citry

Ten Man Duluth Fall Short in Impromptu Title Match

Duluth FC vs. Minneapolis City
Public Schools Stadium | Duluth MN
June 30th, 2021 | Game #9

Current 2021 Records (W-L-T):
Duluth: 3-1-0; 3-2-0 at home/on the road
MPLS: 5-0-0; 5-0-0 at home/on the road

Starting XI: Brendan Dally, Jake Starling, Scott Wilson, Martin Grzywa, Liam Condone, Jacob
Daffern, Aidan Hill, Ryan Lewis, Caleb Tammi, Sidney Warden, Keegan Chastey

Substitutions: Eric Watson, Ryan Sumner, Gabriel Campora, Micheál Devlin, Danny Torres,
Alexander Pike

Goals:
3’ – Aidan Hill (DFC)
19’ – Jack Barry (MPLS)
59’ – Eli Goldman (MPLS)
73’ – Eli Goldman (MPLS)
86’ – Kevin Andrews (MPLS)
88’ – Nick Hutton (MPLS)
90’ – Aidan O’Driscoll (MPLS)

Fresh off of a four match winning streak which saw Duluth score fifteen goals while conceding
just three, the BlueGreens returned home on Wednesday to host current conference table leaders
Minneapolis City in a rematch of this season’s earlier 3-2 loss.


City had held a perfect record this season going into Wednesday, but will have to face a Duluth
side that has drastically improved since their early match up and has found a deadly run of form
in the final third, particularly through the ever-scoring Sidney Warden, who started the day on
twelve goals in his debut season.


Duluth would start off well with an early goal from Aidan Hill, who headed in a rebounded shot
from Sidney Warden in just the third minute. It was Hill’s third goal for the club, coming just one
match after his second goal in three seasons during Duluth’s 4-1 win over Joy Athletic. Jack
Barry would equalize for Minneapolis soon after, however, after City earned a corner on the
counter. It would be 1-1 at half time, with both sides showing promise and creating chances.

The second half would bring an array of obstacles, however, as Aidan Hill would receive a red
card early in the half due to receiving two yellow cards, leaving Duluth with ten men and
roughly 40 minutes of soccer remaining. It’s the BlueGreens first red of the season and an
unfortunate stoppage in what has been a strong year for Hill, Duluth’s most senior player after
spending 2018 and 2019 with the club.


Minneapolis City would follow the card with a flurry of goals to make it 6-1 by the final whistle,
controlling the midfield and affording Duluth just a few chances to get back in the game. The
initial winning goal would come just minutes after Hill’s dismissal, while three of City’s six
goals came in the final five minutes of the match. Eli Goldman’s brace from the 59th and 73rd
minutes would prove the deciding goals of the match, which was 3-1 until the 86th minute.
It would be Duluth’s first home loss of the season and would officially hand Minneapolis City
the conference title. The two clubs remain the only sides to have won that title, with City earning
their third in three seasons while Duluth earned its first iteration in 2017.

The result leaves Duluth’s playoff qualification bid in jeopardy with three games remaining and
a race for second with Med City well under way. They next play La Crosse on July 7th. It will be
one of their final three regular season matches, the others against Sioux Falls and the Dakota
Fusion, and will be key to the BlueGreens securing a playoff position.

Share this post