The Columbus Crew got goals from Homegrown Players Aaron Horton and Ben Speas to lift the home team past EPL side Stoke City 2-1 in an international friendly.
Stoke, in the U.S. for a preseason training tour, brought some of the world’s best footballers to Crew Stadium and at the same time allowed some of their younger players to get some experience. Peter Crouch and Kenwyne Jones were the biggest names for the Potters and both saw time in the friendly.
The game started off with Stoke exerting some dominance over the Crew. The home fans were holding their breath as the Crew and Stoke City were trading jabs, but the visitors were the first to strike it big with a goal from Jonathan Walters in the 23rd minute.
The Crew continued to put forth opportunities, but a lack of quality finishing in the first half kept them off the scoresheet. The Crew would have to wait until the second half to get some goals from some unlikely sources.
Both sides put in different squads for the second half. The Crew opted for reserve players that included three Homegrown Players: Horton, Speas, and goalkeeper Matt Lampson. Stoke City would substitute one superstar for another, sending in Jones to replace Crouch in the 53rd minute. The second half was clearly an opportunity for young players to gain some experience and for others to improve fitness.
Columbus took advantage of the situation as Horton slammed home a goal in the 71st minutes as the opportunities finally turned into a goal for the Crew. Sixteen minutes later, Speas landed one of his own. Neither player has seen regular first-team action this season, but with more performances like this, that may certainly change.
It was impressive to see the Crew stand strong against Stoke City, the second oldest team in the world behind Notts County. They never backed down, never were sheepish in their play, and were never intimidated by a quality English side that was still finding their preseason form.
The Crew did pick up two injuries to defenders Nemanja Vukovic and Josh Williams. Vukovic will miss some time due to an ankle injury, while Williams could still be available this weekend after tweaking his back.
“I thought we played some good soccer,” Williams said. “At the end of the day it was an awesome experience.”
Even though it was just a friendly, a win is still a win. The hope is that the Crew will build from this positive moment and make a run up the table and a push to the playoffs.
