Tobias Carroll (dot) info

Drove out to Montclair last night to watch the New York Red Bulls take on DC United in the US Open Cup. It was my first live RBNY match of the year, due to both scheduling issues and protesting the team’s handling of an incident of on-field racism and the deeper issues it suggested.

While I have mixed feelings on Open Cup games happening at secondary locations (i.e. MSU Soccer Park, where the third-division NY Red Bulls II play), I was curious what the team looked like under new coach Troy Lesesne. Answer: they looked pretty good! A 1-0 win to advance to the next round is a fine thing indeed.

I’d bought a ticket for the match, but it had already begun when I got there, and it turned out that the top of the parking garage, all of 20 feet from where I’d parked, offered a pretty great view of the entire pitch. There was something eminently rewarding about getting to see the teams’ formations and, in the second half, to clearly hear what longtime RBNY goalkeeper Ryan Meara was saying to his teammates.

Plus, it meant that I could look down and watch as every part of this goal came together, which was a sight to behold: