A bittersweet day as FC Monmouth falls to FC Motown
WRITTEN BY: CHRIS DAILEY
Led by superstar players such as Joseph Fala, who played professionally for New York Red Bulls II, and Zachary Perez, who played in USL League 1 for the Richmond Kickers, FC Motown poised a tough, experienced team for FC Monmouth to get by.
Despite the scoreline, however, FC Monmouth showed resilience and tons of courage in their battle against Motown. Although the scoreline wasn’t preferable, Monmouth fought hard from whistle to whistle, and many new faces were given a warm welcome to the Count Basie gameday atmosphere.
Most notably, new goalkeeper, Dawid Mroz, who stood head over heels and made plenty of big saves for FC Monmouth was awarded the 732 SC Man of the Match Award. Mroz was an influential piece in not letting the floodgates open and keeping FC Monmouth in the game for the majority of the 90 minutes.
“It was definitely nerve-wracking at first, a lot of people came out, but it was an enjoyable day and I think we got really unlucky. We just got to get back in training on Tuesday and prepared for the game on Friday. This final result does not at all represent how well we played,” said Mroz concerning the game.
Other bright spots of the game were the debuts of Tyler Hutchinson from Seton Hall University and Davide Cuputo, the magic man who scored three goals for Rowan in the NJAC Final against Montclair State.
FC Monmouth’s Head Coach praised the talent for the inspiring shifts they put in.
“Them joining the team gives us so much more offense which helps everything out. The game is about scoring goals, we didn’t get one today, but with those guys look out because we will get goals,” stated Killick.
Meanwhile, the return of Rhys Cotter was also a nice moment for the home crowd. Cotter, hailing from Wigan, England, has become a fan-favorite during his time at Count Basie Park with FC Monmouth.
“I think most importantly as a team we started strong and took the game to them, that was the game plan, show them no respect. I thought we started strong but they grew into the game and we got caught off guard by the two goals in the first half. And in the second half, we started off strong but again conceded, that was a game killer,” quoted Cotter in regards to the team's performance on Saturday.
Disappointing was the one word used frequently throughout the ground following the result, however, nobody could fault any sort of lack of effort issues as the team put in a shift and fought hard against arguably the most talented and experienced lineup in the league.
The game also was bittersweet for FC Monmouth fans, who said goodbye to a man who has given them many memories in his time with the club, none other than Resgan Watkins.
Watkins leaves the club after cementing his place as second all-time in goals and one of the trailblazers for FC Monmouth throughout their early seasons.
“(FC Monmouth) means a lot. I come from a background where I’ve been at family-oriented clubs and it helps a lot with me being an international. You want to find a home away from home and FC Monmouth back in 2019 was that for me and that translated to the pitch for me personally and I enjoyed success. I was always looking to come back, never really worked out, and I’m happy to say it was my final game playing for FC Monmouth. Obviously, the result wasn’t the one we wanted but there is a lot to take out of it for the boys and sometimes football can be cruel, but the game has given me so much and I have lots of great moments here at FC Monmouth and I’m looking forward to keeping track over the course of the season and I wish the boys luck,” said Watkins regarding what FC Monmouth means to him.
Overall, despite the loss, FC Monmouth took away many positives. From player debuts to an all-time great saying goodbye, it was a bittersweet day for FC Monmouth as they said goodbye to one chapter and began to rewrite a new one.
The team now has its eyes set on their game this Friday against First State FC in Delaware.
Follow the team on socials @WeAreMonmouth