St. Louis City SC Celebrates Hard-Fought Victory in Sweltering Heat
At the final whistle on Sunday night, St. Louis City SC defender Tim Parker fell to the ground at CityPark and just laid there, not moving. At some point, there would be time to celebrate his team’s win. At that moment, the feeling was of relief.
In a match played in temperatures in the 90s, even with a kickoff five minutes before 9 p.m., and heat indices over 100, City SC defeated Austin FC 6-3. Several times during the game, City SC scored a goal that looked like it would be the one that ended, only to give up a goal to Austin that made them have to do it all over again. When Samuel Adeniran scored his second goal of the game, on what turned out to be the final play of the game, only then could the team celebrate. If they had the energy.
“Probably one of the hottest games,” said midfielder Eduard Lowen, who had assists on three of City SC’s goals. “It was really a torture. But you have to suffer till the end to win that game, and I think that’s what we did.”
“This one’s definitely to Future Baby Boy Parker,” he said, “and obviously to my wife. She’s been a warrior throughout the whole pregnancy. She’s been at every game besides tonight, tonight might have been a little too close for her, a little too hot, but she’s been a warrior and I really respect everything she’s been doing.”
Imminent fatherhood is not mellowing Parker. When the teams took a hydration break in the 79th minute, with City SC up 4-1 but with goalkeeper Roman Burki having had to make a series of strong saves to keep the lead, Parker could be seen yelling at teammates on the sidelines.
“I think we have to be better on the ball and better at managing moments of the game,” he said, holding a can of Parker Pilsner, the beer he helped make with local 4 Hands Brewery. “We were up 4-1. We can put that team away by just keeping the ball away from them and letting them do the chasing. It was a hot day. Instead, we’re the ones doing the chasing, and it leads to a lot of guys getting really tired.”
All three of Austin’s goals came after the 60th minute and two came after the 87th minute, in a clear sign to Carnell that his team was fatigued.
“Just unfortunate with the concentration levels, that’s the first thing that goes with the heat,” Carnell said. “When you run out of gas, your brain is telling you to do things, but your body can’t do it anymore, and you get to feel with the players. But yeah, credit to them, they did the job early on and I think that’s what got us over the line.”
Gioacchini now leads the team with 10 goals, and Adeniran is tied for third with five. Lowen has nine assists, tied for fifth in MLS.
City SC’s next game is Saturday against Orlando City, which is tied for third in the Eastern Conference. The team will have to quickly recover from the exhausting conditions of Sunday’s match in order to be ready for the upcoming challenge.