Birmingham Legion tied 2-2 with Indy Eleven following a last-gasp Sam McIllhatton goal.
It felt much more like two points dropped than one gained, however, as a Tyler Pasher penalty had seen the Three Sparks in total control at the end of the first period.
“We just dominated the game, and unfortunately we as a group let our concentration slip for 15-20 minutes and it cost us a win,” Pasher said. “But it’s still buidling blocks. [The first half] is probably one of the best halves as a team we’ve put together this season, so there’s a lot of positives to take away from here regardless of the outcome.”
Lining up with the same team that started the second half against Pittsburgh, Birmingham started quickly.
After winning a corner in the first minute, Sebastian Tregarthen glanced a header just over the bar. That missed chance was a precursor for what was to come, as Legion attempted 11 first-half shots but rarely troubled Eric Dick in the Indy goal. Just one shot other than Pasher’s 39th-minute penalty made it on frame.
In fashion with what many expected coming into the game, Indy conceded most of the possession and aimed to hit their hosts on the break. Their 31.2% first-half possession resulted in just two shots, with only one on target.
For the Three Sparks, Romario Williams looked the most dangerous.
Playing against his former club, the Jamaican forward was responsible for four shots, including the other on-target attempt. It was therefore no surprise that he was the one to win the crucial penalty in the 38th minute.
Williams ran in behind Indy’s Anthony Herbert but did not seem likely to get a shot off before the defender dragged him down. The referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot, and Pasher emphatically smashed the ensuing spot-kick into the top right corner of the goal.
Indy nearly got an immediate response with just their second shot of the game.
Following a wide free-kick, Paco Craig rose highest to power a dangerous header on goal. Fortunately for Legion, Jassem Koleilat was alert to it and parried it low to his left and out for a corner.
The game spun on its head early in the second half, when a Seth Antwi tackle led to a brief scrum between players from both sides. As if woken up by the incident, Indy started to assert more dominance in the game soon after.
“That just changed the whole feel of the game,” Jay Heaps said. “They used the moment where Seth got the foul right out of the gate to really rally their guys. I don’t think they had much life up to that point. And, man, they turned it on. And they’re a good team.”
Koleilat was called into action again in the 55th minute, this time making a flying save at full stretch to his right to preserve his clean sheet.
As Indy threatened the equaliser, Heaps opted for his first change of the game in the 65th minute. Ronaldo Damus and Serge Ngoma came on and nearly had an immediate impact. With his first involvement of the night, Damus raced down the right before cutting the ball back to Ngoma, but the young winger could not get his shot past Dick.
Seconds later, Indy equalised.
“That was frustrating, because you’re about to put the game away,” Heaps said. “If we get that second, I feel like they’re not gonna get back.”
The visitors went straight down the other end of the field, where a cross was volleyed first-time into the roof of Koleilat’s net. There was very little the Czech shotstopper could do about it, and the misery was compounded 15 minutes later when a cross from the other flank led to the 2-1 for Indy.
Birmingham briefly looked shell-shocked, but the Three Sparks rallied to reassert their dominance in the game. It paid off in the 89th minute when McIllhatton levelled matters once more.
Gevork Diarbian did brilliantly to weave through a couple of Indy defenders before cutting the ball back to McIllhatton. The Australian prodded it into the side-netting to make it 2-2 and get not just his first Birmingham Legion goal, but first goal as a professional.
“Pretty stoked,” McIllhatton said of the milestone moment. “I don’t care who scores most of the time as long as we win and get results. It was important to get that one back because I think everyone would have seen that we dominated most of that game. To walk away without any points would have sucked.”
Birmingham remained on the front foot for the seven minutes of added time, but could not find a late winner.
The draw moved Legion up one spot into 10th, three points below the playoff line. Had they left Protective with a win, they would have leapfrogged Indy into those postseason spots.
“It’s moments, right?” Heaps said. “First half, I was the proudest I’ve been as a coach in a long time because I thought it was great football. But the one thing — I’ve been around the game — if you don’t step on someone’s neck when you can, … they can come back. The margins in our league are tight, so we let them off the hook.
“That’s our fault, but I’m glad we were able to rebound,” he added.
Birmingham will now take a break from league play as they begin their USL Cup campaign. The Three Sparks will head to San Antonio FC for the first round of group games, marking the first time they face a Western Conference side this season.
Birmingham Legion face San Antonio at 7:30 p.m. April 25. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and My68 WABM.
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