July 6, 2008

Bakersfield has proven itself to be a very hostile environment for Seals teams over the past two years. It's not just the weather. Last year, the Bakersfield owner ordered ball boys to remove all balls from the field after they scored a go-ahead goal late in the game. The surrounding area was huge and Seals players had to run long distances to recover the ball which, needless to say, decreased the opportunity for the Seals to tie the game. Interestingly, Bakersfield documents their miscreance on film since they videotaped the game. The league reviewed the unsportsmanlike behavior and fined the owner $250.00 for his antics.

This year the Seals returned to the unwelcoming stadium of the Bakersfield Brigade. The hospitality was unchanged from last year. The Seals are not guests, they are the hated enemy. They tolerate our presence because they are obliged to. Neither the owner nor the head coach made any recognition of our presence.

The play from the get-go was spirited. Unfortunately, the Seals were not sharp. Some players had traveled over 8 hours just prior to the game. Most had traveled 5 or 6 in cars. The temperature was still 95 degrees at 7:30 PM when the game started.

These factors add up.

We had a tough time but we didn't concede a goal the first half. Keeper Eric Conner kept the Seals in the match with five saves from eleven shots.  Conner had three in the first half as the Brigade put pressure on the Seals stingy defense.

A key play was bitterly contested by Bakersfield when the referees made a decision of "no call" when a Bakersfield player was taken down in the penalty area. The anger at the call was palpable. The coach was beside himself.

The second half was a different game. Junior Burgos came into the game and provided some needed possession time. The defense tightened up and the Brigade strikers were less successful penetrating our defense.

Tensions mounted and when we were 70 minutes into the game, a Brigade midfielder made an uncontrolled and dangerous tackle of Michael Balugon. Michael came crashing to the field and the player was ejected from the game. The Brigade's coach, already in an angry mood, went ballistic screaming at the referee.

The atmosphere was getting more poisoned.

The Seals continued to press given the one man edge and made a number of substitutions to replace players who had received a yellow card or were tired after playing so hard in the heat.

At about the 80th minute, Nial Irwin, an Irish player and a recent addition to the Seals, lost his cool when a particularly vicious Bakersfield player deliberated cleated him. Nial drew a red card and we were even 10 v 10.

The Brigade coach upped the ante when he inserted himself into the match. He's an ex-MLS player and he can deliver quality balls into the box. However, he wasn't enough to make a difference.

The Seals didn't need to sub to make a difference in this game. Justin Kim found Peter Lovell, both starters, just outside the 18 yards area with a quality pass from the right flank. Peter set up the keeper with a faint then slotted a shot to his exposed right side. The Seals went up 1 nil at the 83rd minute.

Since joining the Seals three games ago, Lovell has scored three times, and had an assist.  His performance has been outstanding, and came at a good point in the season, with Kellan Wilson off to Europe to watch the Euro 2008 (Kellan attended three matches!).  "We had every opportunity to win a point in the game against the Legends," said Seals head coach Tom Simpson.  "In the end our defense, who played well, just couldn't keep them out long enough.  Peter's performance was certainly impressive against a tough defense like the Legends."

Four minutes later, Justin Kim served anotherr ball from the right flank. Kellan Wilson dummied and Junior Burgos put away the insurance goal. It was nice to have Kellan back on the pitch, adding to the offensive pressure the Seals have been able to generate this season.

The game ended and the Brigade coach went right after the referee, calling him unrepeatable names, and drawing a red card after regulation time and refused for many minutes to get out of the face of the referee.

After the game, we left as soon as possible, having had enough of Bakersfield's bad vibes. We briefly celebrated, walked to our cars, bypassing the locker room, and returned to our hotel to shower rather than spending more time at the facility. It was a great win on the road and probably the most exciting since our dramatic 3-2 come-from-behind win over league leading Fresno Fuego in their home opener.

We've been playing some exciting ball this season, and Simpson has been pleased to see different players step up as needed.  Keeper Eric Conner is now sporting a .857 GAA after 7 games with the Seals.  You may recall that Eric started the season in the #2 position behind Dan Benton, who ultimately went to the Earthquakes after three matches with the Seals.  In the seven games Conner has started this season for the Seals, he has 20 saves, and 4 shutouts.  A record that any goalie would be pretty proud of, and frankly, is deserving of a look from the MLS as well.  Of course, we hope that will be at the end of the season!

Now the Seals are faced with the biggest game of the season. On Saturday night, the Seals face the Los Angeles Legends at 7:00 PM at USF's Negoesco Stadium. The Seals are currently tied with the Legends with 21 points in second place for the division title. Two weeks ago the Legends swiped a victory from the Seals when some very bad calls by a referee gave the Legends a goal and took one away from the Seals. Hey, that's football!! This week we'll make some luck work our way.

The next day, Sunday, we play the Lancaster Rattlers at Chabot College at 4PM.