Manchester Memorial, Concord boys soccer play to a scoreless draw

CONCORD - Manchester Memorial High School boys soccer coach Chris Florek said goalkeeper Connor Page has saved the team a few times this season.

Page did so again Wednesday when the Crusaders and Concord played to a scoreless draw over a hundred minutes of play at Memorial Field.

The senior made eight saves on his way to becoming just the third goalie to shut out the Crimson Tide (9-3-1) this season. Page and the rest of the Crusaders also defended 10 Concord corner kicks.

“Concord is good,” Florek said. “They’ve got a good coach and they’re well organized. But we just wanted to be organized on defense and try not to give up a goal, obviously.

The Crimson Tide had the edge in possession throughout most of the contest. They created the majority of their dangerous scoring chances in the second half.  

Concord sophomore Sebastian Pardo took an uncontested shot from eight yards out that went just over the crossbar in the 41st minute. Teammate Alasdair Ferrier had his header denied by Page in the 64th minute. Crimson Tide junior back Liam Bennett ripped a rocket of a shot from about 20 yards out that went just wide left of goal with six minutes left in regulation.

Concord often played wide when it had possession, which the Crusaders (4-6-2) had difficulty defending. More than a few of the Crimson Tide’s scoring opportunities developed after crossing the ball into the penalty box from a wide position.

“We emphasized at halftime to distribute the ball out wide and try to turn the corner on their outside backs and get endline and serve some balls in,” Concord coach Scott Dunlop said. “We definitely created more chances when we established that.”

After playing defensively throughout most of regulation, Memorial got its offense going in overtime. The Crusaders registered their lone shot on goal and their three corner kicks over the two overtime periods.

Memorial junior Thomas Gerton nearly bested Crimson Tide goalie Liam Devanny with five minutes left in the final overtime frame. The midfielder collected the ball inside the box off a rebound following Devanny’s lone save of the game but his shot sailed over the crossbar.

“We knew coming in we’re a little banged up but just be organized on D and hopefully get a couple chances, some half chances and that’s pretty much what happened,” Florek said.

Concord junior forward Chea Chebo suffered an ankle injury in the first overtime and did not return.

The Crusaders are battling for one of Division I’s 13 playoff spots. Florek said Wednesday’s draw with Concord will give them a boost as they try to achieve that goal over their final three regular-season games.

“It builds the team up,” Florek said. “We’re a little banged up. We’ve got players coming back. This was good for momentum.”