2012 Austin Fall Cup Report
Filled with knowledge way beyond his years, Luke rightly pointed out that Cameron Road only advances out of the group stages every other year. And having just reached the pinacle of the finals in 2011, it would stand to reason that the 2012 Austin Fall Cup campaign would be a short one. Unfortunately, he was right. With an 0-1-1 record, the Honey Badgers failed to make it to the playoffs and had an early release from the pitch on Sunday.
Even before kicking a ball, the cards were stacked against the Honey Badgers as they looked over the draw. A winnable first game with Austin Athletic Club was on tap for Saturday morning, but a date with an Over 30 Premier team loomed large for Saturday afternoon. Sunday’s match was a bit of a crapshoot as they were to face the Highlanders from out of town.
With a very early 8am kickoff, Cameron Road started their campaign against an old foe, Austin Athletic Club. CRU got off to a lightning fast start as Chris Peterson whipped in a cross from the right hand side that found Andy racing towards it at the back post. Within seconds, he had poked it through the keeper’s legs and given the Honey Badgers a dream start. Unfortunately, the lead didn’t hold for long as AAC converted a penalty kick to tie it up going into the half. More bad luck saw Cameron Road concede two more goals in the second half on their way to a 1-3 defeat. Already in the hole, CRU faced a really difficult game against Sean Patricks FC.
With about 5 hours to kill between games, Cameron Road went off in search of inspiration, and found it in the back of Peyton’s truck. His Tejano inspired chili dog grill-a-thon was just what the doctor ordered. And so, the Honey Badgers powered up with Guinness and grub from Peyton’s lavish spread which was obviously prepared with care.
As game two approached, it became evident that Sean Patricks were of another class. They were big. They were fast. They were good on the ball. They passed really well. They were a Premier team. It would be a tough ask to get a point out of the game, but Cameron Road suited up in their dress blues and gave it a go. With a few rapid fire goals, Sean Patricks were quickly on top of the overmatched Badgers and took a 3-0 lead into the half. Still, Cameron Road came out in the second half, determined to get something out of the game. And it was Chris Peterson who again turned provider as he combined with Chappy to score a cracker of a goal. With Chris crossing again from the right, Chappy looped around to the back post and met the cross with a totally stretched out Honey Badger dive, smashing it into the back of the net like a flying squirrel. With that slight bit of momentum, Cameron Road hoped to scratch and claw it’s way back into the game, but Sean Patricks’s header off a corner kick proved to be too much of a mountain to climb. Still, they went toe-to-toe with a Premier team for 30 minutes and came out 1-1 for the second half.
With two losses on Saturday, it was virtually impossible for Cameron Road to advance in the Cup, but their spirits were still high. An early evening trip to the Crown & Anchor was in order to drown out some sorrows and view Goldenballs’s final MLS Cup game.
Sunday morning marked another 60 minutes for Cameron Road to play with pride, as they faced another tough team with athleticism to burn, the Highlanders. The game turned out to be a stalemate and ended up 0-0, but CRU played well and came close on several occasions to getting the win. They were also helped out by some glaring misses by the Highlanders and one fantastic save from Jay to keep them in the game.
And so the 6th year of tournament play came to an end. Unfortunately for Cameron Road it was 3 and out, but if Luke’s prediction continues to hold true, there will be a deep playoff run in 2013.
