Independence split the Dogwood Derby with NCFC 1-1-1
CARY, N.C. (June 30, 2023) – The Charlotte Independence fell to North Carolina FC, 2-0, on Friday evening at WakeMed Soccer Park. Next up for the Independence is a road game against Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC on Tuesday, July 4 at 9:00PM (ET).
Discussing the offensive performance, Head Coach Mike Jeffries explained, “We weren’t sharp from the get-go. We probably only put together a handful of plays in which the movement was good and we were able to break them down. The half chances we had, we didn’t take as well as we should have, and they punished us with two set piece goals.”
The game started mostly in the middle of the field as neither team recorded a shot in the first 10 minutes. In the 17th minute, the Independence thought the breakthrough was found after #7 Avionne Flanagan made a long run down the field and played a ball across the face of goal that landed in the back of the net, but #9 Dane Kelly interfered with the play and was ruled offside.
The teams traded harmless chances over the next 15 minutes, but #5 Shalom Dutey made a huge defensive play in the 34th minute on a quick break by NCFC. Just two minutes later, Dutey made a sliding clearance, followed by a close-range save by #1 Austin Pack, and finished off with a goal-line clearance by Dutey, again.
A free kick for NCFC in the 40th minute gave the home side a 1-0 lead before halftime. #10 Jaden Servania served a shot saved by Pack, but #9 Oalex Anderson put away the rebound.
Halftime: North Carolina FC 1, Charlotte Independence 0.
Out of the half, #11 Tresor Mbuyu and #10 Miguel Ibarra entered the match as substitutes as the Jacks looked to find a spark.
“We struggled in the first half,” Jeffries added. “It felt like we needed to get one more attacking player on because we didn’t have a real dynamic attack in the first half which is why we brought on Tresor.”
North Carolina FC doubled the lead in the 59th minute off of Anderson’s second goal of the match, bouncing off the crossbar into the back of the net.
After entering the match in the 68th minute, #90 Khori Bennett recorded multiple dangerous chances on goal. In the 76th minute, Bennett’s shot went just inches wide of the left post. Just a minute later, Bennett tried to get his head on a cross from #8 Joel Johnson.
“Being down by two when I subbed in, I knew that I needed to add energy and be dangerous up front,” Bennett commented. “We needed to be more direct and take a few more risks in the final third.”
Efforts to get back in the game were made harder in the 78th minute as Dutey received a second yellow card, forcing the Jacks to play with only 10 men for the remainder of the game. The Independence kept attacking but could not generate any success.
Full time: North Carolina FC 2, Charlotte Independence 0.
“I think we could have done better tonight,” Dutey explained. “We’re a big team, and we didn’t meet that standard we’ve kept all season tonight. We have to pick it up the next game and raise the standard.”
NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE: The Charlotte Independence will play a midweek match at Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC on Tuesday, July 4 at 9:00PM (ET). All away matches can be streamed for free with Bahakel Sports.
