El Farolito’s dream of back-to-back NPSL titles came to an end as Hickory FC of North Carolina took home the hardware thanks to a 3-2 win at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco on Saturday night.
It was an intense and fast-paced match of high scoring clubs, both of which had gone undefeated in NPSL play this season.
After the match, El Farolito Head Coach Santiago López said he wasn’t particularly surprised by Hickory’s offensive display, which equaled the total number of goals that Farolito had given up in their 12 match regular season schedule.
“That was definitely not a shock,” López said. “We knew it could happen because they’re such a great team. They’re very dynamic. They know how to take advantage of the big open space in the counterattacks. When they had it, they moved the ball forward and created man-to-man matchups. They had an advantage on us in speed, and they took advantage of it in the first and the third goal. The second one was a great set piece, and we were just left surprised.”
First Half: Hickory Grabs Lead, But Farolito Soon Equalizes
Hickory FC came out confidently and had the first chance of the match in the ninth minute, off of a corner kick by Ronan O’Mahony. Antonio Pineda was able to get his head on the ball, but it sailed over the bar.
The first chance for Dembor Benson, El Farolito’s leading scorer, came in the 21st minute, on a cross from Edgard Kreye. But a pair of Hickory defenders were able to prevent Benson from getting his shot on target.
In the 28th minute, O’Mahony delivered a ball from midfield as Pineda made his run down the left side of the field, but El Farolito defender Johnatan Mosquera helped to cut down the angle and his shot sailed over the bar.
Hickory scored first, on a counterattack in the 30th minute. Alvaro Sanchez dribbled the ball across midfield and fed the ball to Robbie Deighan, who quickly found Pineda open at the near post for a nodding header.
But El Farolito received a lifeline seven minutes later, when Herlbert Soto was taken down by Hickory’s Maxime Wester in the box. On the subsequent penalty, Benson stutter-stepped up to the ball, then blasted his shot into the lower left corner on the net.
Second Half: Hickory Takes Control
Hickory took the lead for good on a clever free kick from 30 yards out in the 53rd minute. As Martin Juanche Gomez kicked the ball, three of his teammates made a run toward the goal. Pineda headed the ball toward the net and Geoffroy Letienne made sure it went in.
El Farolito came close to equalizing several times, including a running header by Kreye that sailed over the bar in the 67th minute.
Goalkeeper Kevin Gonzalez kept the home side in the match in the 77th minute, smothering a shot by Lucas Hazi Pollacchi on a breakaway.
Pineda was red carded in the 86th minute, giving Farolito a man advantage.
El Farolito increased their pressure, seeking the tying goal in stoppage time, including a header from Benson from the far post that forced goalkeeper Daniel Miklosi to make a diving save.
In the third minute of stoppage time, Hickory appeared to put the game out of reach. With most of El Farolito’s defenders committed to the offensive end, Harri Rowe made a run down the left side, and fed the ball to Pollacchi as he approached the penalty arc. Pollacchi blasted it into the net.
But Farolito provided one last bit of hope less than two minutes later. Passes from Benson and Kreye set up Jhonatan Perez for a one-timer just inside the box to make the score 3-2.
With a few seconds remaining, Benson had another header go over the bar.
And then the final whistle blew. And as the teams returned to their bench, several players from both teams got into a shoving match.
López said that emotions had been building throughout the match.
“I believe that ever since the beginning of the game they [Hickory players] were talking to the bench. One of the players that scored came in, he was blowing kisses at us. You know, we’re happy that they scored. But yeah, I just have to keep reminding my players that the way that they act reflects on the coaches we have in the club, and that type of action is not acceptable. At the end, we tried to calm him down and it happens, you know, it’s part of the game. Emotions flare and whatnot, but we came in a bit more quickly, instead of escalating more.”
López summed up the second half this way.
“At halftime, we were very confident we were going to pull this off, and that second goal really did bring everything down. And we just put all the lines forward, and gave up that third goal on the counter and it was just too late for our second goal. It was just way, way too late, and we started throwing the ball in the box, and their great center backs were winning the air, so they knew how to pull it off.”
He also addressed the nearly 1,000 fans who came out to watch the match at Kezar.
“I think it could have played us as well. A bit of a pressure like feeling that the trophy’s gonna be there, you’re gonna grab it and it just didn’t happen. It hurts because so many people haven’t been able to be at these really big games, like Portland or the Open Cup and not being able to see the trophy in front of them. And that hurts. We’re not embarrassed, but we definitely owe it to them. It’s thanks to them that we’re here.”
