F.C. Revolution

FC Sonic star Carlington Lamont scored a controversial penalty kick in the 84th minute for undefeated FC Sonic (formerly PA Stoners), and defeated FC Revolution 3-1 on Friday night in Reading, PA.

After suffering through a sluggish first half, the FC Reading Revolution men played a terrific second half in front of a crowd of 400 at Albright College's Shirk Stadium.

The game was tied in the 61st minute on a beautiful goal scored by Gibrilla Conde.  Star forward Pete Rowley received the ball near midfield on a counter attack, and played a perfectly weighted pass to the speedy Conde, who placed the ball past goalkeeper Sam Bishop for FC Reading's first goal of the season.

"After our first half, we knew we had to do a better job of holding on to the ball," said head coach Mike Moyer.  "The goal was terrific, and our confidence level was instantly raised."

FC Sonic pushed players forward and used an aggressive attack to keep the Revolution defenders on their heels for much of the first half.

"Rich Kessler was definitely our man of the match, said Moyer.  He was absolutely brilliant, and needed to be."

Kutztown high school product Ricky Mucelli scored an unassisted goal for FC Sonic in the 26th minute, giving the Lehigh Valley squad a one goal lead at the half.

"I thought we were out of sorts for much of the first half, but we gained confidence after Gibrilla's goal," said Moyer.

The game was played fairly evenly, until the 84th minute, when Revolution defender Tony Pacell was called for foul in the box. 

"The AR (assistant referee) on my side even said there was no way that was a foul," said Pacella.  It didn't matter, as Lamont slotted the spot kick past Kessler.

"That was a brutal call, said Moyer.  We don't like to complain about referee decisions, but that call was ridiculous.  Pacella clearly won the ball on a pro level slide tackle, but the referee saw it differently."

Moyer continued, "We didn't have many chances to score tonight, but the man in the middle took the game away from us.  Our boys fought through a rough first half to tie the game, but the hard work was taken away.  I feel terrible for the team.  FC Sonic is a very good team - the best we've seen so far.  They will definitely be the team to beat in the conference."

FC Sonic added their 3rd goal in the 89th minute on a quick counter attack following a Revolution corner kick.  Lamont beat goalkeeper Kessler on a breakaway to end any possibility of a comeback for the Revs.

The home opener for the Revs included debuts for two current high school juniors who play for Eric Puls' U17 FC Rev state cup semi-finalist team.  Dynamic forward Brian Suchoski was inserted as a forward in the 37th minute, when captain Eric Puls was forced to leave the game due to an injury.  Defender Malik Krcic played the second half as a right defender.

"Both young guys played well.  This is why we're a bit different than most teams.  We like to see progression within the club.  The big clubs around the world give 15 and 16 year old kids a shot with the first team, so we try to as well, said club co-owner Eric Puls.  These kids can play, and there are a lot more coming, so the future is a bright one."

The FC Revolution U12 Viper boys were honored before the game for their recent accomplishments as EPYSA State Cup champions.  The team will travel to West Virginia in July to participate in the Region One championships.

It was a great night for soccer and the fans seemed to enjoy the atmosphere and quality of play.

The path to FC Revolution's first victory of the 2010 campaign doesn't get any easier, as the team travels to Erie to play the 2009 national finalist Admirals on Sunday, June 6 at 2:00 Pm at Gannon University's varsity soccer stadium.