Atlanta – In a defensive battle, Chattanooga Football Club emerged victorious against Atlanta FC by a score of 1-0 on Saturday.

In Chattanooga's second consecutive win, both teams played excellent defense throughout the gritty, foul-laden match.

"I was really impressed with our defensive effort tonight," remarked Chattanooga FC head coach Brian Crossman after the match. "This was our second shut-out in a row and I feel like our back line is really starting to play well as a unit. Our midfielders and forwards also worked really well together tonight. Overall, the coaching staff is really pleased with how far our defensive shape and work rate has come since the beginning of the season."

The win for Chattanooga FC (2-2) included seven yellow cards throughout the match, with Chattanooga receiving five and Atlanta (2-2) receiving two.

Kevin Swain, a Chattanooga FC supporter, commented on the physical play, "I was impressed with the intensity of play on both sides tonight. I was not impressed, however, with the officiating tonight. The game seemed to be called very one-sided. It felt like Atlanta should have had some more calls and cards, and I thought at least two of our yellows were not warranted."

That certainly seemed to be the sentiment throughout the crowd, as well, especially since three-quarters of the fans were Chattanooga supporters.

"I can't believe how many Chattanooga supporters came down here for the game," remarked Krue Brock, a Chattanooga FC Founding Committee member. "Our guys are so encouraged by the support from our fans. What a great testament to how much we love our soccer and to Chattanooga as a whole. It says a lot about the civic pride we have in our community."

Both teams struggled out of the gates. Sloppy passing and hard fouls were a common theme in the first 15 minutes of the match, as the teams tried to feel each other out. In the midst of the early miscues, Chattanooga's forwards, Elliott Anderson and Omar Cooke had chances to score but couldn't find the finishing touch.

For the rest of the scoreless first half, Chattanooga and Atlanta traded good scoring opportunities as well as hard fouls and yellow cards.

"There were definitely times where they had us on the run toward the end of the first half," commented Thomas Clark, one of Chattanooga's central defenders, but we also controlled some of the first half as well, "It felt pretty even for the most part, though."

Chattanooga came out for the beginning of the second half firing on all cylinders. Near misses by Moises Drummond and Cooke got the visitors off to a good start and kept Atlanta FC on their heals.

Chattanooga kept up the pressure for most of the second half, as their fitness and depth began to become a big factor in the game.

Finally, in the 78th minute, Chattanooga FC found the back of the net when Russell Courtney pounded a header past a diving Atlanta FC keeper. Sasha Viatrov serviced a perfect ball into the box off of a restart, and Courtney rose above two defenders to win the head ball.

Courtney commented on his scoring effort, "I was getting pushed and pulled as I tried to get to the ball. I didn't think I was going to get there because their defenders were pulling on my shirt and shorts. But I got to it first and just got the ball on frame."

After scoring the goal, Chattanooga went into defensive mode to protect the one goal lead. In the last few moments of the game, Atlanta FC's dynamic forward, Leo Sanchez, had two great opportunities to tie the game. Richard Masters, Chattanooga's British keeper, made two phenomenal saves to keep the lead.

Coming into the night, Atlanta was at the top of the Southeast Conference standings, while Chattanooga was in last. Atlanta FC had previously beaten Chattanooga 3-1 in the first soccer game at Finley Stadium in years. At the moment, both teams are now tied for the conference lead.

Chattanooga Football Club's next home match is at Finley Stadium next Saturday at 7 p.m.

Russell Courtney of Chattanooga
- Photo2 by Kelly Grizzle