They say It’s always sunny in Philadelphia – especially when Rob McElhenney is in town with his Wrexham A.F.C team, but that wasn’t the case at halftime when lightning struck within 8 miles of Subaru Park, followed by downpour causing a weather delay.
Moments before the storm, there was a different kind of lightning as Philadelphia Union homegrown Jeremy Rafanello equalized the score in the third minute of first-half added time. After drawing the foul, the forward produced another highlight stealing goal with a free kick from 20 yards out that went through the Wrexham wall and into the back of the net to send the Union faithful into a frenzy.
The Boys in Blue kicked off in front of the largest home crowd in the club’s history. Thousands of fans packed Subaru Park for some Friday night lights against an international foe, owned by McElhenney, a proud Philadelphia native.
Wrexham had the first chance of the game in the third minute, going short to midfielder Elliot Lee on the right side. He cut a pass into the box which was tipped to defender Ben Tozer for a blast but his opportunity was blocked by a teammate.
Union II earned two chances of their own in the fifth minute – defender Juan Castillo jumped on a weak pass in the offensive third and pushed the ball ahead to forward Rafanello at the top of the box. The Union homegrown from Delran, New Jersey turned to his right and took a touch to line up a blast with his left, but it was blocked in the box. Midfielder C.J. Olney was properly placed and recovered possession to maintain the attack – a combination of quick passes again had Rafanello lined up for a shot that grazed off a defender and forced a diving save from goalkeeper Ben Foster. Midfielder Quinn Sullivan reacted fast and fired a second shot at the keeper, but couldn’t sneak it through at the tight angle.
Wrexham took a corner in the 11th minute that tested Union II keeper Andrew Rick’s hops, but in the process he was hit in the face with a foul giving possession back to the Philadelphia side.
In the 17', Union II took a corner of their own. Olney’s service soared toward the back post, but ultimately went out of bounds for a throw-in.
Wrexham’s attack heated up near the 20 minute mark, but Andrew Rick stood tall for two big saves in the 25th and 28th.
The weather in Chester reached the 90s at points before the match, rattling Wrexham before the first kick began. A hydration break at the 30th minute relieved some pressure – but Wrexham’s relentless attack finally broke through in the 42nd minute off a corner kick.
The Wrexham service was deflected by a Union defender, but the ricochet met the foot an optimally positioned Tom O’Conner, stationed in front of the net for a strike past Rick.
The minutes before halftime ticked down, but Union II didn’t go to the break without a fight. Instead, Jeremy Rafanello earned a free kick just outside the box. He took advantage of the opportunity, banging it past Wrexham keeper Ben Foster for an energizing equalizer.
After a two and a half hour delay both sides resumed play in the rain, Union II returned to the pitch with its starting XI while Wrexham made wholesale changes. The momentum was still on the young Union II side as Rafanello forcing a diving save by substitute keeper Mark Howard. Union Academy midfielder David Vazquez put on a dazzling run in the 49th minute as he spun past a defender and dribbled hard to the edge of the box. Seeing an inch of space, Vazquez ripped a shot across the slippery service that forced another diving stop.
Both sides traded chances up to the hour mark with Rick making a big stop off a shot from Jordan Davies. Union II introduced the trio of Nelson Pierre, Stefan Stojanovic and Luciano Sanchez in place of Vazquez, Olney and Donovan to maintain the high pressure and counter attacking against the older side from Wales.
In the 68th minute the Union turned up the pressure to gain long stretches of possession. Sullivan drifted out to his left on a recycled set piece chance for Philly and cut through a trio of defenders and into the box. As the angle tightened and the end line got ever closer he shot a hard pass to Sanchez for the redirected attempt but the keeper got a paw on it.
Head Coach Marlon LeBlanc shifted to a 4-2-2-2 with the introduction of midfielder Kyle Tucker for goalscorer Jeremy Rafanello. With the change came more possession for the Boys in Blue with a direct ball over the top from Le Guennec providing a scoring chance for Nelson Pierre. The 18-year-old popped the ball over the head of his defender and quickly fired a shot that had the keeper frozen but crashing off the post. Less than a minute later again it was another chance as Sullivan got space on the right side and cut a ball to the top of the box for Tucker to blast from distance. The midfielder snuck it through the box perfectly but again right into the keeper's arms.
In the final moments, the visitors gained some life as they earned a pair of corner kicks in stoppage time. Union II held strong with the ball skipping the wind and rain and wide of the post to summon the final whistle.
