The Myrtle Beach Mutiny dismantled the Georgia Revolution 4-0 at the RYSA Soccer Complex in Conyers, GA on Thursday night in an NPSL clash.
Mutiny forward Aksel Juul opened the scoring just moments after kickoff, as the Wingate Bulldog tapped in a low cross at the back post. Jon Ander Ibarrondo doubled the lead within the first ten minutes—his goal a mirror image of Juul’s.
“When we’re giving up cheap goals the way that we did and not really tracking on the back post or not really dealing with the attacking midfielders, we’re always going to be in a tough spot,” Revolution assistant coach Jon Callahan said.
Keeping tabs on Myrtle Beach’s attacking mids and forwards proved to be quite problematic for the Revolution, a struggling side now sitting at 1-4 on the season.
In the waning moments of an underwhelming first half by the Revolution, a potential momentum shifter came in the form of a penalty stop by Georgia netminder Bjorn Kammholz. A halftime speech at the interval, in addition to the small victory that was Kammholz’s save, gave the Revs a boost heading into the second frame.
“After the coach actually spoke to us and rallied us, we were about ready to come and change the result from the first half,” Revolution defender Kofi Yankey said.
However, the Revolution continued to chase shadows in the middle of the park after the break. The Revs mids were battling a persisting inability to shield the back four. The Mutiny’s potent attack asked questions, and Georgia could not maintain shape on defense. According to Callahan, this problem can be resolved by better commitment to defensive organization and tracking runners.
The visitors from South Carolina ran riot in the second half, as Ibarrondo added a second goal to his personal tally before Kieran Geldenhuys scored the fourth and final goal of the contest.
A few minutes after 9 p.m. on a sweltering Georgia evening, the game reached a merciful conclusion. Callahan lauded his team’s work ethic, but stressed that the defensive organization must improve as the season wears on.
“We need to get on with it and get on to the next opportunity and chance get this taste out of our mouth, because obviously it’s not a very good one,” Callahan said. “We’re going to carry on. We’re going to keep working and see what we can do.”
Ibarrondo’s creativity was on display, as was Juul’s incisive movement off the ball. The Revolution floundered, even in the second half when a handful of personnel changes were made. Center forward Carlos Mendoza worked incredibly hard during his 45 minutes on the pitch, but there was a clear disconnect between the midfield and the lone striker. As the contest reached its final quarter-hour, Georgia’s frustration became visible. It became palpable. A bunch of talented individuals are still learning how to gel as a unit. This team showed some glimmers of hope, and there is still a chance to find some W’s in the coming weeks.
“One positive is that now we know what to do in terms of maintaining shape and following the game plan,” Yankey said. “Of course, every loss is a learning experience.”
The Revs will undoubtedly be working on that game plan in training during the coming days, amending how to work their high press in order to clog the middle of the field. This, naturally, would force the opposition to play wide. Using the sideline as a defender can be an effective strategy when pressurizing, but the Revs were—despite their efforts—unable to effectively employ that tactic against their South Atlantic Conference foes on this occasion.
“I can say we will take a lot of lessons from this, especially all the mistakes we made,” Yankey said.
The Revolution will face the Carolina RailHawks NPSL at home on Friday, June 10 at 7 pm.
