Stockade's Starting XI against New York Athletic Club.
PELHAM, N.Y. — The home grounds for New York Athletic Club — located on Travers Island in Pelham Manor, N.Y. — is one of the most luxe in the NPSL. One end of the field lies in the shadow of a large stone manor. Another side of the pitch is an errant kick away from Hempstead Bay, where yachts and sailboats float lazily by in the distance.
In short, it's a place to breathe easy and relax. Which is what Kingston Stockade FC was able to do over the course of their 4-0 win over the hosts on Saturday afternoon.
The match admittedly started out as a relatively tight affair, with both sides creating chances early on in the match.
But things turned in Kingston's favor in the 31st minute, thanks to the stellar work of a familar face, English forward Michael Creswick.
Creswick received a penetrative pass from Eric Fortier and found himself on a breakaway with a defender and the goalkeeper to beat. The second-year Stockade star managed to hold off the lone defender for a few touches, before unleashing a perfectly placed, low strike from distance that went across goal and found the side netting for his first goal of the season. Fortier collected the assist.
This put Stockade in the lead, and the second-year NPSL club never really looked back from there.
Central midfielder Matt Koziol scored in the 41st minute on a well-struck penalty kick, which was earned by Creswick.
Then newcomer Pedro Espindola scored on an impressive breakaway goal in the 76th minute. Espindola, a Brazilian forward who went to the University of Albany, came on as a sub and immediately made an impact on the match with his blistering pace and technical showmanship. He proved to be a handful for the hosts the entire day, consistently placing defenders on their heels when he had the ball.
The final goal of the day came from Josh Maley, a midfielder from LIU Brooklyn. It was a deft strike from close range that lifted Stockade to a 4-0 lead, which proved to be the result that would hold for the remainder of the match.
The win was Kingston's first away victory in the history of the club. It was also the first win for new head coach David Lindholm.
New York Athletic Club will visit Dietz Stadium on June 3.
Stockade Man of the Match: Michael Creswick
Stockade Starting XI: Skonieczny; Curtis, Lis-Simmons (C), Barrett, Kappock; Koziol, Macklin, Maley; Corbi, Creswick, Fortier
By Randy Kim, Kingston Stockade FC GM