The Ocean City Nor’easters took the storm back up to New York for the third time in as many games and came back with the same result, a big tick in the win column.

The Nor’easters were slow to get going in the game after being stuck in traffic on the way to the game which messed with Coach Oswald’s meticulous preparation. This was reflected in the game as Rough Riders forward Keith Detelj struck first for the home side on the 39th minute. However, the Nor’easters showed great resolve and it took something special from Ocean City’s Emmanual Kollie to break the Long Island defense. A 30 yard screamer after some nice build up play bought the scores level on the 44th minute just before the half time break.

After half time the Nor’easters came out firing, the confidence gained from Kollie’s goal and the introduction of club captain Terry Gibbs helped them begin to control the game. Gibbs picked the ball up inside his own half beat a player and slid an inch perfect pass into top scorer Zoncher Dennis to round the keeper and score in the empty net. Attempts from Max Hamilton and Kollie could have finished it off but the Nor’easters had to sweat it out as Long Island continued to make chances of their own. The final whistle blew but not before incident as Nor’easters ever present defender Nick Bibbs was taken off injured (the extent of which is unknown) and in the last minute Rough Riders substitute Sean Sepe got himself sent off.

Coach Oswald reflected on the game, "Huge win tonight for us in Long Island. After a 4 hour bus trip stuck in traffic, we didn’t arrive until 6:50pm at the field for a 7:30pm start. It took us some time to get our legs in the match and Long Island were all over us throughout the first half of the match. I wouldn’t say that we were flat, but I do feel Long Island threw the kitchen sink at us as they needed a W to catch the top 3 teams in the division. They scored 1st off a service to the back post for a header and we quickly countered in transition Kollie hit a missile off the post and in from 35 yards out to knot the game 1-1 at halftime".

"The way we intended to play wasn’t effective and we made some personnel and in game adjustments to start the 2nd half" recalled Coach Oswald, "That quickly paid off for us, we scored 2 minutes into the second half as Terry Gibbs slipped the ball in behind Long Island’s defense and Zoncher Dennis dribbled round the keeper and scored on an empty net. With the scoreline being 2-1, Long Island changed some players and their shape and we delayed a bit more but countered effectively. We could have converted several chances but the insurance goal never came. After 5 minutes of injury time the whistle finally came and we hit the road with 3 points for our 5th straight win. On the bus trip back, we found out Jersey Express had lostand we moved into first place. Although the players are excited, we need to stay grounded in our pursuit of a playoff berth. Any team can beat any team in this league".

The Nor’easters are next in action on Sunday July 1 as they host Bermuda Hogges at Carey Stadium, 7pm kick off - $4 for kids, $8 for adults. Come and cheer on the best soccer team in New Jersey!!! To be closer to the Nor’easters action follow us on twitter (www.twitter.com/oceancityfc) or like us on facebook (www.facebook.com/oceancityfc).