At the end of the regular season, it doesn’t matter how well you played to compile points.
You just need as many points as possible, no matter how the match unfolded.
Coming up with three points is always the main goal on the road. Getting one never hurts.
The Philadelphia Union (5-5-4, 19 points) didn’t play picture-perfect football, but they were good enough to leave BMO Field with one point following a 1-1 draw against Toronto FC on Saturday.
While it wasn’t the desired result, they’ll take it.
Read: Recap: Union 1, Toronto FC 1
“I think I would start by paying Toronto a compliment because they were really good to start the game,” Union manager John Hackworth said. “They are such a different team than the team we played earlier in the season and they are playing differently, too. They threw everything they could at us early and we certainly weathered a big storm in the first half.
“To give up a goal like we did is really disappointing especially when we had the game in control, it just shouldn’t happen. Full credit to our guys because they were great in trying to fight back and even though it wasn’t pretty it was effective. When you’re down and have so many guys behind the ball like they had, you’ve got to play a little bit more direct. We did that off of Conor (Casey) and guys were committed to it. To get one back and get a result here on a day like today is good for us.”
Union forward Jack McInerney was special once again and notched his 10th goal of the season in stoppage time. He’s now tied for goals scored in Major League Soccer and that goal gave the Union a much-needed road point.
“Well, he just every single game finds a way to get on the board,” Hackworth said. “We already talked about the fact that we didn’t play our best soccer. I don’t think Jack was in particularly good form either early in the game, he was getting a little frustrated. He can’t do that, he has just got to keep his nose down and work hard for each other. Those guys behind him were certainly doing a lot of work, he has just got to wait for his opportunities and he certainly did that today.
“He just continues to score and it’s fantastic. Any time a young player does that, especially after the notoriety that he has gotten, I hope he gets the attention of the National Team and he certainly has.”
The Union could have left Toronto with nothing to show for. Instead, they rallied from deep within and got a coveted point. In the end, that’s what you strive for – points on the road.
“I feel good, confidence is high, obviously,” McInerney said. “It’s just good that I’m playing well. The team didn’t play well today but we got a result on the road."
McInerney added: "We all collectively have to do better though this season."
Contact Union writer Andy Jasner at andy.jasner@yahoo.com
