There’s no secret to the formula for success for Kearny this season.
With nearly its entire team back from a year ago, Kearny is going to live and die by its ability to finish in the attacking third.
After Opening Day: so far, so good.
That explosive offense was on display as Kearny, the No. 11-ranked team in the NJ.com Top 20, earned a 3-1 win at Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus over Union City in a battle between two Hudson County giants to open the season with an impressive win.
“It felt amazing that I’m able to play with my boys again,” Kearny striker Juan Rojas, who had 23 goals last season and opened the scoring with a first-half goal, said. “It’s been almost a year and I just love this team, man. This is like a family to me.”
After a sloppy opening 20 minutes, which is to be expected in the first game of the season, Kearny controlled the pace against a physical Union City team. Rojas gave Kearny a 1-0 lead in the 26th minute when Christian Escandon played him into space and he bent the shot around Union City keeper Alexander Nunez.
That lead held until Dalton Davila doubled it in the 66th minute, taking advantage of a wacky play that took Nunez out of position, belting a lefty shot into the side netting. Nine minutes later, Aidan Mansilla volleyed home a service from Johan Baez to put Kearny up 3-0 and essentially putting the game out of reach in the 75th minute.
“We always know we’re going to be good at soccer,” Davila said. “We have to get better and I think we can do big things this year.”
Union City cut into the deficit in the 76th minute when Christopher Castro pounced on a loose ball and found the back of the net to spoil Joshua Rodriguez’s clean sheet. He finished with nine saves.
Union City, expected to be among the top teams in Group 4 this season, struggled to keep the ball against Kearny but was dangerous when it got the ball forward. Jacobo Espinosa nearly gave Union City a lead just minutes into the game after misplay out of the back for Kearny, but his shot whistled over the crossbar.
Once Kearny got the lead, the Kardinals settled in and had a strong 15-minute stretch late in the first half when the ball rarely left the attacking third.
“I think we just had to get a little bit more confident because we haven’t play in seven months together,” Rojas said. “We just had to get a little more confident with each other and with the new kids on the team. Our starting 11 is almost the same as last year and I think we have a pretty good team this year.”
Championship expectations will follow Kearny this season, just four seasons removed from its unbeaten year in 2018, capped off with a Group 4 title.
This team believes a trip to Kean University in November is a realistic goal this year, too.
“We always feel like we can do big things,” Davila said. “We expect to do the same this year.”
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Brian Deakyne may be reached at bdeakyne@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrianDeakyne.
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