SMOKEY POINT, WA—Gala FC Men’s Team, the Official Second Team of the Steelheads, scored their first Western Washington Premier League (WWPL) Second Division win on Sunday May 9 at Dick Cardinal Stadium. Earlier in the day the Steelheads lost 5-3 to Wenatchee, then Gala took the pitch and claimed a 2-0 win over ISC Gunners.
It was a scoreless first half but Gala created numerous chances, including an agonizing sequence where the ball rolled slowly across the open Issaquah goal line only to skim off of the far post and stay out.
Match Gallery: See photos on Steelheads Facebook.
Head Coach Dagi Kesim and Assistant Kade Dorning told the guys at halftime that they were knocking on the door of their first big win and they needed to stay focused and concentrate on finishing.
The match-winner came in the 68th minute when Ibrahima Drame sent a cross into the Gunners penalty box that was headed home by Mustafa “Moose” Bilal. It was 1-0 for Gala and there was a sense of relief on the home bench and cheers of support from the stands.
Gala secured the win in the 82nd minute on a goal from Devin Sutomo. A Gala corner kick from Parker Van Driel was deflected in front of goal by an Issaquah defender and Sutomo was in the right spot to kick it home.
“This was an organized Gala defensive performance,” Kesim said after the match. “Gala controlled the game even though the Gunners had more of the possession. Our guys were disciplined and applied a consistent no-nonsense defense.”
The Roster for Gala FC’s first WWPL win
Alexis Reggis Viteri, Fabian Panduro, Parker Van Driel, Micheal Green, Devin Sutomo, Alfredo Llamas, Ajeet Dhaliwal, Juan Figueroa, Thomas Rowley, Josh Green, Dylan Schoenfelder, Isaac Rodriguez, Antonio Hernandez Rodriguez, Mustafa Bilal, Nik Antoun, Ibrahima Drame.
Next Up For Gala FC
Gala FC continues their WWPL 2 schedule on Sunday May 16 with a 1 PM match at Dick Cardinal Stadium versus Nido Aguila Seattle 2.
[…] In the second match of the day, Gala FC earned their first WWPL 2 win 2-0 over ISC Gunners. […]
[…] In the first match of the double header, Gala FC (Official Second Team of the Steelheads) drew 1-0 with Nido 2, the second team of Nido Aguila Club America Seattle. Gala goalkeeper Regis Viteri had a great match which included a stretched out diving one handed save of a penalty kick. Fabian Panduro scored to put Gala up 1-0 on an assist from Mustafa “Moose” Bilal. Near the end Nido 2 were awarded a second penalty kick and this time they converted. It was Gala FC’s first ever league draw, following last week’s first-ever win. […]