‘Old Man’ Scores Late, Sockers Beat Sidekicks : MISL: Waad Hirmez’s last-minute goal pushes Sockers to 3-2 victory and into second in Western Division.
Waad Hirmez might be getting too old for this stuff, but his teammates on the Sockers aren’t about to complain.
There were 39 seconds remaining Friday night at the San Diego Sports Arena when defender Cacho knocked the ball away from Dallas defender Wes McCleod and into the path of Hirmez. Hirmez wound up and sent a line drive past goalie Joe Papaleo to give the Sockers (20-23) a 3-2 victory over the Dallas Sidekicks (27-18) before 8,195 and move them into second place in the Western Division of the Major Indoor Soccer League.
Socker owner Ron Fowler dropped by Hirmez’s locker minutes later, shook his hand and said, “Not bad for an old man.”
Hirmez, the Sockers’ 28-year-old midfielder, isn’t exactly within a step of social security, but he has been around long enough to prevent his eyes from getting too wide in a situation such as this.
“I couldn’t think twice,” he said. “I saw the angle was open so I just hit the ball in the right place.”
And thus ended a typical Sidekicks-Sockers game here in San Diego. Dallas has won just once in 16 meetings. This one came at an opportune time for the Sockers, who were coming off two consecutive road losses and beginning to wonder if the progress they had made in winning four in a row had slipped away.
Shaky play through much of the second half did nothing to alleviate their self-doubts.
“The second half we really played bad,” Hirmez said. “But it’s about time we played bad and won a game.”
Though it wasn’t much to look at, it was hard to overlook the Sockers’ effort. No one demonstrated that better than rookie forward Wes Wade, who appeared hurling himself in the direction of every Sidekick threat. And it was Wade who tipped the ball away from McCleod and helped Cacho take possession away from Dallas and set up Hirmez’s game-winner.
Socker Coach Ron Newman will take victories in any form these days.
“Wasn’t one of our prettier games, was it?,” Newman said. “Obviously there was a lot of tension in our team.
“We’re playing a little nervous now. They know how important each game is now. We can’t afford to lose these home games.”
Still, the Sockers started out in rather dubious fashion Friday. They were behind before there was time for a second fist full of popcorn. Sidekick midfielder Bruno Ferretti slipped around the Sockers’ defense and stuck the ball into the left corner nine seconds into the game.
Midfielder Brian Quinn made amends soon after, following goalie Joe Papaleo’s deflection off a Wes Wade shot with a shot from just outside the goal mouth that wound up in the back of net and tied the score, 1-1.
Branko Segota, whose productivity has taken a giant leap since he was moved from midfielder to forward after the trade for Paul Wright, dribbled his way through traffic and scored off his own rebound to give the Sockers a 2-1 lead early in the second quarter. Dallas tied it early in the third quarter when forward Willie Molano took a pass off the board from defender Troy Snyder and punched it into the right side.
Tatu then came within a whisker of putting the Sidekicks ahead. Twice. First time, toward the end of the third quarter, he dribbled from the redline to the top of the box and banged one off the glass just above the top of the goal. Then, early in the fourth quarter, he spun and sent a shot that bounced inches wide of the right post with a resounding “thud.”
Socker Notes
The Sockers have just one game remaining with the Sidekicks, who will play in San Diego April 13. . . . Midfielder Brian Quinn played in his third consecutive game Friday after missing seven in a row with tendinitis of the groin. He still isn’t back to full speed but said he isn’t feeling pain from the injury. . . . Veteran forward Steve Zungul has not suited up since the Feb. 24th game against St. Louis. . . . Defender George Fernandez increased his consecutive games streak to 123 Friday night. . . . After tonight’s game at Tacoma, the Sockers return home to play Wichita next Wednesday before embarking on a three-game road trip through Cleveland, Baltimore and Tacoma.
