Two Clean Sheets, 6 Points, NYIFC Turns The Front of Yankee Stadium into Black and Gold

           

 

            After a disappointing start against Stal Mielec on opening day, the NYIFC First Team bounced back and claimed a victory over Div 2 newcomers, Brooklyn City FC. It was a well contested that was more of a battle of attrition. Despite immense intensity in the first half by BCFC, the Boys held firm and found the opening they needed at the end of the half to score, Idrissa Sanogo pushed it in by a well-xsdplaced pass by Dan Cohen. In the second half, while still a battle, more space opened up and we witnessed some superb ball handling skills by Josh Dutosome. He opened up his account after a pass by Alex Teodorescu, turned his man completely around and put it in the top bins. To describe the match in one word, disciplined, and that discipline kept a clean sheet and brought home 3 points. Other points of notes, Aaron Forde returned to the lineup and assumed the Captaincy; John Reed made his debut appearance.

            NYIFC (R) continued their undefeated run in League Competition, x matches, in their MD2 Away Trip to Brooklyn City FC (R). It was a dominate and composed performance. Suliaman Jalloh opened up his account and scoring early into the first half with an assist by Mike Rowley. BCFC had a chance to equalize but it was expertly read and parried by Andy Sherpa. In the second half, the Boys enjoyed long spells in the opposition’s half of the pitch and the keeper was relatively untested due to quality defending and clean up by the defensive line. The Black and Gold midfield held a master class in possession and retention football, intercepting many passes and putting in the extra work to run down any loose ball. After a handball late in the 2^nd half, NYIFC’s Ken Fuller put it in the back of the net making the score 0-2. The 0-2 victory and 3 points were well deserved.

 

            The Pride: Despite neither side having any incredible chances in the first half, for the most part, BCFC came out of the gates hot and threw a lot at you all. Your boys looked well drilled, however, and seemed to keep to the designed game plan. How much of that is instilled each week during training?

 

            Chris Minty: Every week we try to focus on maintaining our composure and gameplan, regardless of how the other team plays. Brooklyn came out very hot with a high, intense press and lots of direct play. I knew once we handled the pressure, their intensity would drop and our quality would shine.

 

            The Pride: If there was a shooting lane to be found, it seemed like your boys took the opportunity to take a shot. Last week we spoke on how taking opportunities was going to be a key focus in training leading up to this match day. How exciting was it to see that work translate to the match day?

 

            CM: Yeah, this was something we spoke a lot about after the Stal game. Taking chances when they come and trying to take half-chances. The hunger was there on Sunday, and I'm glad the lads took the bull by the horns and took the game to Brooklyn City.

 

            P: The midfield play and coordination was sublime. Is the team gelling at a faster rate than you expected?

 

            CM: I think we're just hitting our stride. We've played together for a while and we know the type of football we can play. I've played with Charlie Lopez and Tom Howse since 2018-19.

 

            P: You got Aaron back in the squad and in the armband. How much of an impact did he have compared to his absence the week prior?

 

            CM: The squad is deep enough to account for almost anyone missing, but he was exceptional. He's such a leader and a presence.

 

            P: New boy John Reed made his debut appearance, what are your thoughts on his contributions to the match?

 

            CM: He's going to make a big impact this season. It was his first game for the club and his energy up top really helped us defend from the front.

 

            P: Finally, we play a familiar foe on MD3, Ukrainians. We split results with them, 2-0, 3-1 loss. What are you expecting going into this fixture?

 

CM: A tough game. They are well-organized, strong, and clinical. We'll need to be organized and make sure we focus on playing our game.

 

The Boys will return to their de facto home of Randall’s Island to play host to a familiar foe, NYC Ukrainians, on 09/25/22 at 4PM and 6PM. The Lions Reserves side hope to continue their undefeated run and put some space between themselves and Yemen United (R). In their last two meetings, the Reserves took both wins, 2-1 and 3-1. The Firsts hope to continue their winning ways and break the current stalemate between the two sides, a 2-0 W and a 3-1 L. It’s hard to bet against the side with momentum, so I have the Reserves securing a 2-1 Victory, while the stalemate continues with the firsts in 1-1 Draw.