The Philadelphia Union came into Saturday night at Subaru Park with a chance for some hardware. The Supporters Shield for the best MLS regular season record was up for grabs and the Union would take it with a win. The award itself has an interesting history, with the same trophy passed along from team to team…or at least when it isn’t lost or stolen or otherwise misplaced by the team that wins it or the league itself. Back in 2020, the Philadelphia Union won the Shield in a road game in an empty stadium so they were not able to celebrate with fans. The Shield itself was also delayed in shipping to reach the team in time, so the Union celebrated with a makeshift award made out of a Captain America shield instead. All the Union needed to do to grab the real one and have a real celebration with home fans was to beat rival NYCFC. The Pigeons were a tough opponent but the Union broke through with a 1-0 win on a goal by Mikael Uhre late in the first half.
NYCFC got the jump from the opening kick but the Union were ready. Alonso Martinez was able to draw goalie Andre Blake out of the net and was able to dribble past and take a shot on goal which sailed high over the net, so the Union narrowly escaped an early deficit. In the 17th minute Bruno Damiani got off a shot from close range which was saved by Matt Freese in the bottom right corner of the net. NYCFC answered back in the 20th with a Hannes Wolf long range shot from outside of the box that Blake saved in the middle of the goal. In the 40th minute Jovan Lukic sent a pass up to Mikael Uhre in the right side of the box and Uhre was able to put a shot past Freese to give the Union the advantage shortly before halftime.
The second half tightened up into a battle of possession with fewer chances overall, but both teams had goals disallowed for offside, keeping the game tight down the stretch. In the 57th minute Indy Vasillev uncorked a long range screamer from outside the box which Freese saved in the top left corner of the goal. In the 69th minute Augustin Ojeda of NYCFC let off another long range shot which was saved by Blake. The Union appeared to break through in the 78th minute but the goal was quickly waved offside by the officials. The crowd got progressively louder as time ticked on in the second half, but there was one heart attack left before victory In the 88th minute Danley Jean Jacques took a shot from the middle of the box which sailed high and then NYCFC came back down the other end and scored a goal. The stadium went silent for a moment then erupted again when the flag went up for NYCFC being offside, preserving the 1-0 lead late in the game and setting up the celebration a few minutes later.
After the game the champagne, beer, and ginger ale was flowing in the locker room with a few players smoking cigars, and both adults and children spraying each other with beverages. Alejandro Bedoya, the grizzled veteran was beaming with pride. “This is a culmination of all the hard work, the commitment, and dedication that we’ve put in through the season. It’s fantastic, it’s a great feeling. I’ve had this feeling before but I really want MLS Cup so we’re going to celebrate, it feels great!” Andre Blake, another veteran of the Eastern Confernce Championship of 2022 and the Supporter’s Shield of 2020 reflected on the focus coach Bradley Carnell brought to the club. “Everybody is bought in and that’s what you need. You need guys to be bought in, when guys can’t play, other guys can step up. Bradley keeps everybody on their toes. You have to perform, and it gives everybody confidence. When you have a team like this you need people to be confident.” Bedoya, Blake, Jakob Glesnes, and Kai Wagner all joked about how the real Supporter’s Shield is much heavier than the Captain America one from 2020. Glesnes gave props to Quinn Sullivan, who tore his ACL in last week’s game against DC United. “I give this to Quinn. He’s been a huge part of the team for the whole year and a big reason for why we are where we are at this point. I’m sad he couldn’t be on the field with us today but I’m happy he could stand there with us and lift the trophy at the end of the day. We’ve shown this whole season that we have something special on this team.”
Up next is a FIFA international break and then the Union close the regular season at Charlotte FC on October 18 before starting their playoff run. The road to MLS Cup runs through Subaru Park, with home field advantage for the entirety of the playoffs.
