DUNBAR, W.Va. òòò½ÊÓƵ” Anthony Tavares has spent the past 25 years coaching high school basketball in New Jersey.
Itòòò½ÊÓƵ™s little wonder that he compared the high-pressure defense of his Ironbound 17U boys soccer team to what might be seen on the hardwood rather than the pitch, but itòòò½ÊÓƵ™s a defense that helped propel the team to within one win of a spot in the United States Youth Soccer national championships in Orlando, Florida.
òòò½ÊÓƵœDefensively, weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re tough to play against because the kids are just relentless,òòò½ÊÓƵ Tavares said. òòò½ÊÓƵœItòòò½ÊÓƵ™s like a full-court press for basketball. If done correctly, itòòò½ÊÓƵ™s relentless.òòò½ÊÓƵ
Ironbound used its defensive pressure to fuel its offense and eliminated West Virginia Futbol Club with a 6-1 semifinal victory at Shawnee Soccer Complex.
Tomas Monteiro scored a hat trick, with each goal coming in the second half to blow open a 2-0 halftime lead. Augusto Viera added both Ironbound goals in the first half and Jermaine Campbell tacked on a final score with seconds remaining.
Ironbound, though, limited WVFC to five shots, with only Abraham Tarawallieòòò½ÊÓƵ™s header in the 48th minute coming as the lone goal for the host team.
òòò½ÊÓƵœI think the goalie could have come out and probably attacked the ball on the goal a little bit better than what he did,òòò½ÊÓƵ Tavares said of the goal allowed to WVFC. òòò½ÊÓƵœHe kind of waited back. (Tarawallie] did a great job of jumping up there and putting the ball into the back of the net.òòò½ÊÓƵ
At the time, the goal put WVFC to within 2-1 of Ironbound, which will meet Massachusettsòòò½ÊÓƵ™ IFA West EDS in Wednesdayòòò½ÊÓƵ™s 8 a.m. championship contest for the Eastern Region.
IFA West EDS downed New York 1-0 on Field 6, next door to the Ironbound-WVFC contest on Field 5, allowing Tavares to see exactly who he was going to face in Wednesdayòòò½ÊÓƵ™s final.
òòò½ÊÓƵœThey beat us a couple of weeks ago in a well-contested game,òòò½ÊÓƵ Tavares said of the Boston-based IFA West club. òòò½ÊÓƵœWe know them well.òòò½ÊÓƵ
WVFC coach Fayanga Keita and Tarawallie lamented at the lack of opportunities to keep themselves in the contest.
òòò½ÊÓƵœWe definitely expected to be here, to be honest,òòò½ÊÓƵ Tarawallie said. òòò½ÊÓƵœI feel like we could have gone further. Once we got the goal in the second half, I felt we could have used that to our momentum, got some more shots off, and get the equalizer.òòò½ÊÓƵ
WVFC was outshot 17-5, unofficially. Two of those shots òòò½ÊÓƵ” a free kick from the left side of the goal box, which deflected off the far-right goal post, and a 15-footer from Brier Wagner that hit the crossbar òòò½ÊÓƵ” were near-misses.
òòò½ÊÓƵœOur goal is to get next better next year and go as far as we can next year,òòò½ÊÓƵ said Keita, who has coached the 2007 boys since they were 11 years old. òòò½ÊÓƵœWeòòò½ÊÓƵ™ve been to state together. We just keep working and getting better.òòò½ÊÓƵ
The semifinal contest was the furthest the team has been, Keita said. Its previous best was an appearance in the quarterfinals.
Rick Elmore covers sports. He can be reached at 304-348-5122 or relmore@hdmediallc.com. Follow @ElmoreSports on Twitter/X.
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