Sockers Handled by Dallas

Even in their toughest of times in past Major Indoor Soccer League seasons, the Sockers could count on manhandling the Dallas Sidekicks.

Not any more.

San Diego limped into Reunion Arena Sunday afternoon dragging a two-game losing streak. But instead of a quick fix, the Sockers received another swift kick, 4-2, in front of 8,495 fans.

Dallas, which owns the league’s best record at 15-10, is 3-0 against the Sockers in Dallas this season. The Sockers, playing without the injured Branko Segota (pulled calf muscle), fell three games below .500 for the first time this season at 10-13.

How bad is it for the two-time defending champions and Team of the Decade during the 1980s?

“We’re playing hard but the bottom line is that we’re not as good as we thought we were,” defender Kevin Crow said. “We’re going to need to change some things to get us turned around.”

The Sockers were on the bad end of two questionable calls Sunday. But they did little offensively against Sidekicks’ goalie Joe Papaleo.

While Tatu got his league-leading 31st score, Dallas built a 2-0 lead after three quarters on a goal from Bruno Ferretti.

The Sockers appeared to take the lead, 1-0, as the first half ended when Crow’s shot slipped through Papaleo’s legs and caromed off the crossbar. But after the goal judge ruled a goal, referee Esse Baharmast waved it off.

Bad break No. 2 came in the fourth quarter when a Sockers’ power play cost them another goal and an insurmountable 3-0 deficit.

Shortly after Sidekicks’ defender Mike Powers was called for a two-minute penalty, teammate Troy Snyder beat defender George Fernandez to a loose ball along the boards with what seemingly was a high kick. But with no foul call, Snyder played on and slipped a left-footer past goalie Victor Nogueira with 6:30 remaining.

“I came on for five seconds and they scored,” said Nogueira, who had been off in favor of a sixth-attacker. “It was a nightmare. It’s ridiculous the way the goals are going in and the way things are going.”

Coach Ron Newman said the call didn’t cost the Sockers the game, but it certainly didn’t help.

“The guy brought up his foot to George’s head to go passed him,” Newman said. “Everyone was waiting for the whistle. It was ridiculous, a terrible decision.”

Down 3-0, the Sockers got within two 1:16 later when Zoran Karic scored a power-play right-footer from 30 feet. But Papaleo held the Sockers scoreless until Smith clinched Dallas’ victory with an open-netter with 1:46 left. Ben Collins got a meaningless header goal with three seconds remaining.

But that was about the only thing that got past Papaleo, who made a season-high 24 saves while facing a season-high 42 shots by the Sockers, including a season-high 26 the last 15 minutes.

“I was lucky today,” said Papaleo, making his seventh start of the season after off-season knee surgery. “You can tell I went to church today. They hit a lot of hard balls but I was fortunate to be in front of most of them.”

The Sockers, four games behind Dallas in the West, slipped to the division cellar and 2-10 on the road.

“We’re not getting any good breaks so we need to be making our own,” Crow said. “Right now things just aren’t in sync.”