Quick Thoughts as Sporting Jax Pick Up First Men's Professional Win

Sarasota Paradise 0 Sporting Jax 2

Here are some quick thoughts as goals from Rafferty Pedder and Ahmad Al Qaq were more than enough for Sporting Jax to pick up their first professional win.

First Half - Rafferty Pedder Goal Lone Brightspot

• This might be the strongest starting 11 Sporting Jax has. The fact they are starting them on a Wednesday against Sarasota Paradise in the What Tire Brand is This Cup in a group where finishing first or advancing as a best 2nd place is a slim possibility says all you need to know about how desperate Liam Fox and Mark Warburton are for any win.

• Rockson Amedeka gets the start over Alex Sutton in goal. This doesn’t surprise me after this past Saturday’s performance. May as well see what Amedeka can do between the pipes. After the opener, maybe Sutton wouldn’t have been a bad idea.

• I don’t know what was worse from Sarasota in the first half, their spacing or their set pieces off corners. On three occasions Sarasota got caught in their defensive corner and can only be thankful they only got bit once in conceding an attacking throw. Four corners and only one chance from a second phase that Matt Bolduc hit with purchase. At least Ethan Dudley took one for the team because I’m not sure Olivares would have held it.

• Sporting Jax, too slow building out the back, way too rushed when getting near the 18 yard box. There’s a certain sense of irony the goal came from the midfield. Kieran Sadlier’s pass to Rafferty Pedder was precise and Pedder was smart to take advantage of Sarasota Paradise ball watching to go for goal outside the 18 yard box. That said, Rockson Amedeka has to do better as that was a shot that should have seen a better save effort.

  • Ethan Bryant may have been better off taking a yellow card there because any challenge from behind would have been outside the 18. Instead he ole’s and Pedder’s making it Sarasota Paradise 0 Sporting Jax 1.

• Sarasota’s possession was truly the sound of fury signifying absolutely nil/nada/zip. All that possession in their attacking third and only one shot of consequence to shot for it. Sporting Jax only tried with purpose going forward three times.

Second Half - Ahmad Al Qaq Seals First Sporting Jax Win

• That was a much better start from Sarasota Paradise. Jorgen Pettersen’s diagonal long ball to Jonathan Bolanos left Sporting Jax with only Antonio Gomez and Harvey Neville back. Gomez whiffed on the tackle, Bolanos unable to get the ball through Harvey Neville. The resulting corner was much better as Declan Watters got a free header on goal near post. Thankfully for Sporting Jax Ryan Edwards was there to head it clear.

• Don’t think Harvey Neville and Jonathan Bolanos will be swapping shirts or trading cards anytime soon. After Bolanos was clipped by Neville, Bolanos got his pound of flesh 2 minutes later. Each deserved their yellow card.

• Sarasota Paradise’s chance in the 67th minute was their chance of the half to equalize. Best spacing and passing they had all day and when substitutes Matthew Cence and Jordan Bender got together Bender had space to put the ball into the box. Just one major problem…it was too tall for Jonathan Bolanos, in his last act of the night, to get a proper header on it and Christian Olivares wasn’t bothered with the save.

• Sporting Jax’s attack in the second half was shoot at Rockson Amedeka and hope for the best. The lone time they didn’t a 74th minute Emil Jaaskelainen header from a Wan Kuzain cross that Amedeka barely got to.

• Liam Fox may have been a bit premature bringing Kieran Sadlier and Rafferty Pedder off the park on 70 minutes. Sarasota began to show signs of life in the final third once those two were taken off.

• Harvey Neville in a nutshell, allowing Matthew Cence to walk him down on the end line in the 84th minute. Jorgen Pettersen was unlucky to not finish as Olivares made the save of the night to keep it 1-0. That would be huge 3 minutes later.

• Sarasota opens up and Sporting Jax finish it off. Emil Jaaskelainen to Rito out wide, with a centering ball that is finished by Ahmad Al Qaq. It was the classic cup goal when the team behind was trying for the equalizer. Instead, it’s Sarasota Paradise 0 Sporting Jax 2.

Let’s make no bones about it, this was not a good watch. Sporting Jax won’t care. They took the sting out of the game, allowed Sarasota to beat themselves and took advantage of 2 of their 5 chances forward. If Sporting Jax put up a performance like this in Naples, it won’t matter FC Naples is currently playing in Boise Idaho…Naples is getting at least a point.

Sporting Jax’s best hope is for the Tampa Bay Rowdies to beat Miami FC on Saturday while defeating FC Naples in regulation on Sunday. If that happens, we very well could get a repeat of the chaos this group threw up on match day 4 last year.

Sporting Jax will complete their USL Cup foray against USL League One sides on Sunday, May 17th when they travel to play FC Naples with a 5 pm kick.

Announced attendance: 683