Photo courtesy Philadelphia Union II
On the final day of the MLS Next Pro regular season, Philadelphia Union II pulled off an impressive 4-3 victory at home over rivals New York City FC II. Two set-piece goals from Neil Pierre and three assists from recently recalled CJ Olney highlighted the afternoon’s affair.
With the result, Ryan Richter’s side finished second in the Eastern Conference for the second year in a row and set the team’s single-season points record to 58.
In advance
Union II played NYC FC II on Decision Day. They tapped off 15 ½ hours after the respective first teams’ final whistle at Subaru Park in Chester. Those Union reserves who had sat on the bench but not played Saturday night were available to play Sunday, early afternoon. Andrew Rick got the nod in goal, having not played in almost a month.
The same could have been true for NYC FC II, and since the baby pigeons were still mathematically alive to make the playoffs, albeit by the proverbial gnat’s eyelash, it seemed likely that reinforcements from the first team bench might have stayed over the extra night to play.
The sides had played twice before, each time on a different NYC FC II “home” field. The first was in April at St. Johns University’s turf pitch on Long Island. The second was in July at Icahn Stadium’s natural grass on Randalls Island just off Manhattan. Union II won both matches, 4-1 (April) and 2-0 (July).
On the afternoon, Philadelphia was still hoping to overtake Red Bull New York II for first place in the Eastern Conference, Red Bull having lost at midweek to Cincinnati but still holding the first tiebreaker. New York City was hoping to get into the playoffs at all. Both were well motivated to win.
In the first round of MLS NEXT Pro’s playoffs, choosing one’s opponent features for the first, second and third place finishers. In the second playoff round, the same privilege exists for the highest surviving seed.
First half
Union II had the opening chance early on in the match. Gio Sequera’s through ball to Eddy Davis put the young forward in a one-on-one with New York City keeper Brennan Klein, but Davis’ touch took him too close. They followed up with a second chance soon after, this time a connection between Nick Pariano and Stas Korzeniowski. Korzeniowski’s shot was saved low at the near post.
Cavan Sullivan connected with Stas Korzeniowski with an outside-of-the-foot pass in the eleventh minute, but the forward’s shot was saved yet again.
Andrew Rick made his presence known on the other end of the pitch to claim three of New York’s share of attacking progressions. The third looked to be a definite goal for Seymour Reed, but his shot was blocked multiple times before ending up in the safe hands of the teenager.
Nick Pariano found himself at the top of the box with a rebound in the 17th minute; however, his top-bin strike was heroically blocked by Max Murray to put it out for a corner.
Union II’s opening goal came in the 27th minute from Markus Anderson with a right-footed volley off a well-weighted cross from Sequera.
The visitors equalized through Seymour Reed minutes later. The forward found himself through on goal and placed it past a diving Rick. In the buildup, Union II struggled to get on the end of second balls in their defensive half.
New York doubled their lead soon after, when Camilo Ponce found himself open at the back post, baited Sequera into going to ground, and took the easy shot. The chance came after multiple attempts to clear the ball from the defense, but the defensive midfield pairing of CJ Olney and Nick Pariano were not in positions to receive the clearances, leaving New York able to keep up the pressure.
Just before stoppage time, Union II equalized on a CJ Olney corner. His ball found Neil Pierre inside the six-yard box, and the center back headed it in.
Eddy Davis nearly put his side ahead in stoppage time, but his toe-poke went just wide of the post. The sides went to the locker room in a deadlock, but Union II looked energized by the equalizer.
Second half
Neither side made changes at the break, and Union II came out with their foot on the gas, but could not connect in the final third.
Stas Korzeniowski found the go-ahead in the 60th minute with an outside-of-the-box strike that bounced into the net. The goal marked CJ Olney’s second assist on the day. Pariano won the ball in midfield, played it back to Olney, who found Korzeniowski open.
Coach Richter had already motioned to his bench to bring on four changes. Korzeniowski, Davis, Jordan Griffin, and Cavan Sullivan made way for Oscar Benitez, Kellan LeBlanc, Malik Jakupovic, and Sal Olivas. The changes moved Nick Pariano to left back.
Markus Anderson made way for Noah Probst in the 74th minute, allowing Olney to slot forward into the wing.
Seymour Reed scored again for New York in the 80th minute. He pounced on a rebound within the six-yard box, and Andrew Rick, having already gone to ground for the initial save, was powerless to stop it.
Reed found himself through on goal for the winner in stoppage time, and Andrew Rick managed to win the ball with a sliding challenge to stay in the game.
Union II got another corner at the death, and it was none other than Neil Pierre to save the match from going to kicks from the spot.
