Osseo 3, Totino-Grace 0

Just ten days prior to this evening, a group of hungry Eagles began the 2023 season at tryouts. With the team rosters being finalized Monday after the Bloomington Jefferson scrimmage, the Eagles had less than 72 hours to prepare for the Northwest Suburban Conference opener at Jim Totino Stadium.

Early game drama–An impressive home-opening crowd enjoyed a picturesque night for some early fall futbol. The referees told the coaches during pregame that they would not let players play with white socks visible under their blue socks so the Eagles came together and those who had cut their socks needed to solve that uniform issue before the game started. Two starters failed to follow suit and were prevented by the AR from starting the game. Two Eagles stepped in and the first 15 minutes of the match witnessed a patient Osseo try to pull the Eagles out of their defensive shape. When the Eagles won the ball, they struggled to find open space and instead attempted to dribble out of pressure or pray for long balls into Osseo’s defensive end.

In the thirteenth minute, the Eagles worked the ball up the right wing and made a crossing service to switch the fields but that resulted in an Osseo throw-in. The Orioles methodically played the ball through their midfield and made a nifty combination on the left side of the box that saw a well-weighted thruball find the feet of their attacker who sliced through the back line and slotted a ball home to give the Orioles a 1-0 lead. The Orioles hit the post later in the first half and the Eagles tried to collect themselves despite heavy touches and a series of efforts that demonstrated a struggle to be on the same page. Thanks to some timely tackles and a few saves, the Eagles entered halftime down one goal.

The halftime talk invited the squad to exhale the bumpy first half and commit to creating scoring chances. For the first fifteen minutes of half number two, the Eagles showed some spunk, some aggression, and put the Orioles on their heels. Two of the Eagles’ best opportunities came on a flicked header that was then headed–with force–skimming the crossbar out of bounds and a well-timed run to a well-weighted pass for a breakaway in the box. The failure to convert either opportunity left the door open for a few Osseo counterattacks that punished the Eagles.

The Orioles weathered the storm and then, in the 66th minute, gained control with two goals, three minutes apart. The Eagles didn’t give up, manufacturing a few more looks on goal, which the Osseo backline thwarted.

The Eagles registered four shots on goal to the Orioles’ six and made two saves to Osseo’s four. The captains quickly gathered the team together following the whistle to remind them that this is only the first game of a long season and there are plenty of takeaways to help as we climb the mountain this season.

The Eagles are grateful for all the fans who attended the match as well as those who watched online. Future home matches will be available at this link:www.nwsconference.org by selecting the correct home game on the schedule. Go Eagles!