Union Omaha started off its 2023 USL League One campaign battling 90 minutes against visitor Forward Madison to a 1-1 draw. It was the 10th league meeting between the clubs and the 6th draw in the series.
The talk surrounding the club started well before kickoff, as several inches of snow had to be cleared from Caniglia Field at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Union Omaha fans woke up to a white blanket on the ground and a call to action from the club to help them clear the field in time for the opening whistle. With the help of the many fans and front office members who volunteered to shovel, the field was cleared with plenty of time for the final stadium preparations to begin.
Union Omaha’s first chance on goal came in the fifth minute, as Stefan Mueller crossed a ball into the box to Alex Steinwascher for a header that was saved by Forward Madison’s goalkeeper Bernd Shipmann. The very next minute, Forward Madison had their first opportunity on goal, when Derek Gebhard was able to feed Christian Chaney for a shot. Fortunately for Union Omaha fans and veteran goalkeeper Rashid Nuhu, the shot was blocked and play continued.
The Owls took the early lead when Luis Gil took a 20th-minute corner kick and fed a perfectly-placed cross to none other than JP Scearce for the header to the back of the net. The goal was Scearce’s 11th league goal with Union Omaha and 6th league goal in the form of a header.
The rest of the first half was Union Omaha not letting their foot off the gas pedal. By the time the halftime whistle was blown, Union Omaha owned over 52% of the possession – a stat not many fans are accustomed to seeing. The Owls also led the match with almost 85% passing accuracy, almost 10% more total passes, more shots on goal, and a successful tackle rate of 75%.
When the whistle blew and the second half was under way, it was clear that adjustments had been made in both locker rooms during the break. A key difference was Forward Madison’s ability to progress up the field and pass accurately in Union Omaha’s half. After only completing 67.2% of such passes in the first half, Forward Madison increased that stat to 73.5% by the final whistle.
In the 55th minute, Forward Madison’s Derek Gebhard carried the ball just inside the penalty area on the left side. Just before the ball was able to roll across the goal line, he was able to feed a pass to the corner of the goal area, where teammate Christian Chaney was making a diagonal run towards Gebhard. With his back to goal, and off-balanced, Chaney was able to spin and take a shot along the ground toward the near post. Union Omaha’s Rashid Nuhu tried his best to cover the near post, but the ball was able to find its way into the net for the equalizer.
Until injury time was revealed, it was a pure test of possession and progression, as neither club was able to register a shot on goal. With four minutes of extra time awarded to the match, Forward Madison had two more surprises left up their sleeve. In the last minute of injury time, the Flamingos were able to get two shots on goal – Christian Chaney had a shot toward the center of the goal and Mauro Cichero had a header saved.
After the final whistle sounded, the two sides shared a point and fans from both clubs seemed to recognize and respect the efforts both clubs made in the offseason to bolster their respective rosters. Union Omaha still held a slight edge on possession (51.7% to 48.3%), passing accuracy (82.9% to 81.8%), and clearly excelled at their tackle success rate (73.3% to 57.1%).
“Yeah, I think the first half was pretty good,” Union Omaha Head Coach Dominic Casciato said. “I think when we got into the second half, we maybe struggled a little bit to create any meaningful opportunities and I think that was kind of where we fell short. I think we struggled a little bit to get effective pressure on the board, as well as in the second half, so that’s something we’ll have to address.”
When asked about the stadium environment, Casciato said, “The fans were great. Great to have them here supporting us and we could definitely hear them on the bench and that gives us a little bit more energy as we go forwards.”
On player performances, Casciato said, “I think all the guys gave a great effort. It’s going to take time for us to gel 100%, but I think the guys gave a great effort at buying into the ideas of how we want to play with the existing guys, as well. I think for us maybe just being a little bit more aggressive with the ball and without the ball as we move forward, but definitely a positive first day.”
Regarding the upcoming match with One Knox, Casciato responded, “Yeah, looking forward to it. They’ve had a good start, obviously winning last week, so we’re looking forward to going there and putting in a good performance.”
In Week 3, Union Omaha travels to Knoxville, Tennessee to take on One Knox, newcomer to USL League One. Kickoff is scheduled for Saturday, April 1st at 5 PM CT and the broadcast will be provided by ESPN+.
Match Report
Attendance: 1,931
Goals:
- 20’: OMA – JP Scearce (assisted by Luis Gil)
- 55’: MAD – Christian Chaney (assisted by Derek Gebhard)
Subs:
- 56’: OMA – Alex Steinwascher off, Steevan Dos Santos on
- 72’: OMA – Noe Meza off, Pedro Dolabella on
- 73’: MAD – Aiden Mesias off, Mauro Cichero in; Nazeem Bartman off , Andrew Wheeler-Omiunu in
- 85’: OMA – Dion Acoff off, Shaft Brewer Jr. in
Discipline:
- OMA: 40’ – Dion Acoff (Yellow)
- OMA: 63’ – Junior Palacios (Yellow)
- MAD: 77’ – Andrew Wheeler-Omiunu (Yellow)
- MAD: 82’ – Mitch Osmond (Yellow)
- OMA: 89’ – Shaft Brewer Jr. (Yellow)
Who Gives A Hoot? 