TULSA – It may have been an intrasquad scrimmage on a turf field at Titan Sports Complex, but the level of intensity from FC Tulsa’s first “match action” of the Spring was in midseason form. Coach Nsien’s assistants, Donovan Ricketts and Nemanja Vukovic took to the touchlines, coaching either side in the scrimmage. While the score ultimately didn’t matter as much as developing chemistry and fitness, the sides finished even at 1-1 over 70 minutes of action.
“First, to point out, I’ve missed watching good 11v11 games," said Nsien after the match. "What we wanted was for guys to get good minutes under their belt and to start building some relationships. The teams were pretty balanced today, we put the teams together for that particular reason, and I thought the guys did pretty well for our first game. Thirty-five minutes, times two, is not easy, but they got a lot of the match, and we saw a lot of things to improve on, but also things to be proud of already.”
It was Ricketts’ side who started on the front foot and the momentum paid dividends early. A Rodrigo da Costa chip beat the defense and found the feet of Jerome Kiesewetter in the box. Before a shot could come, Kiesewetter was tripped up from behind, resulting in a penalty for Team Ricketts.
Forward Darío Suárez stepped up to the spot and rocketed his penalty into corner for a deserved 1-0 lead for Team Ricketts. The rest of the 35-minute first half played out without any more goals, but with Team Ricketts having the better chances. Suárez almost doubled his total in the 20’ minute with a header that just flew over the crossbar, but the teams went into halftime with Ricketts leading 1-0.
“Yeah, I feel good to score in the first game,” said Suarez. “It went really well for being the first game of the preseason. I tried to hit the ball well; I hit it with potential. I don’t think anyone was saving that one.”
It didn’t take Team Vuko long to even things in the second half. A through ball from midfielder Lucas Coutinho played winger Joaquín Rivas into space on the left. The Salvadoran international made no mistake on his shot, beating the keeper into the far corner. Rivas will depart FC Tulsa camp in the coming days to compete for El Salvador in the upcoming World Cup qualifiers for La Selecta.
“I think we’re all putting in the work and it’s showing,” said Rivas. “Definitely the trust. I think everybody is getting along, and it’s all gonna show on the field once we get going, and I’m looking forward to it.”
It appeared Team Ricketts found a winner in the 65’ minute when Suárez hit the post with the rebound falling perfectly to Kiesewetter. The U.S. international didn’t miss, hammering home the deflection into the open net. However, Suárez was ruled offside in the build-up, nullifying the potential match-winner. The match finished 1-1, and most importantly, with no injuries to either side.
The second half featured FC Tulsa’s two Academy signings, Tony Mota and Martin Martinez-Leyva, enter the match as subs, as well as another local product, keeper Austin Wormell, who signed a Professional Contract with the club last week. In total, 20 of FC Tulsa’s 23 rostered players saw action the scrimmage, along with a number of local trialists, looking to catch the eye of the FC Tulsa coaching staff.
FC Tulsa will be in action in its first true preseason match against Houston Dynamo in College Station, Texas on Wednesday afternoon. The match will be played on Texas A&M’s campus at Ellis Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. and fans are allowed. Tickets are free and available through Texas A&M’s website.
TULSA – It may have been an intrasquad scrimmage on a turf field at Titan Sports Complex, but the level of intensity from FC Tulsa’s first “match action” of the Spring was in midseason form. Coach Nsien’s assistants, Donovan Ricketts and Nemanja Vukovic took to the touchlines, coaching either side in the scrimmage. While the score ultimately didn’t matter as much as developing chemistry and fitness, the sides finished even at 1-1 over 70 minutes of action.
“First, to point out, I’ve missed watching good 11v11 games,” said Nsien after the match. “What we wanted was for guys to get good minutes under their belt and to start building some relationships. The teams were pretty balanced today, we put the teams together for that particular reason, and I thought the guys did pretty well for our first game. Thirty-five minutes, times two, is not easy, but they got a lot of the match, and we saw a lot of things to improve on, but also things to be proud of already.”
It was Ricketts’ side who started on the front foot and the momentum paid dividends early. A Rodrigo da Costa chip beat the defense and found the feet of Jerome Kiesewetter in the box. Before a shot could come, Kiesewetter was tripped up from behind, resulting in a penalty for Team Ricketts.
Forward Darío Suárez stepped up to the spot and rocketed his penalty into corner for a deserved 1-0 lead for Team Ricketts. The rest of the 35-minute first half played out without any more goals, but with Team Ricketts having the better chances. Suárez almost doubled his total in the 20’ minute with a header that just flew over the crossbar, but the teams went into halftime with Ricketts leading 1-0.
“Yeah, I feel good to score in the first game,” said Suarez. “It went really well for being the first game of the preseason. I tried to hit the ball well; I hit it with potential. I don’t think anyone was saving that one.”
It didn’t take Team Vuko long to even things in the second half. A through ball from midfielder Lucas Coutinho played winger Joaquín Rivas into space on the left. The Salvadoran international made no mistake on his shot, beating the keeper into the far corner. Rivas will depart FC Tulsa camp in the coming days to compete for El Salvador in the upcoming World Cup qualifiers for La Selecta.
“I think we’re all putting in the work and it’s showing,” said Rivas. “Definitely the trust. I think everybody is getting along, and it’s all gonna show on the field once we get going, and I’m looking forward to it.”
It appeared Team Ricketts found a winner in the 65’ minute when Suárez hit the post with the rebound falling perfectly to Kiesewetter. The U.S. international didn’t miss, hammering home the deflection into the open net. However, Suárez was ruled offside in the build-up, nullifying the potential match-winner. The match finished 1-1, and most importantly, with no injuries to either side.
The second half featured FC Tulsa’s two Academy signings, Tony Mota and Martin Martinez-Leyva, enter the match as subs, as well as another local product, keeper Austin Wormell, who signed a Professional Contract with the club last week. In total, 20 of FC Tulsa’s 23 rostered players saw action the scrimmage, along with a number of local trialists, looking to catch the eye of the FC Tulsa coaching staff.
FC Tulsa will be in action in its first true preseason match against Houston Dynamo in College Station, Texas on Wednesday afternoon. The match will be played on Texas A&M’s campus at Ellis Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. and fans are allowed. Tickets are free and available through Texas A&M’s website.
