Goal scored by #19 Enzo Martinez (39’) .
Goal scored by #19 Enzo Martinez (39’) .
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (October 27, 2021) – The Charlotte Independence earned their sixth straight win after tonight's 1-0 victory over Loudoun United at American Legion Memorial Stadium. The Jacks finish out their regular season games at Austin Bold FC Saturday, October 30. Kick off is set for 9:00 PM (ET). Watch on ESPN+.
"It was a weird game, obviously we knew we had to be ready because previous games we played them we scored 5 goals in each of the two. We knew they were gonna come out ready for that. I know that they wanted to make sure that wasn't the same game today. So they played well,” stated #19 Enzo Martinez. "They gave us a lot of trouble on many things. We're a team that kind of somewhere, or some form, we find a way to win. Today was that type of game. Hartford was that type of game. I guess that's what's one of the positives that we can take from this because when it comes to playoff time, that's the mentality and that's the way the game is going to be played. It's about just winning."
The Independence created a lot of opportunities in front of the goal early in the match. The first one came in the 6th minute when #29 Dane Kelly made a sliding attempt inside the box, but it was blocked by the Loudoun goalkeeper.
In the 8th minute, a Loudoun through ball got past the Charlotte backline, but #1 Austin Pack came up with the big save to keep things all square.
Shortly after, #22 Christian Fuchs sent a long ball to #19 Enzo Martinez in the 14th minute of play. Martinez laid it off to #16 Jose Bizama, but his touch was deflected by the goalie and cleared out of play by the Loudoun defense.
To close the half, #32 Gabriel Obertan beat his defender out wide and slotted a cross over to Martinez who took the right footed shot and watched it soar past the goalie into the bottom left corner of the net.
Charlotte led at the half 1-0.
The second half came with a lot of back and forth play between the two Atlantic Division sides. The Independence made their first run at goal in the 62nd minute when #12 Adam Armour took a shot from the top of the 18 yard box, but it floated high over the crossbar.
Next up was #8 Marcelo Palomino who took a shot that missed just wide after a series of passes inside the box.
The last play of the game was initiated by #9 Irvin Parra who sent the ball into #29 Dane Kelly who tapped it off to Martinez, but the shot went high.
The Independence ended the match with a 1-0 victory.
When asked about the importance of potentially hosting a first round playoff match, Head Coach Mike Jeffries explained, "We have obviously been fighting very hard for it over the last several weeks so it's huge. A good step forward tonight. I give the guys credit. Loudoun did an excellent job in terms of how they played and what they did and gave us a lot of trouble. I felt like our mentality for the game was good tonight. We came out really sharply and maybe had a couple chances early that we didn't make and then the game was tight. I thought this was good for us to manage a 1-0 lead throughout the second half so we will build on that for sure."
NEXT ON SCHEDULE: The Charlotte Independence are on the road to face Austin Bold FC at Bold Stadium on Saturday, October 30. Kick off is set for 9:00 PM (ET). Watch on ESPN+.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (October 27, 2021) – The Charlotte Independence earned their sixth straight win after tonight’s 1-0 victory over Loudoun United at American Legion Memorial Stadium. The Jacks finish out their regular season games at Austin Bold FC Saturday, October 30. Kick off is set for 9:00 PM (ET). Watch on ESPN+.
“It was a weird game, obviously we knew we had to be ready because previous games we played them we scored 5 goals in each of the two. We knew they were gonna come out ready for that. I know that they wanted to make sure that wasn’t the same game today. So they played well,” stated #19 Enzo Martinez. “They gave us a lot of trouble on many things. We’re a team that kind of somewhere, or some form, we find a way to win. Today was that type of game. Hartford was that type of game. I guess that’s what’s one of the positives that we can take from this because when it comes to playoff time, that’s the mentality and that’s the way the game is going to be played. It’s about just winning.”
The Independence created a lot of opportunities in front of the goal early in the match. The first one came in the 6th minute when #29 Dane Kelly made a sliding attempt inside the box, but it was blocked by the Loudoun goalkeeper.
In the 8th minute, a Loudoun through ball got past the Charlotte backline, but #1 Austin Pack came up with the big save to keep things all square.
Shortly after, #22 Christian Fuchs sent a long ball to #19 Enzo Martinez in the 14th minute of play. Martinez laid it off to #16 Jose Bizama, but his touch was deflected by the goalie and cleared out of play by the Loudoun defense.
To close the half, #32 Gabriel Obertan beat his defender out wide and slotted a cross over to Martinez who took the right footed shot and watched it soar past the goalie into the bottom left corner of the net.
Charlotte led at the half 1-0.
The second half came with a lot of back and forth play between the two Atlantic Division sides. The Independence made their first run at goal in the 62nd minute when #12 Adam Armour took a shot from the top of the 18 yard box, but it floated high over the crossbar.
Next up was #8 Marcelo Palomino who took a shot that missed just wide after a series of passes inside the box.
The last play of the game was initiated by #9 Irvin Parra who sent the ball into #29 Dane Kelly who tapped it off to Martinez, but the shot went high.
The Independence ended the match with a 1-0 victory.
When asked about the importance of potentially hosting a first round playoff match, Head Coach Mike Jeffries explained, “We have obviously been fighting very hard for it over the last several weeks so it’s huge. A good step forward tonight. I give the guys credit. Loudoun did an excellent job in terms of how they played and what they did and gave us a lot of trouble. I felt like our mentality for the game was good tonight. We came out really sharply and maybe had a couple chances early that we didn’t make and then the game was tight. I thought this was good for us to manage a 1-0 lead throughout the second half so we will build on that for sure.”
NEXT ON SCHEDULE: The Charlotte Independence are on the road to face Austin Bold FC at Bold Stadium on Saturday, October 30. Kick off is set for 9:00 PM (ET). Watch on ESPN+.
