Brooklyn, NY (June 4^th, 2008) - For the third time, the rain gods came out to boogie on the day of a Brooklyn Knights’ home game.  And, for the third time, their divine dance characterized the celebration of a win by the homesters.

But it was no waltz in the park on a wet and dicey Aviator Field turf. The Knights had to segue deep into their reserves to sashay a 2-0 shutout in their soggy soccer salsa with the Newark IronBound Express on Wednesday, June 4^th.

From the opening whistle, the test on the teams’ technical skills in controlling the slippery ball was evident. A misjudged tackle by the Knights in the 2^nd minute gave the Express’ a threatening free-kick on the fringes of the box. The kick by Teddy Niziolek, who came in on the back of a hattrick against the Ottawa Fury four days before, was overshot high and wide of the mark.

Then the game endured a short period of inexact passes and fouls, before Knights’ composed striker Sebastian Alvarado created an elusive play to get deep into Express territory and fed Team of the Week (week 6) midfielder Matia Damiani whose shot beat the goalie by yards, and the upright by inches. That brought “oohs” from the ‘drizzle-braving’ fans, and encouraged a Hemir Niebles shot that also marginally missed the marked, a minute later. An Express counterattack finished by Niziolek matched the Niebles attempt.

The flurry, however, died as both teams sneeringly battled in mid-field for possession of the increasingly slick leather sphere.

But in the 10^th minute, Knights’ playmaker, captain Jeff Matteo gained custody of the ball, evaded a duo of Express players and fed to Niebles at the top of the box. He, in turn, drew three defenders on the left lip of the goal and passed to an open Tarik Smith for the speedy striker to tap the ball away from a startled Tomer Chencinski (keeper) into the far left of the net. Knights -1, Ironbound Express -0.

Afterwards several scoring opportunities in the run of play, as well as on corners and other set pieces went ‘abegging’ as Brooklyn and Newark looked for an extension and an equalizer, respectively. These included a breakaway shot by the Newark ’s Justin McGrath that was challenged by Knights’ goalie Chris Antonino. On the flip, a hit on Knights’ forward Javier Gonzalez held up play for two minutes as he used the respite to regain his composure.

As though that lull was a clarion call to action, the Knights went ahead shortly after, when their diminutive but dominant skipper stole the ball from Kyle Grato and paralyzed the Express’ goalie with a scorcher from 22 yards out which passed him with distinction. The 38^th minute strike was Matteo’s fourth goal of the season and it started a ballet of ‘fist-pumps’, ‘chest-bumps’, ‘high fives’ and ‘turf dives’ among the white clad players. Knights -2, Ironbound Express -0.

The half ended with close shaves for both teams. Chencinski was in the right place at the right time to block a direct shot from Damiani, while at the other end Knights defender Tomasz Groch was similarly in the path of a Paul Johnson blast at goal.

With three substitutions at the half, Newark came out pressuring Brooklyn whose defense in attempting a back pass to the goalie, almost give a chance for a goal. In the 52^nd minute, Damiani, who earlier went down and out on a tough tackle, was on the receiving end of a caution in a communication mix up when returning to action.

While Newark were desperate to cut the deficit and Brooklyn frantic for possession, some plays in the dripping rain were under the norm, prompting referee Cespedes’ whistle to become a centerpiece. Newark’s Jerrod Laventure was cautioned for objecting to a warning on a high tackle on Matteo, while Brooklyn’s defender Joe Afful also attracted a ‘yellow’ for a robust thump on John Stamatis. In between, both teams got a few preys in their off-side traps, with Smith being caught multiple times. However, the Jamaican bolt of speed nearly added to his early goal when he got a perfect pass by a wading Niebles, but tangled with Newark ’s Joseph Ruesgen trying to shoot from around the penalty mark.

The Knights kept pressing the Express’ defense. A creative surge ended with a great shot from Alvarado being barred by Chencinski’s reflex action in goal. Then a long-range skimmer 5-yards from the touchline by Matteo allowed the goalie enough time to get into position for the save. At the other end, Antonino, another TOTW (week 4) selectee, who had a shutout in the season opener, made some spectacular scampering saves to keep his slate clean, again.

The game ended with the scores unchanged: Knights -2, Ironbound Express -0, and home coach Joe Balsamo was deeply pleased. “I am very, very happy with the result. These guys have great potential and everyone is getting to show our championship caliber as the season grows,” he said after making a record six swaps in the game.

The game was the seventh for both Brooklyn (5-1-1 16pts) and Newark (3-2-2 11pts), and retains the Knights’ lead in the Northeast Division. Brooklyn ’s next game is away to the Ocean City Barons on Saturday, June 7^th.