Cedar Fork Soccer Park, Morrisville, NC- On a day when temperatures reached 100 degrees, the young North Carolina Tigers clawed their way to a narrow victory over the visiting Philadelphia Hawks, 40-34, in the season opener.

Philadelphia made the trek south, armed with a strong side that never once wavered in the unrelenting heat. Meanwhile, the Tigers came out in full force, sporting a roster with many first and second year players, many of whom were playing their first match with key responsibilities. With umpire Seth McElvaney finishing his final pre-game assessments at 2:30 p.m., the teams were ready to clash in the record setting heat.

From the opening bounce, Coach Jason Heathcote’s Tigers established early possession and continuously moved the ball up field. But the Hawks defense, led by veterans Dan Milburn and Pat Miller, continuously rebuffed the Tiger advances, allowing only a single behind from many chances. But in footy, the tide can turn very quickly and that is precisely what happened near the ten-minute mark. After intercepting a Tiger kick in their defensive positions, Philly counter attacked rapidly, moving the ball with precision up the left flank and capitalizing on their first real chance with a deft snap kick that moved the Hawks ahead by 6 points. Philadelphia, sensing the Tiger’s nervousness, continued their fast play, constantly using their Coach and Revolution player, Jon Loring, through the middle to create opportunities. After a few missed chances, Tiger veterans rallied their younger teammates and pushed forward from the backline. Quick scores ensued, including a beautiful goal on the run by Tiger Co-Captain Wes McCallister sandwiched between two behinds. As the siren signaled the end of the first quarter, the Tigers had surged ahead of the Hawks, 1.3.9 to 1.0.6.

Philadelphia struck first in the second quarter, grabbing an early lead again on a goal at the three-minute mark. Four minutes later, with neither team consistently establishing possession, Philly kicked another behind. The even play continued, each team fighting the elements, unable to establish a grip on the match. Four more behinds added to the score at halftime, three coming from Tiger boots, and the teams made their way to shade with a score of 2.2.14 to 1.6.12 in favor of the visiting Hawks.

The third quarter of an Australian Rules Football game is known as the most vital. Nicknamed the premiership quarter, both coaches knew this certainly was the case, especially given the heat. With the teams refreshed they stepped onto the field for arguably the most important twenty minutes of the day. The crowd cheered for both teams and the players sensed the electricity.

With Coach Heathcote’s words ringing in their ears, the younger Tigers, many of whom were manning the middle, seized the moment and began what was to be a dominating opening 10 minutes. Within forty seconds the younger Tigers pushed the ball forward and kicked a behind. A minute later the longest tenured Tiger, Ben Hess, capitalized on a brilliant feed from Paul Duncan, another Revolution player on the pitch, and booted home a soaring goal. Seconds later another Tiger surge resulted in yet another behind. Following a brief Hawks attack, the Tigers caused a turnover and raced forward. A timely sliding, basket catch from Tiger veteran Matthew Gordan near the goal line set up a free kick which was converted and the Tigers were in prime position to finish off their opponent.

But Philadelphia would have none of that. Led by Aaron Harrington, the Hawks quickly regrouped after those shocking initial five minutes and controlled the middle portion of the premiership quarter. But they could only net one goal in that time and before the siren sounded, Tiger Paul Duncan added a goal after a Tiger behind which made the score, 4.9.33 to 3.2.20 in favor of the home team.

The seesaw battle for possession continued in the final quarter, both teams tired and hot. But neither team’s hunger for a win went away, and after a sluggish start to the quarter, a Hawks’ behind began the scoring. Two minutes later, Tiger Duncan finished off a mark on the right flank and booted home his second goal of the match to stretch the fourth quarter margin to 18 points. Never once using the heat as an excuse, the Philadelphia Hawks then showed off their high level of character that has made them favorites among their peers. Using team defense and the talents of Paul Giacomin and Mike Simones, the Hawks booted two goals in quick succession at the ten-minute mark and suddenly Philadelphia was right back in it.

The Tigers scored a behind to increase their fragile lead to seven points, setting up a frantic final five minutes. The Hawks continued to then pound the Tiger defense. Never once settling for useless handballs in their half of the field, the Hawks smartly assaulted the top of the goal box, hoping to create scoring chances. But the veteran Tiger defense held strong until an uncharacteristic mistake with a minute left led to a Philly free kick from an impossible angle along the boundary from about 20 meters out. But the ball sailed over the goal post for one point and as the Philly players felt frustration up front, the Tigers breathed a sigh of relief and booted the ball out from their end. Seconds later the final horn sounded and the players from both teams rushed to congratulate each other on a tough, fairly contested affair that resulted in a win for the Tigers in their opening game of the 2008 season.

“I thought our new players really stepped up today,” remarked Coach Heathcote afterwards. “Newcomers like Ben Wetzel and Ross Pleban meshed well with our veterans like Wes McCallister and Mick Coysh. And you can never say enough about Mick. He leads by example and knowing he’s back there makes my job a lot easier.”

Jon Loring continued the praise of Tiger youngsters, specifically calling out Jordan Lee for his effort in the middle while calling McCallister “their engine that makes them go.” Loring also couldn’t have been happier with the extra players the Tigers loaned them, especially veterans Matt Pickett and Brian Jones. “Jonesy was just a ball of energy out there and relentless in his pursuit of the ball. Really, all of them represented the Philly jumper the way we wanted and made us proud to have them.” In fact, the second Philly goal came courtesy of Tiger newcomer, Dennis Kurtz. “It’s always a good game between these two teams,” continued Loring, “and as expected it was close with a goal as the difference. The Tigers wanted it more.”

Coach Heathcote echoed these words with his final comments on the field. “Our backline held strong, especially when Philly gave that extra effort.” Heathcote then paused and looked over his exhausted players as they slapped hands with each other. A satisfied smile finally crept over his face. “We won today because of heart.”

Game Notes: Philadelphia got two goals apiece from Paul Giacomin and Jim Madigan…Nick Wolk was awarded the Hawks Donger Award…Tiger Coach Jason Heathcote registered a DNP (knee)…No serious injuries occurred in the game…Special thanks goes to Marc Century for his stat-tracking…It was Tiger Co-Captain Michael Coysh’s first game as a father. Lucy Jane Coysh was born April 24. Congratulations Mick and Sidney!

Nth Carol. 5 10 40
Philadel. 5 4 34

GOALKICKERS
Nth Carol.: Paul Duncan 2, Wes McCallister 1, Ben Hess 1, Matt Gordon 1.
Philadel.: Jim Madigan 2, Paul Giacomin 2, Dennis Kurtz 1.

BEST PLAYERS
Nth Carol.: Michael Coysh, Wes McCallister, Ross Pleban, Jordan Lee, Rob Sayre-McCord.
Philadel.: Jonathon Loring, Jim Madigan, Paul Giacomin.

UMPIRE: Seth McElvaney

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