Unfortunately, full time had already been blown in the Red Bulls II match-up in Montclair, New Jersey, where the Red Bulls were victorious in a 2-1 scoreline to maintain first place in the East. The results saw Union II finish second in the Eastern Conference for the second year in a row.
Cavan Sullivan
The younger Sullivan dressed for the first team the night before but did not see the pitch until the postgame ceremonies and celebrations. He started for Union II on Sunday afternoon and played sixty minutes.
He will leave Monday or Tuesday for the last USMNT U17 camp prior to selection of the US side for the 2025 FIFA U17 World Cup to be held in Qatar this November. He will be joined at this final preparatory camp by three other Union II players, left back Jordan Griffin, midfielder Kellen LeBlanc, and striker Jamir Johnson.
Next match
Union II will next play an opponent it will choose. Last season, the choice was exercised on Tuesday after Decision Day. Apple+ will then determine the timing depending on venue availability if shared stadia are involved.
Three points
- CJ Olney’s return to this squad continues to be monumental in its success. His three assists this afternoon are a testament to his value in this organization.
- Stas Korzeniowski extended his scoring streak to five goals in four matches.
- Union II has finally found Neil Pierre as the target man on corner kicks. Both of his goals came at crucial intervals for the team, and he will continue to become more of a threat on set pieces as he continues to physically mature.
B O X S C O R E
Lineups
Union II (4-2-2-2, L-R). Head coach Ryan Richter. 1st – 7+1; UII – 3+7; AA – 1+1. Starters’ Ave Age = 19.7
Starters: Andrew Rick (19.7); Jordan Griffin (16.9), (Oscar Benitez (20.7)–62’), Rafael Uzcategui (21.0), Neil Pierre (18.0), Gio Sequera (19.6), CJ Olney (18.8), Nick Pariano (22.5), Markus Anderson (21.8)(Noah Probst (21.1)– 74’), Cavan Sullivan (16.0)(Kellan LeBlanc (17.5)– 62’), Stas Korzeniowski (22.7)(Sal Olivas (19.3)1st– 62’), Eddy Davis (19.3)(Malik Jakupovic (16.3)– 62’).
Unused Substitutes: Lou Liedtka (23.8); Willyam Ferreira (16.6), Jamir Johnson (17.2), Kaiden Moore (18.4).
NYC FC II (4-1-4-1). Head coach Matt Pilkington.
Starters: Brennan Klein; Max Murray, Adonis Campos, Prince Amponsah, Drew Baiera, Piero Elias (Luka Sunjic- 64′), Julien Lacher (Leo Guarino- 72′), Peter Molinari, Camilo Ponce (Lucas DePinho- 72′), Sebastiano Musu, Seymour Reed
Unused substitutes: Maclean Learned; Pierce Infuso, Collin McCamy, Jack Loura, Dylan McDermott
Goals
UII: Markus Anderson (Sequera, Korzeniowski)- 27′
NYC FC II: Seymour Reed (Musu)- 33′
NYC FC II: Camilo Ponce (Lacher)- 38′
UII: Neil Pierre (Olney)- 45′
UII: Korzeniowski (Olney)- 60′
NYCFC II: Seymour Reed (unassisted)- 80′
NYC FC II: Neil Pierre (Olney)- 90+’
Yellow Cards
NYC FC II: Piero Elias- 22′
UII: Nick Pariano- 36′
Stats
| UII | Statistic | NYC | UII | Statistic | NYC |
| 24 | Shots | 9 | 2 | Offsides | 1 |
| 13 | Shots on goal | 6 | 3 | Goalkeeper Saves | 9 |
| 6 | Blocked shots | 2 | 3 | Clearances | 9 |
| 304 | Total Passes | 497 | |||
| 76 | Pass Accuracy % | 82.1 | 15 | Fouls | 10 |
| 10 | Corners | 3 | 1 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 9 | Total Crosses | 1 | 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
Whistle & Flags
Ref: Muhammad Hassanl; AR1: Trevor Hadickl; AR2: Jared Kuehl; 4th: Nick Karnovsky.
Who will they pick?
Huntsville
Chicago 2
Cincinnati 2
Red Bull II picks first; the only data I’ve thought of is head-to-head record. They won and lost versus Huntsville. They went two wins and one loss vs Chicago, but in the loss they were beaten like a drum. They won and drew against Carolina. They lost twice and drew against Cincinnati. I would think they might pick Carolina?
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Union II played Huntsville once and drew the match. The played Carolina once and lost. They split against Chicago. The played Cincinnati three times and won each time. I would think they might pick Cincinnati?
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That would leave New England to choose between Huntsville and Chicago, a defensive team and a scoring team respectively.