Wait what?

(Photo: philadelphiaunion.com)

It just makes you stop and say wait what? The team that could not do anything right; is coming off a huge victory and preparing for a quarterfinal cup match vs the Harrisburg City Islanders.


The Union who have one of the most stagnant offenses in the MLS went against highly offensive SKC this weekend and too much surprise the Union dominated. Not only dominated but destroyed them. Winning 4-0 against one of the better teams in the East is a shocker. It is hard to fathom the Union having such a large victory.


Hackworth must have worked magic getting production out of Jack Mac and Antoine Hoppenot. The entire team played as one cohesive unit and put forth a complete effort. SKC had chances but could not capitalize, the defense was strong and MacMath came up big a few times.


Carlos Valdes was unreal just a monster on defense. SKC brings some big firepower going up against Sapong, Kamara, and Bunbury and captain Carlos stepped up big time. The combination of Gabe Farfan and Gaddis on the outside defenders served as key components to shut down SKC and jump start the offense.


Offensively Jack Mac showed he can be an opportunist; in the first half both goals he scored were garbage goals. Antoine Hoppenot came on as a sub and made a big impact on the game. He drew a PK that gave Pajoy a goal. Later in the match, Antoine netted one of his own.


This game is a much needed victory for the Union. They still have a long way to go being 13 points out of the final playoff spot and only having 11 points on the season. The playoffs will be tough but the U can focus on the open cup.


The Union will host partner club Harrisburg City Islanders tonight in an open cup quarterfinal, if the Union advance they will host the winner of the SKC vs. the Dayton Dutch Lions. Not to get ahead of myself but the Union are two W’s away from lifting their first trophy it is something to get excited about.


The Union should dominate and win with ease against HCI but it won’t be as easy as it appears to be. The City Islanders have defeated the New England Revolution and NYRB to get to this point. They are a resilient team that capitalizes at the right moments. They scored three straight goals against New England and it is impossible to count this team out no matter what the score is.