Hanover Loses a 2-1 Heartbreaker to Concord in Overtime

 Hanover’s makeup match with Concord ended with a heartbreaking 2-1 loss in overtime.  The Bears dominated the match and led for most of the way, but two scrappy goals gave unbeaten Concord the win in the third match in five days for both teams.

The Saturday morning match unfolded in familiar ways, with the Bears, assuming a significant territorial edge. Concord tried to press Hanover, which was a fruitless exercise that never bore fruit. Hanover’s patient possession and intelligent buildup gave them a number of chances.  They earned their first corner kick eight minutes into the match, and five minutes later, Ryder Hayes hit a free kick that was on target but right at Tide goalkeeper Nater Wachter.  

 

Hanover took a 1-0 lead at the 18-minute mark after another free kick.  Carter Guerin’s service was cleared, but the Bears calmly maintained possession.  Owen Smith played the ball to a perfectly-positioned Jack McGrath on the right flank, and his driven cross was deflected by a defender to Becket McCurdy, still lurking the area after the free kick.

The Captain drove a hard shot that was headed inside the far post, and even though a defender deflected the shot into the net, it was clearly Becket’s, and not an own goal.

 

Hanover nearly doubled the lead just a minute later.  Carter Guerin took a hard shot that Wachter saved but could not control.  Jack Gardner pounced on the rebound, and drove a hard shot that Wachter was able to.  The Bears understood the importance of going after a second goal, and would continue to attack, subbing well on a hot morning to maintain their edge.

 

Concord was not without their chances, particularly since most of their offense was predicated on several players who could launch long throws into the box.  Midway through the half, one of these long tosses found its way to the head of Bahininwah, whose header grazed the left upright.  Moments later, AJ Darjee got open for a shot that was saved by Ty Nolon.

 

Concord was aggressive, and by game’s end had accumulated twice as many fouls as Hanover.  It’s not a bad philosophy if you want to win that badly, since the officials can’t call them all, and a coach on the sidelines who never stops complaining can successfully content that the calls are one-sided.  One particularly egregious foul came close to badly injuring Ty Nolon, who athletically avoided a last and rash two-footed challenge that resulted in a yellow card. Hanover’s tackles continued to be hard but clean, in particular a wonderful baseline takeout by Owen Smith to snuff a good scoring chance.

 

Hanover’s best chance to expand their lead came just minutes from the interval, when Andrew McGuire got loose in the box going right to left and had a clean look at an open goal.  His shot was on target, and would have certainly rolled in on the Turf.  However, the Memorial Field grass slowed it enough for a defender to swoop in and clear the ball off the line.

 

Hanover resumed play in the second half with confidence and precision, but couldn’t finish. Andrew McGuire had another well-taken shot saved at close range by Wachter at the eight minute mark, and two minutes later volleyed a cross from Jack McGuire into Wachter.  Two minutes after that, another Ryder free kick was slapped out by Wachter (tired of hearing his name yet?)

 

Concord was still lurking, and on one of their rare forays into the Hanover half, another uncontested head on a long throw forced Nolon to make a great save on a header by Connor White.  Hanover, which would outshoot Concord 11-4 in the half, kept pressing.  A Carter Guerin shot was cleared off the line, and a far post header by Alex McGrath on a corner was blocked. Hayes, who led the team with four shots, had another free kick saved by Wachter.  

 

With 11 minutes to play, disaster.  Concord’s only form of attacking the goal, save for the occasional free kick, was the big throw, and they finally took advantage.  A long toss from the right side sailed into the box, and once again Concord was first to the ball.  Salvator Baruani deflected the throw off the far post and in, and the match was tied.  Hanover would redouble their efforts, as Concord quickly resumed a defensive posture.  Several scrambles in the box came up empty, and the game went to overtime, which should have favored the deeper Bears.

 

Things started well in the first overtime, with Sean Smith getting a good shot on goal, but Concord worked the ball into their left attacking corner, and a foul was called that gave Concord a free kick.  We have the advantage of clear film review.  There was no foul.  In addition, just before the call, Becket McCurdy had his foot stomped on, and had the leave the match.  Minus their best defender, Hanover was vulnerable.  Concord sent a low, hard drive into the mixer, and a close-in shot resulted in a great save by Nolon.  But the resulting rebound went right to Nick Reynolds in front of the open goal, and made no mistake, giving Concord the goal and the win.

 

It was a bitter loss, and it dropped Hanover’s record to 3-2.  You always hate to lose to a team you dominate, particularly when their tactics aren’t always the purest.  Nevertheless, Hanover has little tie to brood, with undefeated (yes, Hanover’s third straight unbeaten opponent) defending state champion Nashua South comes to town on Tuesday.  It will be a great test of Hanover’s ability to rebound, and make further progress toward their objectives.