It was another big night for the attack as the nicer June weather has proved to be able to heat up the goal-scoring for The Mighty Oak as of late. Against Toledo Villa FC on the road, AFC Ann Arbor beat TVFC 4-1 in what was a more hard-fought victory than the score line may initially suggest. Throughout the first half the defending of Villa proved stout, but, after the first goal off a set piece, the free-running attack of The Mighty Oak was able to take shape.

The first thirty minutes of the match saw a couple of chances, but nothing clear-cut. Jarred Dass had a shot go just wide of the net. The Mighty Oak even had to do a bit of defending as Ben Thornton made a nice tackle in the fourteenth minute on Kyle Morton, who had a nice night on the wing. In the 32nd minute, though, the deadlock was broken. James Vaughan delivered a fantastic whipped ball into the box and while Thornton’s initial header was saved well, the follow-up chance was kicked in by a still-grounded Thornton to give AFCAA the advantage.

In the 43rd minute, Yazeed Matthews capitalized off a bit of loose play in the deep midfield from Toledo. He knocked the ball through for Will Eskay, who finished off the left wing with his left-footed finish to double the lead. AFCAA almost made it three in the last minute of first half play, but a header from Matt Braem was cleared off the line, and a couple other last chances were defended well.

Just under half a minute into the second half saw AFCAA get their third. Dass on the right wing delivered a brilliant low cross cutting through the central defense of Toledo to find Matthews at the back post for the tap-in finish. The two would nearly link back up with a more floated cross in the 61st minute, but Matthews header was saved well by the Toledo keeper.

The remaining thirty minutes would be a bit chippy at times, but AFC held their mettle. AFCAA were content to remain dominant throughout the match. The fourth goal, and final, came in the 83rd minute when Stephen Turnbull won a tackle high up the pitch and played Amadou Cisse in, who timed his run to perfection. He had only the keeper to beat and he did so with ease. Toledo Villa would snag a late goal as Jacob Kirchoff-Sleet finished a one-on-one with Ian McGrane, but it would only be consolation for the home side. That would also be their lone shot on target in the match.

It was another solid offensive performance and three more points on the road for AFCAA. For the first time this season, The Mighty Oak have longer than a week between their next two games. AFC Ann Arbor’s men are back in action as the second half of the club’s second ever doubleheader. The men will square off against FC Indiana on Saturday, June 22nd, at 6 PM. The women will host Detroit Sun at 3 PM, so be sure to get there in time to check out a fantastic day of soccer!