Welcome to the fourth installment of “Set Piece”, the Southington High School Soccer team’s blog spot.
Blue Knight’s on the Pitch: A look Back and a Look Forward
This past Tuesday, the Blue Knights played their first road match against Simsbury. Based on the early action of the game, it was very clear that this was going to a physical competitive match. While both Southington and Simsbury generated a number of good chances, the first half ended 0-0. Early into the second half, Simsbury broke through with a goal to push ahead 1-0. The Blue Knights continued to grind and their hard work resulted in a tying goal by Owen Bajrami off of a corner kick. The tying of the match at 1-1 appeared to spark the intensity level of both teams as the pace of play intensified for the remainder of the second half. Both teams continued to generate opportunities but regulation ended at 1-1 and for the second game in a row, Southington would play overtime. The first 5 minutes of overtime was very intense and evenly played, but half way through the second 5 minute of overtime, a Simsbury player broke free and scored what would be the winning goal and the game ended with a Simsbury victory 2-1.
On Friday evening, Southington returned to their home turf for a match with Bloomfield. Once again, the Blue Knights found themselves in a very physical game. Throughout the first half, Southington generated a number of scoring chances that ended with balls off of the goal’s crossbar and some nifty saves by the Bloomfield goalie. The first half ended in a 0-0 tie. Right from the beginning of the second half, a heightened sense of intensity from the Blue Knights was apparent. Scoring chances began to happen in bunches and the hard work finally resulted in the first goal of the game by John Testa to put Southington up 1-0. Southington continued to push and with about 10 minutes left to play, Hayden Burbank launched a rocket of a shot from long distance to put the Blue Knights up 2-0. The scoring for the match was capped by a goal by Joe Colaccino and Evan Daddona finished with a clean sheet and Southington got its first victory of the season 3-0 under a gorgeous Harvest Moon.
The Southington Blue Knights Soccer team record currently stands at 1-1-1.
Looking forward to next week, the Blue Knights will travel to Bristol Central on Monday (9/19) at 3:45pm. The Blue Knights return home to play Glastonbury on Friday (9/23) at 3:45pm. Glastonbury has been a traditional powerhouse and a very competitive match is anticipated.
Start Planning: Southington United Game on 9/30
The annual tradition of the Southington United Game will continue with a home match against New Britain on Friday 9/30. All proceeds generated form the game will be donated to the United Way. This event provides our Southington Soccer players and families with an opportunity to bring together our collective passion for the game of soccer with the opportunity and responsibility to give back to the community in which we live. Support for this great event is generated by our Southington community coming out and enjoying a night of soccer and community spirit, so please plan to join us on Friday, September 30th at 6pm.
I would like to thank Dave Rodriguez for contributing pictures this week. We look forward to Dave’s contributions throughout the season.