We all know that Celtic doesn't travel well. Never have, probably never will. Luckily, Eastside is a very bad soccer team. Celtic arrived with eleven players before Brian Clifton made an unlikely appearance to give the Bhoys one sub. I'm sure that Humphrey Ormesher was very excited to see Clifton warming up so he didn't have to play a full 90 and run the risk of futher damaging his tender ribs.
The game went pretty much how anyone would have expected it to go. Celtic controlled the flow but, as per usual, couldn't finish in the final third. Too many long balls haunted the away team once again. Turnovers were many, but again, Eastside is really bad so the turnovers didn't sting Celtic like they could have.
Pete Shrake opened the scoring with a nice little volley off a Kirk Komejan header from close to the goal. It broke the ice and it looked like Celtic was going to open the flood gates. Only they didn't. Again.
At halftime, Celtic discussed keeping the ball wide and working the wings instead of constantly forcing the ball to the forwards. We urged Clifton to use his speed to blow by the slower Eastside defenders.
Celtic opened the half the same way they closed the first half - consistent possession without results. Finally, about midway through the half, Clifton woke up and took a seam pass between the defenders. He blew by them like they were standing still ( becasue they were) and calmly deposited the ball into the net for the 2-0 lead.
Unfortunately, Celtic could not score again despite constant pressure. The game ended 2-0. A win is a win but this one didn't feel very good.
MVP: Mike Sheppard
Honorable Mention: Ebon Nash
