San Antonio FC (6-5-6) earned a big three points against rivals RGV FC (8-5-4) after winning a fiercely contested 2-1 road match at H-E-B Park on Sunday night. Two goals from in-form striker Nathan helped the Alamo City club earn the victory.
“I am incredibly proud of the collective,” said SAFC Head Coach Alen Marcina. “That’s four games in 11 days to show the team’s resilience. That’s something we have preached from day one. To get a result against one of the best teams in our conference makes me incredibly proud.”
SAFC were able to get on the board first after midfielder Jose Gallegos was taken down in the penalty area. Nathan stepped to the spot in the 18th minute and squeezed his shot past the Toros keeper for the 1-0 SAFC lead. RGV were able to equalize later in the first half when Carlos Azocar got on the end of an Adrian Vera pass in the box before dispatching his shot into the top corner of Matthew Cardone’s goal.
With both sides coming out in the second half looking for the winner, SAFC would take the lead on a counter-attack in the 35th minute. Justin Dhillon found himself in space down the left hand side before he squared the ball for Nathan who calmly scored his second goal of the game. With the brace, Nathan has scored seven goals in his last six games, and his three braces on the season are the most ever for an SAFC player. San Antonio was able to see out the match thanks to some strong defending and good goalkeeping from Cardone who made four saves on the night. The win marked the club’s fourth in the last six games as the second half of the season gets underway.
San Antonio FC will now travel to New York to face the Red Bulls II for the first time in team history next Saturday, before returning home to Toyota Field on August 21.
Scoring Summary:
SAFC: 1-0, Nathan (penalty) 18’
RGV: 1-1, Carlos Azocar (Adrian Vera assist) 35’
SAFC: 2-1, Nathan (Justin Dhillon assist) 58’
Disciplinary Summary:
RGV: Yellow Card (Grant Robinson) 38’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Jasser Khmiri) 49’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Mohammed Abu) 60’
RGV: Yellow Card (Baboucarr Njie) 78’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Matthew Cardone) 78’
RGV: Yellow Card (Erik Pimentel) 79’
Attendance: 3,496
SAFC Starting XI: GK: Matthew Cardone; D: Connor Maloney (c), Axel Sjoberg, Jasser Khmiri, Sam Gleadle; M: Mohammed Abu, Cam Lindley, Marcus Epps (Emil Cuello 66’), Jose Gallegos; F: Nathan, Justin Dhillon (Ollie Wright 72’)
Substitutions not used: Carlos Mercado, Joaquin Varela, Leo Torres, Chris Lema
Postgame Notes:
- SAFC forward Nathan was named the SWBC Man of the Match after scoring another two goals…with his tallies, Nathan now leads the team with seven goals and has scored seven in his last six matches…with his third brace of the season, Nathan has now recorded more braces than any other SAFC player in a single season in team history
- SAFC defeated RGV on the road to even the season series against their rivals, compiling a 1-1-2 record on the season…the win is the first at H-E-B Park since 8/28/20…SAFC have now won four of their last six matches on the season
- SAFC goalkeeper Matthew Cardone made four saves on the night to go along with 80.0 percent shot saved percentage…Cardone has made at least four saves in eight matches this year
- SAFC forward Justin Dhillon recorded his first assist of the season in his first start since 7/3 vs. Austin Bold
- SAFC defender Jasser Khmiri recorded three tackles, five clearances, two interceptions and two crucial blocks in the 90 minutes…also recorded a 78.1 percent passing accuracy and four aerial duels
San Antonio FC (6-5-6) earned a big three points against rivals RGV FC (8-5-4) after winning a fiercely contested 2-1 road match at H-E-B Park on Sunday night. Two goals from in-form striker Nathan helped the Alamo City club earn the victory.
“I am incredibly proud of the collective,” said SAFC Head Coach Alen Marcina. “That’s four games in 11 days to show the team’s resilience. That’s something we have preached from day one. To get a result against one of the best teams in our conference makes me incredibly proud.”
SAFC were able to get on the board first after midfielder Jose Gallegos was taken down in the penalty area. Nathan stepped to the spot in the 18th minute and squeezed his shot past the Toros keeper for the 1-0 SAFC lead. RGV were able to equalize later in the first half when Carlos Azocar got on the end of an Adrian Vera pass in the box before dispatching his shot into the top corner of Matthew Cardone’s goal.
With both sides coming out in the second half looking for the winner, SAFC would take the lead on a counter-attack in the 35th minute. Justin Dhillon found himself in space down the left hand side before he squared the ball for Nathan who calmly scored his second goal of the game. With the brace, Nathan has scored seven goals in his last six games, and his three braces on the season are the most ever for an SAFC player. San Antonio was able to see out the match thanks to some strong defending and good goalkeeping from Cardone who made four saves on the night. The win marked the club’s fourth in the last six games as the second half of the season gets underway.
San Antonio FC will now travel to New York to face the Red Bulls II for the first time in team history next Saturday, before returning home to Toyota Field on August 21.
Scoring Summary:
SAFC: 1-0, Nathan (penalty) 18’
RGV: 1-1, Carlos Azocar (Adrian Vera assist) 35’
SAFC: 2-1, Nathan (Justin Dhillon assist) 58’
Disciplinary Summary:
RGV: Yellow Card (Grant Robinson) 38’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Jasser Khmiri) 49’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Mohammed Abu) 60’
RGV: Yellow Card (Baboucarr Njie) 78’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Matthew Cardone) 78’
RGV: Yellow Card (Erik Pimentel) 79’
Attendance: 3,496
SAFC Starting XI: GK: Matthew Cardone; D: Connor Maloney (c), Axel Sjoberg, Jasser Khmiri, Sam Gleadle; M: Mohammed Abu, Cam Lindley, Marcus Epps (Emil Cuello 66’), Jose Gallegos; F: Nathan, Justin Dhillon (Ollie Wright 72’)
Substitutions not used: Carlos Mercado, Joaquin Varela, Leo Torres, Chris Lema
Postgame Notes:
- SAFC forward Nathan was named the SWBC Man of the Match after scoring another two goals…with his tallies, Nathan now leads the team with seven goals and has scored seven in his last six matches…with his third brace of the season, Nathan has now recorded more braces than any other SAFC player in a single season in team history
- SAFC defeated RGV on the road to even the season series against their rivals, compiling a 1-1-2 record on the season…the win is the first at H-E-B Park since 8/28/20…SAFC have now won four of their last six matches on the season
- SAFC goalkeeper Matthew Cardone made four saves on the night to go along with 80.0 percent shot saved percentage…Cardone has made at least four saves in eight matches this year
- SAFC forward Justin Dhillon recorded his first assist of the season in his first start since 7/3 vs. Austin Bold
- SAFC defender Jasser Khmiri recorded three tackles, five clearances, two interceptions and two crucial blocks in the 90 minutes…also recorded a 78.1 percent passing accuracy and four aerial duels
