silly yellow just before half-time but otherwise flawless. He had one other shot off target and generally made a nuisance of himself in the midfield.

RM: ENZO MARTINEZ – 7. No shots at all for Enzo in this one, but he did create 2 scoring chances. He sent in 4 crosses although only one found a target; 3 were corners. 2 tackles and  3 of 5 duels won.

RW: PROSPER KASIM – 7. Would Prosper have stayed on the pitch longer if Tommy had known Alex would do what he did? Probably. He left after 67 minutes after not really producing very much: 1 chance created and 1 good cross along with 21 of 24 passes connecting.

FWD: STEFANO PINHO – 8. An obvious Goal of the Week candidate; it was absolute filth, especially the chip over Lara’s head to set up the volley. He another shot on target and 1 more off target. He was in a whopping 19 duels, although he only won 5 of them. Easy Man of the Match call.

SUB: MIGUEL PEREZ – 7. Coming on for Prosper Miggy was probably given largely defensive orders. No attacking actions, 1 tackle, 1 clearance and 1 of 3 in duels. A perfect 3 for 3 in passing.

SUB: PRESTON TABORT ETAKA – 5. Preston replaced Stefano with 4 minutes in regulation left. Not exactly a defensive move, but there weren’t a lot of choices (it was him or Finn Calloway to be precise). Good on 1 of 2 passes and 1 of 4 in duels.

HC: TOMMY SOEHN – 8. Tommy didn’t exactly have a lot to work with for this game. He came up with a new formation (4-5-1) and it worked. Rather well, in fact. What will he come up with for Friday night?