Questionable calls haunt New Kent, Poquoson escapes with overtime win

New Kent's Calvin Reeves (12) literally locks up with Poquoson's Jackson Harper (right) in a scrum for the ball.

Robb Johnson photo

Usually coaches try to hold their tongues when it comes to bad referee calls. Unfortunately, a questionable call very early into an Apr. 18 soccer match pitting New Kent against Poquoson swung the tide of the game.

The invading Islanders and homestanding Trojans battled through regulation and two overtimes, before Poquoson’s late goal propelled them to a 2-1 victory in the Bay Rivers District clash.

With both teams jockeying early on in the match, the turning point came 20 minutes into the first half. New Kent captain Adam Caldwell was hit with a red card against a Poquoson player. The referee deemed it unnecessary contact, ejecting Caldwell from the game and forcing the hosts to play with 10 players for the remainder of the contest.

The Trojans stood pat with their defense, led by goalie Logan Deters who was under constant attacks in the first half. New Kent finally broke through with 15 minutes left in the first half as Deters long kick set up Isaac Barber. Barber’s header provided a key assist to teammate Josh Stinson who snuck behind defenders for a Trojan goal and a 1-0 lead.

The Trojan defense continued to be effective, but another call put the hosts in a predicament. Deters was tagged with a yellow card for making too much excessive contact. As a result, Deters had to be pulled from the game temporarily as Barber was forced to play goalie. The inexperience at the position played favorable for Poquoson, as a penalty kick by Antonio Papa found the back of the net to knot the score at one apiece heading into halftime.

Both teams could not score in the remaining regulation time nor the first overtime. But in the second overtime, the Islanders made a move against New Kent. A toss in by Poquoson’s Jackson Harper set up Papa, who used his noggin to punch in his second score of the night with two minutes in the extra session. That goal proved to be the game clincher as time expired shortly afterwards, allowing the Islanders to claim the win.
New Kent Head Coach Derek Yates said he doesn’t make excuses for the loss, but felt his team was robbed after being forced to play a man down for the remainder of the game.

“On that red card on Adam Caldwell, he was the last defender back and he made a tacke on the ball,” the coach said. “The ref decided that it was flagrant and he did not get the ball. We have the film and we will see tomorrow what happened.

“We were up 1-0 at the 15-minute mark and we had a yellow card pulled on us,” Yates continued. “It was a 50/50 ball where the ball was knocked down and it gave them [Poquoson] a penalty kick. I can honestly say that the refers were not in our favor tonight and I do not agree with the calls, but that is just how it is.

“I am proud of my team and we owned this field tonight,” the coach said as he wrapped up the interview. “In my mind, we are still leaving here victorious even though the scoreboard does not show it.”

New Kent falls to 4-2 on the season.