Some players hit the ground running. Others like to hit the ground scoring. Literally, in the case of Memphis’ new signing Nighte Pickering.
The 17-year-old, who had joined the team just two days prior to Saturday’s game, decided that he didn’t have time to wait around to open his professional account. The teenager’s acrobatic bicycle kick late in the game marked his first goal in Memphis blue, and 901 FC’s final tally en route to a smooth 3-1 victory at AutoZone Park.
Last Saturday’s victory made it two relatively simple wins on the bounce. New York Red Bulls II didn’t threaten much back on August 3rd, and the same went here, with Memphis dominating the first half completely, almost taking the lead when David Egbo tapped in from close range, but the forward was adjudged to have been offside by a hair. And just a minute later, Memphis actually fell behind when caught out by a quick counter attack, former 901 FC player Rashawn Dally squaring for Prince Saydee to smash in from close range in the 37th.
But 901 FC doesn’t like losing this season, and midfielder Aaron Molloy just a few minutes later blasted in an equalizer, smashing his shot from outside the box past a helpless Yannik Oettl in the Hartford goal. And then just a couple minutes after that, Molloy tallied his eight assist of the season after he sent in a delicious swerving set piece delivery that defender Zach Carroll was all too happy to head in from close range, putting Memphis up 2-1 at halftime.
Memphis continued to dominate after halftime, but the clear icing on the cake was Pickering subbing on to score his first professional goal. Pouncing on a poorly headed clearance in the Hartford box, he launched himself into the air and hit his overhead kick goalward. As he hit the ground, the ball flew into the back of the net, cuing wild jubilation from the crowd and his teammates. Not bad for a first goal at the pro level, eh? That’s a player oozing with confidence and already feeling at home in the league, and no matter where his career goes from here, he’ll always have that.
So how dominant was 901 FC in this game? Take a look at the maps below. On the first touch map (901 FC players represented by brown circles), numbers 7 and 19, fullbacks Patrick Seagrist and Rece Buckmaster, respectively, held an average position almost inside the Hartford half. Meanwhile, only four Hartford players had an average position inside Memphis’ half, and not very far upfield. And in the heat map below, Seagrist and Buckmaster had an enormous amount of touches in the attacking side of the pitch, more so in the first half, but that continued into the second half as well.
And the team put on a clinic while resting top scorer Phillip Goodrum. Not a bad day at the office, reflected by 901 Fc’s 21 shots (15 inside the box) to Hartford’s 10. And Molloy nabbed himself another spot in the USL’s Team of the Week.
The win moves the team up to 14-5-3 on the season, and third in the Eastern Conference standings. Next up is a trip to the Steel City to face the Pittsburgh Riverhounds on Saturday, August 13th. And the break should give head coach Ben Pirmann time to incorporate new signing Jackson Brady, who signed a 25-day contract with the team on Monday.