When the Philadelphia Union decided to bring Conor Casey back for the 2015 season, the plan was always for the aging striker to provide a scoring punch off the bench. But because of injuries and competition for the lone striker position, that plan has mostly failed to materialize.
That is, until Saturday night in San Jose.
Getting called off the bench for the first time in more than a month, Casey scored two goals in just 19 minutes to lift the Union to an improbable 2-1, come-from-behind victory. It was the franchise’s first-ever win in San Jose, and it put a halt to the Earthquakes’ four-game shut-out streak.
- WATCH: Conor Casey's first goal
“Conor came in and got us two huge goals,” said Union head coach Jim Curtin. “He’s had a very good week in training, he’s kept his head up. He’s been a real veteran and a positive guy in the locker room even though he hasn’t been playing a lot. When he got his time, he certainly took advantage of it.”
Casey’s only other goal this season came in stoppage time of a 2-1 loss at Toronto on July 18. That appearance, along with eight brief minutes vs. the Red Bulls on Aug. 1, marked the only league games Casey had gotten into since May -- before his revival at Avaya Stadium.
The 34-year-old forward’s first goal Saturday came off a terrific cross from fullback Ray Gaddis -- his first assist of the season -- and tied the game in the 74th minute. The second came off an 86th-minute free kick from Tranquillo Barnetta, who was wearing the captain’s armband in just his sixth MLS appearance. That latter goal proved to be the winner.
Both, not surprisingly, were headers -- one of Casey’s strong suits, and a big reason why he’s scored 71 goals in his MLS career, including 21 over the last three seasons in Philly.
“It felt good,” Casey said. “It’s been a while. It always feels good to score. As a forward, that’s what you think about. It was a great ball from Ray and I was in the right spot.”
Before Casey was summoned off the bench, things were looking bleak for the Union, who were without the services of arguably their top defensive player (Maurice Edu) and offensive player (Cristian Maidana). Then they went down a goal in the 64th minute when Fabinho was whistled for a handball in the box, and Chris Wondolowski buried the ensuing penalty kick.
- WATCH: Conor Casey wins the day
Curtin didn’t question that call, but was upset that the Union weren’t given any of their own PKs for what he called two “clear penalty kicks that were missed by the referee.”
In the end that made the Union couch even more proud of what he called a “brave effort” to rally for the road win on the back of a player who has been an afterthought for most of the last few months.
“I told our guys at halftime that no one’s going to help us,” Curtin said. “We’re not going to get calls from the referees. We have to play through it no matter what and stick together. They really showed a lot of fight and resiliency. The tough PK goes against us and they stuck together and got two goals.”
