Virginia Beach, Va. (Thursday, July 31, 2008) – World class soccer was on display tonight at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex as the Pali Blues Soccer Club edged out the defending W-League champion Washington Freedom, 2-0. With the victory, the Blues move onto the final game of their inaugural season on Saturday against the FC Indiana Lionesses with the league title at stake.
“We gave up a few chances, but to keep a team like the Washington Freedom to three 100% chances is an incredible feat,” Blues head coach Charlie Naimo commented. “They had some good shots and looks, but we did what we had to do in our defensive third.”
Both knocks for the Blues came off the foot of offensive power Danesha Adams tonight, and Naimo was quick to acknowledge her stellar play.
“Danesha brought it tonight,” he said. “When she brings it, she’s a difference maker. She turned it on when necessary and rested when she needed to get a breather- she played a very smart game tonight.”
Naimo and Adams now lead the Blues into the title game against FC Indiana after the Lionesses defeated the Seattle Sounders in the opening match of the W-League Semifinals, 1-0. This is the third time that Naimo has led a club into the league championship, and he has yet to have a team concede a goal in one of those season finales. He twice coached for the crown with the New Jersey Wildcats, winning in 2005 and falling to penalty kicks in 2004. If the Blues execute on Saturday similar to the way they played tonight, Naimo has a very good shot at another title.
As far as the action tonight went, the expansion Blues got an early scare in the 7th minute when Freedom forward Kele Golebiowski found a brief opening and slammed a shot just wide of the far post. The Blues quickly moved the ball downfield in retaliation, and defender Amy LePeilbet almost put in a header two minutes later. Due to the rainfall that fell earlier in the evening, she was unable to gain enough position on the damp surface to power the ball past Washington goalkeeper Chante Sandiford. The regular season champions kept knocking, though, and Adams fired a hard shot one minute later that pounded off the far post.
The Blues were gaining momentum at this point and were executing Naimo’s game plan very well. The expansion side was controlling possession and creating great opportunities off some nice set plays. The roster full of national team players was additionally showing great creative vision and hustle on both ends of the field.
The hard work of the Blues finally put a notch on the board in the 26th minute when Matilda Collette McCallum perfectly struck a beautiful chip over the Freedom defense, and Adams stretched to put her left foot on the ball and redirected a strike into the right netting of the goal, giving the Blues a 1-0 advantage. The California side nearly saw the gap stretched to a pair of knocks in the 40th minute. Forward India Trotter shook a couple of Washington defenders from 10 yards out and unselfishly dished a feed to Adams, who then saw a great effort from the Freedom defense to turn the ball away. For their efforts, the Blues took the 1-0 lead into halftime.
Washington saw a few opportunities in the early-going of the second half, but thanks to some nice goalkeeping from Blues netminder Val Henderson and the splendid play of the Blues backline (Captain Kendall Fletcher, LePeilbet, Kandace Wilson, Jill Oakes), the clean slate stayed in tact.
The Blues eventually got some much-needed cushion in the 80th minute. Adams took possession of a ball at the edge of the midfield circle, and the UCLA product quickly turned on the jets. She found a lane in the middle of the field and then darted through a pair of Freedom defenders to create a one-on-one chance with Sandiford. Adams took full advantage of the opportunity and chipped the ball over the Washington goalkeeper, sending the ball into the back of the net. After Adams nearly completed a hat trick in the 87th minute, the final ticks of the game clock ran out, and the Blues moved one step closer to their ultimate goal of a W-League championship.
With two days separating the Blues from their date with FC Indiana, Naimo has already thought out his approach to the day off on Friday.
“We’re going to block it out tomorrow,” he stated. “We are going to enjoy our last game-free day and come into Saturday fully focused on completing our season-long goal.”
Saturday’s W-League title game will be aired on Fox Soccer Channel at 11:00 p.m. EST. Stay tuned to the team website at www.bluessoccerclub.com for all championship match updates and other news regarding the Blues.
