Bears Beat Concord 2-0 in Playoff Opener

  

The Bears opened their second season successfully on a warm, misty Wednesday, combining two first-half goals with airtight defense to beat Concord 2-0 in the opening round of the NHIAA Division One playoffs.  The win was the 10th in a row for the 13-4 Bears, who now travel to Exeter for a Sunday quarterfinal match at 2:00.

 

Hanover had lost to Concord in overtime earlier in the season, and had no trouble getting started on the front foot.  Sean Smith blazed a low cross through the Concord box in the early going, and Zach Tracy made a great run into the box. Seven minutes into the match, against the run of play, Concord had a chance to make an impact on the game with a rare foray into the Hanover and a chance for a throw-in, literally their only offensive weapon.  Hanover keeper Ty Nolon made a bold statement on the dangerous throw by defender Connor White, coming hard off his line to punch the ball away for a corner, which was subsequently well-defended.

 

Hanover seemed to be particularly adept breaking out of their end effectively, and after a few trial runs, the Bears struck paydirt in the thirteenth minute.  Sean Smith sent a perfect through ball to Jack Gardner, who finished a predatory run into the box which culminated in a hard shot that was saved by Crimson Tide goalkeeper Nater Wachter.  Wachter couldn’t control the almost-inevitable rebound, and Carter Guerin finished off an anticipatory run with an easy put-away for his 8thgoal of the season and a 1-0 lead.

 

Concord missed an opportunity on a shot by Ben Hughes, which was their second and last one of the half.  For the rest of the way, the scales tipped toward Hanover.  A few minutes after his flick header nearly found the net on a corner kick, Ryder Hayes scored an emphatic goal after a series of brilliant passes.  Are they allowed to give three assists on one play? Zach Tracy sent a superb ball to Sean Smith, who broke hard into the box and squared the ball to a wide open Hayes scoring for the first time in 14 games. Tracy’s helper was his team-leading 8th assist.

 

Hanover continued to press for more, aided somewhat when a Concord player received a yellow card, remonstrated, and was shown red.  Down to 10 players, the Crimson Tide defended resolutely.  Wachter made a great save on Will Guerin’s close-range shot, and then Sam Calderwood nearly scored a spectacular goal when he beat the Concord keeper to a loose ball wide on the right side, but his hurried shot went wide.  Will Guerin had another great look late in the half, nearly connecting on a beautiful cross by Ben Woods wide on the left.

 

Hanover was focused and relentless in the second half.  They outshot Concord by a significant margin, and dominated possession.  Sean Smith forced Wachter to make a great save early in the half, and following a rare Concord’s chance, a free kick skied over the goal by Shamir Darjee, Hanover continued the pounding with good shots on goal by Jack Gardner Smith.  Concord got close enough for two more long throws, and once again Nolon came off his line early and hard, cutting out the throw in traffic and completely neutralizing Concord’s one weapon. 

 

Andrew McGuire broke well into the box and hit a hard shot side netting, and Will Guerin saw a glittering chance go astray when he was correctly awarded a penalty kick after being up ended by Wachter in the box. His spot kick was on goal, but it was well saved by Wachter diving to his left.  Guerin responded with a wonderful defensive  play, blocking a hard-hit corner kick with a “is that all you got?” vibe.  Hayes made a great bid for a second goal, but his shot, set up beautifully by Gardner, was well-saved by Wachter.

 

This was a wonderful way for the Bears to begin the playoff season. They earned three more training sessions and another match, one they have a very reasonable chance to win. They are playing hard, and unselfishly, and have plenty of time to sharpen up before Sunday’s quarterfinal at Exeter.

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