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Even though Mike Magee missed a penalty at the end of the game, he was still the man of the match versus Philadelphia.
Magee opened the scoring for the Fire in the 16th minute off a great pass from Quincy Amarikwa, who showed great hustle to win the ball. As soon as Amarikwa won the ball from Amobi Okugo, Magee took off on a great run to get open, flaring out in front of goal then timing a burst goal-ward to perfection . All Quincy had to do was hit him with a pass and Magee knocked the ball in from four yards out. Then in the 86th minute, it was Magee's floated free kick to the back post that Anangono finished to tie the game. The free kick was from some ways out and Magee put it in a spot where MacMath could not get it.
Magee did blaze a chance over when the game opened up in the last 5 minutes but it was a tight angle and it was on his left foot. That is not an excuse for him, but it's a difficult shot. In an ideal world, Magee would have buried the penalty kick and the Fire would have had their first win. It was a good, not great shot and MacMath made a great save.
Throughout the game, Magee was at the heart of most good things that happened for the Fire. Quincy had another good showing and Nyarko impressed on the wing, but Magee was the focal point. He had a fair share of nearly moments, narrowly missing a finish on Shipp's corner in the first half and acrobatically attempting to get a touch on Larentowicz's lob over the defense. Magee also worked hard to help the Fire win the possession battle for the first time this year, spraying his fair share of passes and always looking dangerous.
Magee led the line throughout the game and ended up with a goal and an assist. No, he didn't finish his penalty, but without his production, the Fire never would have been in that position. If there is a penalty in the 90th minute of the next game, I want Magee to step up to take it.
While he was downcast after the game, Magee is the perfect example of leading by example. He is the leader of this team and today he played like it. Without Magee, the Fire wouldn't have left this game with any points. He has put all the off-season mystery behind him and performed like the leader that he needs to be.
Mike Magee is the man of the match for the game versus Philadelphia because without him, that last minute penalty kick would not have mattered.
Agree? Disagree? Share your opinions. Magee, himself, was unimpressed.
