Portland Hearts of Pine Eying Home Playoff Game In Inaugural Season
“I do think about it when I dream, but I try to pinch myself and keep myself in the moment.”
Portland Hearts of Pine are unbeaten in eight (6-0-2) after collecting a 1-0 win over Texoma FC on Saturday night in front of 5,781 fans.
With six games left, there’s work to do, but the dream of having playoff soccer at Fitzpatrick Stadium is alive.
Saturday’s deadlock was broken in the 75th minute when Nathan Messer got on the end of an Ollie Wright pass to score his fourth goal of the season.
The crowd’s energy had been building with each shot. It reached a crescendo when Messer ran toward the Dirigo Union while passionately pointing to the crest, yelling, “That’s what I do.”
That spirit, that intensity, is what makes “Fort Fitzy” a special place.
“The atmosphere during this little run here has gotten better and better and better each night,” head coach Bobby Murphy said. “I think tonight is the best atmosphere we’ve had.
“I think we have a really knowledgeable crowd. They know when the players need a lift. We’re just happy to reward them. They put in a lot of work. They come out here every night, and so they deserve that.”
Hearts are currently fifth in the table, three points below Spoken Velocity with a game in hand. They are also eight points behind the Chattanooga Red Wolves, who top the league.
The schedule ahead isn’t easy—they have two three-game weeks—and anything can happen in such a crowded field.
But playoff soccer in Portland in November is “definitely the goal,” according to Messer.
“I still keep myself grounded and think about the next game,” Messer added. “You know, game by game. Until we clinch in general, I think that’s still one of the main focuses.”
Messer knows that postseason soccer is a different beast.
Before going pro, he spent his summers in Burlington playing for the Vermont Green of USL League Two. The crowds at Virtue Field—which can accommodate 2,500 spectators—have garnered national attention due to their chants and tifos.
Everyone’s efforts intensified when the playoffs began.
“I look at one of my former clubs, the Vermont Green, and them hosting playoffs in USL Two,” Messer said. “It was night and day, somehow, from their crowds in the regular season, and their crowds in the regular season were incredible.
“So I can’t even imagine how it would look here. I do think about it when I dream, but I try to pinch myself and keep myself in the moment.”
Murphy, who has coached at nearly every level of the American soccer pyramid, is also playing coy, focusing on what’s directly ahead.
He does admit that hosting a playoff game would be monumental for everyone involved in the Portland project.
“It would be an event, for sure, but—I say it a lot—we all want something, but there’s a lot of moments between now and something, and you have to take care of those little moments,” Murphy said.
A home playoff game would provide a measure of validation for Murphy, who relocated to the Northeast to serve as the inaugural head coach and sporting director of Hearts.
He was committed to doing things his way, going so far as to have a friend—former player and current Austin FC goalkeeper coach Preston Burpo—audit him for two weeks during preseason. He wanted his actions to match his words.
He was committed to having a team that reflects Maine values and to having a young roster.
The high-pressure, quick-transition soccer is in line with the unyielding nature of those who represent the club in the stands.
These individuals have watched the players—and the club—grow up before their eyes. Hearts have one of the youngest rosters in the league.
Michel Poon-Angeron, 24, has been an essential cog, patrolling the middle with 32-year-old MLS vet Mikey Lopez.
Kemali Green, 25, has been a steady presence at centerback after graduating from Temple University.
25-year-old striker Titus Washington has become more goal-dangerous, learning when to make runs behind.
“There are a lot of good players in the world. I think the differentiator is good people,” Murphy said. “If I’m proud of one thing, it’s that I’ve recruited 24 really good people who really buy into each other and buy into being supportive of each other and working hard toward a common goal.”
Like everyone else, Hearts hope to lift a trophy, which would cap a season that’s already had so much success.
Finishing in the top four would secure at least one postseason game on home turf, a place Hearts have only lost once.
“I don’t think any team wants to come here and play playoffs against us,” Mo Mohamed said. “Hopefully, we get to host a game. It would be fun.”
The Dirigo Union, a supporters’ group with over 800 paying members, is prepared to support their team wherever they play. Members have already traveled to Naples, Westchester, and more.
But for them, the best place to watch Hearts is sections 118 to 120, affectionately called “The Zoo.” Mitchell Ketchen, co-chair of the Union with Donald Thibodeau, calls this area “a pot of water ready to boil; constantly excited energy just waiting to hit the right temperature.”
The night kicks off with the “heartbeat,” an overhead clap done throughout the stadium that intensifies as kickoff nears. Then comes the pyro smoke as the 23-person Valentine Band begins to play.
“As a lifelong New England sports fan, I’ve been in some pretty unbelievable environments over the last 30 years, and Fort Fitzy on a Wednesday night gives Game 1 of the 2018 World Series a run for its money,” Ketchen said.
Just like the club, the Dirigo Union, who have dues-paying members across the globe, has gained notoriety. They have songs celebrating many players, and their “Welcome to Maine” tifo was the perfect way to open Fitzpatrick Stadium.
Ketchen believes that a playoff berth, which could be secured this week, would be a huge accomplishment. To have a game at Fitzpatrick would be next level.
“The fans here understand what it means to have home-field advantage, and it’s a responsibility we don’t take lightly,” Ketchen said. “You can expect The Zoo to make an impact if we do host.”