Hartford Athletic Crash Out of U.S. Open Cup vs. Hearts of Pine
The Latics latest loss piles more pressure on manager Brendan Burke
Hartford Athletic’s 2025 U.S. Open Cup campaign came to an end in Lewiston, Maine on Wednesday night, as they were beaten on penalties by Portland Hearts of Pine. It’s the first time in club history that Hartford have gone to a penalty shootout and the second consecutive season that they have had an Open Cup go to extra time.
In some critical ways, the loss mirrors the Latics 2024 Open Cup loss to NYCFC II, as they were once again punished for their profligacy. In that game, Hartford spurned a number of gilt-edged chances, requiring a late Romario Williams penalty to force extra time, where they ultimately fell by the odd goal in five.
This season the story was similar, as the Latics’ took 16 shots in regulation and the quality of the chances was such that a scoreline of 3-1 or 4-2 would not have flattered them. They simply did not convert them, with Mamadou Dieng and Michee Ngalina both guilty of failing to find the back of the net — or in some cases to even place a shot on target — when presented with an opportunity.
Brendan Burke tried something different on Wednesday, with a back three replacing his usual back four and Kyle Edwards being preferred to Deshane Beckford or Adewale Obalola in attack. It’s hard to say it wasn’t the right idea given the chances the Latics created, but it’s a results business and Hartford ultimately failed to get one.
In fact, the opening minutes of the game set the tone: Hearts pressed, Hartford were able to break the press with a long ball over the top that Kyle Edwards squared for Dieng, but the forward’s shot was deflected harmlessly away. This theme recurred throughout the game, as in a very real sense the Latics had the right ideas for the problem placed in front of them but were unable to execute when it mattered most.
Defensively for Hartford, Hearts found a great deal of joy down the left-hand side, and their press ultimately forced the Latics into a number of errors with Antony Siaha producing a couple of saves that really came out of the top drawer.
In extra time, Hearts quickly went down to ten men, with Azaad Liadi sent off for two well-deserved yellow cards in the space of a few minutes, but they held the score level until Hartford finally made the breakthrough in the second period of extra time with Jordan Scarlett scoring his first goal for the Latics — and his first for any club since 2022 — following a corner. Hartford maintained its lead until the 117th minute, when a lapse of concentration allowed Jake Keegan to run onto the ball in a dangerous area and chip Siaha to bring his side level.
When the game went to penalties, Joe Farrell and Dieng confidently converted the first two, but Sebastian Anderson’s tame effort was easily saved, and Ngalina failed to hit the target as Hearts converted all four of their chances and won the game. It was a deserved result for the hosts, who played positively throughout and persevered after going down to ten men.
Hartford now have four losses from their first five games in all competitions, and head south for a date with Loudoun United, who are flying high in the early going and are coming off a league victory over 2024 USL Championship Eastern Conference Champions Rhode Island FC and a cup victory over NPSL side Virginia Dream. It would be a challenging fixture at the best of times and for a Hartford team that seems to bounce from one problem to another, it seems an even bigger mountain to climb.
Another loss on Saturday will pile even more pressure on Brendan Burke, as he tries to find a way to give his club a foothold on the season.