Blue Raiders win Region game 2-1 after Eagles OT Goal Wiped Away
5/18/21
Evensville, TN -- Rhea County High School soccer hosted Cleveland in opeing game of region tournament and the game was spectacular, with great play by both teams that played to 1-1 tie in regulation. That brought up overtime and with around 3 minutes left in the first overtime period, Beckham Davidson broke free on the attack on the goal and curved the ball into the left corner of the net and scored the go-a-head goal for the Eagles. The Eagle sideline and players on the field celebrated the big goal that had put Rhea into the lead. But elation turned to confusion as the goal was wiped away. Officials did not see the ball as it nestled into the net and then out a hole in the left corner, which left the ball behind the net. Fans and players alike saw the ball go through the net, but due to rules and regulations, the goal does not count unless officials see the ball go into the net(and in normal cases, the ball stays in the net. Pleas from coaches and players fell on deaf ears as rules trumped reality and goal was not counted. Photographers and videographers on sideline offered video and photographic evidence of the goal but that was not an allowable action.
After the non-goal, the teams continued on and it was Cleveland that found the goal next in the second overtime around the nine minute mark for the 2-1 lead. Eagles had a couple of chances, but did not get a tying goal and at the end of the game the scoreboard showed 2-1 and Eagles were eliminated and the joyout Blue Raiders celebrated, while the Eagles could only think about what could have been, if not for the hole. This unfortunate event ruined a fantastic game to watch. Both teams went toe to toe and the play was excellent by both teams. Both teams knew when they arrived at the field, that only one team would move on, but neither thought that the game would be decided by a hole in the net and not by players on the field. The second Rhea County goal would have ended the game in a 2-2 and Eagles would have still had a chance for win. This was the most electric soccer game atmosphere that I have ever seen at Rhea County. The atmosphere was very comparable to Rhea County football and you know how electric that can be. Much thanks to all those who came out to witness a great game by both teams.
Sean Norman scored the lone goal for Eagles around the 23 minute mark of the first half and Eagles had the 1-0 lead at the half. Cleveland came up with the tying score with 31 minutes left in the second half.
Rhea County Soccer coach Justin Smith recently shared feedbacck on the followup to the game.
''TSSAA, not surprisingly, has said that nothing can be done. There is currently no stipulation for replays or video/photo evidence to be used to determine calls live, or to overrule calls after the game that were made incorrectly in live play. We have talked with both the TSSAA head over officials and the head over soccer. As a team, there are no productive options for us to do anything about changing what happened last night. It hurts, and I am still shocked that something like this could happen.''
''Looking atthe game film of the play, which is an absolutely gorgeous counter attack from our boys- Stumbo winning the corner, Sean collecting it and playing back to Stumbo‘s left foot, where he sends Beck to goal with one touch. Beck makes a phenomenal play to beat his defender and holds him off, and rips the shot near post WITH PACE.''
''Such a great play. I can, however, see that this could be a tough call in the moment from at least 2 of the ref‘s perspectives, y’all watch it and judge for yourself- 2 of them are still on the other half of the field because the counter happened so fast, including the head ref,and the closest AR looks like he just doesn’t know what happened, which is definitely frustrating, but that ball does fly through there so fast it does play tricks on your eyes- regardless, this is the most unfortunate sports moment I have ever experienced.''
''In regards to the net- these things are outdoors 24/7, so there is a pregame protocol where the refs confirm that the nets are game ready. Probably once or twice a season a ref will have us fix a part of the net before the game starts. It’s normal and not a big deal. After watching our security cameras from before the game, we found that this ref crew did not do the pregame inspection on the nets, so that’s a huge bummer, but just like with the TSSAA, there are no repercussions even when reporting to the association.''
'' I obviously wish I would have checked the nets myself and will from now on, and I admit that failure on my part as head coach and have apologized to our boys. Moving forward, here are some thoughts-The RHEA COUNTY SOCCER COMMUNITY was out in full force last night, and that was an absolute blast.''
''Thank you so much to everyone that came and supported us and cheered on the boys. Best/craziest atmosphere we’ve ever had at a game, over 550 fans in attendance- definitely a school record for a soccer game! I love the growth in the soccer community locally not just for bringing up skilled players, but because it is such a positive experience for many kids, teenagers, and adults!''
''Lastly, we talk all the time on our team about being men- being honorable, trustworthy, hardworking, protectors, providers. This changes none of that. As I told the boys today, moments like these make me so thankful that life is not about soccer. It’s not about sports. It’s not about playing time. It has to be about much more than these temporal things. For our guys, it‘s about being part of a brotherhood, a brotherhood that strengthens and sharpens them for the real world- where life isn’t fair and you still have to respond. We have all experienced this. So as bad as it hurts, as shocking as it is that our season would end this way, let’s respond well, Rhea County.''