It was a banner night for the youngest players on the Oakland Roots roster, as four players from the club’s development squad, Project 51O, helped lead the team to a 1-1 draw with the Charleston Battery on Saturday night at Pioneer Stadium in Hayward.
Four of the Roots’ regulars got sick with a virus that left them either unable to play or able to play only limited minutes. But Project 51O players stepped in.
Ilya Alekseev led the way in his first regular season appearance with the Roots, scoring the equalizer in the 50th minute of play. Alekseev is a graduate of Amador Valley High School who signed an Academy Contract with the Roots nine days ago.
“We were on a break,” Alekseev said after the match. “I’d seen Memo [Diaz] making the run and I know he wants to cross it. So I sprint, I sprint as hard as I can to get to the back post, just like in training, we do that all the time. I get my head on it and that’s that.”
Alekseev said only found out he was going to be in the starting lineup a few hours before the match.
“I really didn’t expect it, but everyone was getting sick,” Alekseev said. “We had two center backs, I think like, just last minute they got sick, so I had to step up and make sure I wasn’t getting close to anyone. Make sure I didn’t catch the bug.”
Alekseev wasn’t the only Project 51O who made a contribution. Etsgar Cruz came on at halftime as a substitute and played the entire second half. Thomas Camier also made his Roots debut, coming on as a sub in the 81st minute.
Charleston Dominates Possession in the First Half
Charleston had a number of chances to score in the first half, while Oakland was fighting to hang on.
In the 20th minute, Charleston’s Nathan Dossantos grabbed a loose ball in the box, but goalkeeper Paul Blanchette was able to smother his shot from close range.
In the 25th minute, a rebound bounced out to Diego Gutiérrez at the edge of the six-yard box, but he blasted his shot over the crossbar.
The goal came in the 35th minute. Arturo Rodriguez crossed the ball into the box. Nicholas Markanich headed the ball downward; it trickled through Blanchette’s arms and into the net
After Alekseev’s Goal
After the goal, Charleston had a few scattered chances, while the Roots had one chance just before the final whistle.
In the 51st minute, Jackson Conway’s shot was partially blocked. It took an odd bounce off the turf, forcing Blanchette to rush back in order to deflect the ball to safety.
In the 65th minute, Charleston’s Chris Allen blasted a one-timer from the edge of the box that forced Blanchette to dive at full extension to tip the ball over the endline.
In the 74th minute, Charleston’s Matt Myers found a little bit of space to get off a shot, but it went straight into the arms of Blanchette.
The Roots nearly grabbed the 3 points in the 90th minute, when Neveal Hackshaw headed the ball over a crowd of Charleston defenders, but straight into the arms of goalkeeper Adam Grinwis.
“I think in the first half, we rushed it too much,” Head Coach Noah Delgado said after the match. “Too many giveaways on very simple passes we usually make. We could be like different players playing with each other and this other kind of fluidity but I thought more in the second half it’s like relax, connect the pass, keep the ball in their half.”
Delgado praised the young players’ contributions.
“You know, sometimes that’s how football goes. Your name gets called when you least expect it,” he said. “We had plans for these guys to have minutes later the season, but maybe not Game Two. But they stepped in, like I said, they’re prepared. They played preseason games, they played against Columbus Crew, you know, the MLS champions. So they’ve seen very high levels. And I’m just very happy with that. They came in, they were able to contribute.”
“I love the atmosphere,” Alekseev said. “I love the fans here. When I scored, man, it was so loud. With this type of crowd. it’s my first ever game like this. Oh yeah, I just soaked it all in the best I could.”
