2008 Aug 24 2008 Aug 24
Seattle Sounders 4 - 3 Carolina RailHawks
Starfire Sports Complex, Tukwila, WA
Seattle: Chris Eylander; Taylor Graham, Danny Jackson, Kevin Sakuda, Adam West; Kenji Treschuk, Ciaran O'Brien (Michael Rodríguez 78'), Youssouf Kante (Jason Cascio 74'), Josh Gardner (Kevin Forrest 65'); Roger Levesque, Sébastien Le Toux. Substitutes not used: Ben Dragavon, Noah Merl, Nik Besagno, John Fishbaugher.
Carolina: Chris McClellan; Frankie Sanfilippo, Mauricio Segovia, Caleb Norkus, Eddie Gutierrez; Matt Watson, Kupono Low, Santiago Fusilier (Steve Curfman 72'), Martin Nuñez (David Stokes 85'); Ronald Cerritos (Dan Antoniuk 81'), Hamed Diallo (Rey Martinez 74'). Substitutes not used: Brian Levey, Chad Dombrowski, David Lilly.
Goals:
17' SEA: Gardner (O'Brien)
23' CAR: Diallo (Nuñez)
30' CAR: Diallo (Fusilier)
36' SEA: Levesque (O'Brien)
49' CAR: Diallo (Sanfilippo)
63' SEA: Gardner (Kante)
65' SEA: Le Toux
Additional match reports: Seattle Times, Sounders, GOALSeattle.com, Prost Amerika, RailHawks, Seattle Soccer Show player ratings.
Match report from Ron Stickney:
Hamed Diallo scored a hat trick for the visiting Carolina RailHawks, but it wasn't enough as the host Seattle Sounders poured in four. Josh Gardner scored a pair of goals for the Sounders, Roger Levesque tallied one, and Sébastien Le Toux claimed the match winner.
It was the second rainy match in a row at Starfire Sports Stadium, and we thought we could count on August in Seattle.
Zach Scott served the first of his two-match suspension for yellow card accumulation. It was a learning experience for Adam West at left back, as he looked culpable on the first two Carolina goals.
Seattle had an early chance when Carolina goalkeeper Chris McClellan couldn't outleap Le Toux for an air ball popped up to the edge of the goal area. Seattle kept the ball in front of goal with a couple of touches, then McClellan appeared to pull down an attacker but referee Tica Hidajet waived play on. Hidajet would frustrate the fans and the players repeatedly during the match.
Levesque saw a seam for a shot from 19 yards in the 15th minute, but missed wide by a yard. Seattle were dominating the match early, denying any shots to Carolina.
17' SEA: Gardner (O'Brien). The Sounders worked hard to maintain possession along the right touch line, and the payoff came when Ciaran O'Brien crossed to the far side with an outswinger. Gardner was unmarked on the far post run and headed it perfectly, beating McClellan at the near post. 1-0 Seattle.
Keeping the momentum for Seattle, Youssouf Kante measured and fired from 23 yards, and hit the crossbar squarely. Le Toux was sprung and got close to the left post, but was charged to the ground before he could set up a shot.
23' CAR: Diallo (Nuñez). After showing nothing on offense for the first quarter of the match, the RailHawks struck suddenly after McClellan caught a corner kick. Martin Nuñez attacked up the middle and found Diallo with an acre of open space on the right. Diallo dribbled at West, juked him, and shot perfectly to the lower far corner. 1-1.
At 27' Santiago Fusilier was served when he ran ball side of West and got a shot from 15 with only the charging Eylander to beat, but the shot went just over the bar.
On the half hour mark Taylor Graham came close when he headed O'Brien's corner kick down on goal, but McClellan managed to save it, the rebound rolling along the goal line to the defender at the post.
30' CAR: Diallo (Fusilier). West was beat again, this time by Fusilier, whose shot/cross was aimed just wide of the far post. Diallo slid past a defender to poke it in from a yard out. 2-1 Carolina.
36' SEA: Levesque (O'Brien). Kante measured another shot and fired from 20 yards, but McClellan was there to tip it over the bar for a corner. That corner kick by Gardner led to another from the opposite side by O'Brien. The corner kick was served to the near side, where Levesque headed it nicely to the top far corner. 2-2.
For Carolina at 42' Matt Watson's worm burner up the middle from 20 yards had speed and eyes for the lower left corner, but Eylander was there to smother it.
To end the half, Kante tried another from 35 yards and it grazed the bar just above the far corner.
49' CAR: Diallo (Sanfilippo). The second half started nicely for Carolina. Sanfilippo fed the ball to Diallo in the arc with three defenders around him. Against the odds, Diallo touched the ball a couple of yards square and slotted a shot between two defenders, beating Eylander to the lower left corner. A hat trick for Diallo, and 3-2 Carolina.
63' SEA: Gardner (Kante). Seattle's first shot of the half came 18 minutes in, and it found net. Wide on the right, Kante juked two defenders to earn a cross, and it was a beauty past goal to the onrushing Gardner. Just like before, Gardner headed it perfectly just inside the near post. 3-3.
65' SEA: Le Toux. A Seattle attack in the Carolina penalty area gave O'Brien a shot from 15 yards on the left. McClellan saved it, but gave up a rebound that went wide of goal. Le Toux reacted quickly and chased it down at the side edge of the goal area. His left footed shot from a steep angle beat McClellan inside the near post. 4-3 Seattle.
Nothing much happened the next 15 minutes except a series of substitutions. Then at 81' Le Toux gave one of those subs, Michael Rodríguez, a good feed on a run up the right side. Rodríguez shot from 12 yards, and McClellan did well to collapse on it for the save. The ball was loose in the goal area for another substitute, Jason Cascio, but he somehow sent it over the bar from just a few yards away. Graham had the next chance for Seattle on a free kick play, but shot wide of the near post.
Carolina had one chance to tie it in added time when they were awarded a questionable free kick at the left touch line 20 yards from the corner flag. The free kick was sent across the goal mouth, bouncing dangerously through the crowd in front of goal, but nobody touched it and it went harmlessly out for a goal kick.
Statistics:
Seattle Carolina
Shots: 17 9
Saves: 2 6
Corners: 9 4
Fouls: 10 15
Offsides: 1 2
Misconduct:
31' CAR: Sanfilippo cautioned
90' CAR: Segovia cautioned
Referees: Tica Hidajet; Will Niccolls, Josh Wilkins; Mark Matthews
Attendance: 2,008
