Another Dieng Double Gives Hartford Athletic All Three Points In Birmingham
Antony Siaha saved a key penalty, Adewale Obalola added a goal and an assist, and Kyle Edwards continued his hot streak as the Latics kept up their winning ways
Hartford Athletic swept aside Birmingham Legion on Saturday night, riding another strong performance from Mamadou Dieng, key saves from Antony Siaha, and late cameos by Adewale Obalola and Kyle Edwards to take a 4-1 road win. The victory was their third straight win in the USL Championship and they’ve outscored their opponents 10-1 over that stretch.
The Latics came out with the right intent on Saturday night, putting pressure on the Legion goal right from the off. Over the course of the first 45 minutes, Hartford took eight corner kicks, an indication of how much it was getting forward and into dangerous positions, but it weren’t quite able to find the breakthrough, despite going close on more than one occasion.
The Latics did find their way through in the 25th minute, when Dieng was judged to have been fouled in the area. It might have been a soft penalty to give, but Dieng nonetheless stepped up to take the resulting penalty and sent Matt Van Oekl the wrong way to give his side the lead. It was Dieng’s 10th goal of the season in all competitions, making him the first player in club history to reach that milestone in two different seasons.
The second goal came almost immediately from the re-start following the first. Legion played the ball forward, but it was won by Emmanuel Samadia, and Junior Moreira played a one time ball forward that released Michee Ngalina into space. With three Legion defenders chasing him, he crossed to a wide-open Dieng who finished easily for his second of the night and his 5th goal in three games. It also tied the single-season club scoring record that he set last year, with 11 goals on the season.
Hartford were threatening to run away with things at this point, as Dieng and Ngalina both had good efforts saved, but they were unable to find a third before the break, and took a 2-0 lead down the tunnel.
Birmingham were determined to make things interesting in the second half, and its efforts were rewarded on the hour mark when it earned a penalty after Sebastian Anderson was judged to have fouled Samuel Shashoua in the penalty area. Siaha saved the resulting penalty but was whistled for a foul for having come off his line too early, and Legion got another crack at it. Siaha was up to the challenge, though, and saved the second effort, with Anderson atoning for his error by blocking the follow-up and preserving the clean sheet for the time being. Siaha is the first Hartford keeper to save a penalty in regulation since Jeff Caldwell saved five during the 2021 season and the first keeper to save a re-take since Frederik Due did so in 2019 against Bethlehem Steel.
The hosts continued to press for a way back into the game after Siaha’s penalty save, outshooting Harford 6-2 over the remainder of regulation but once the clock ticked over into second-half stoppage time, it was the visitors who struck again. Adewale Obalola slipped Kyle Edwards in behind, and the forward continued his scintillating scoring form netting his seventh goal of the season. Edwards has scored those goals in less than 630 minutes on the pitch better than a goal every 90 minutes.
Barely two minutes later, Obalola was the player to put the ball in the back of the net, scoring his second of the season and first in the USL Championship after Samuel Careaga slipped the ball to him in the box. It’s the second time this season that Obalola has had a goal and an assist in the same game, following his performance against New York Shockers in the U.S. Open Cup back in April.
Hartford were denied a fourth consecutive clean sheet in the league by a late goal from Enzo Martinez, who nipped in front of a defender to turn in a cross with virtually the last kick of the game. It was Martinez’ eighth goal against Hartford in 13 career games, more than any other player has achieved.
With the result, Hartford leapfrogged RIFC and Indy Eleven in the Eastern Standings to move 7th - fully in the playoff places for the first time this season. It’s been an incredible turnaround for the Latics, who have won five of their last seven in the Championship, picking up 16 points in the process. The return home now with a tough week looming, a visit from Western Conference leaders Tulsa and the third installment of El Clamico are the bookends on a week that will also see them visit San Antonio for the USL Jägermeister Cup quarterfinals. It might be the most important week in club history but for now, Hartford return home with another key three points, and in excellent position in the race for the playoffs.