FOXBOROUGH — Even while the Revolution trained and prepared for this past Saturday’s match with LAFC, goalkeeper Brad Knighton worked to remain doubly focused on retaining his spot in the XI following his clean sheet against NYCFC.
You see, while we all watched Hurricane Florence batter the Carolina coast, Knighton kept tabs on both his alma mater — UNC-Wilmington — and his in-laws, who live in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
“My wife and I, we got married in Wilmington; it’s a near and true place to our heart. It’s a tough spot; you’ve got the Cape Fear River right there, which flooded very easily, and the ocean. Wrightsville Beach took a pounding, and so did the university and the Wilmington community,” Knighton said before Tuesday morning’s rainy training session at Gillette Stadium. “We’re just wishing everyone’s healthy, happy, and safe, and that everything’s on the up.”
Knighton, who is in his 12th professional season, noted that it was difficult “in a way” to maintain his focus while Florence raged.
“You have friends and family down there going through a difficult time and see if their house is going to be there or if it’s going to be standing when they get back,” he said. “The whole not knowing is obviously a burden on them, but on us: we’re involved, as well. You try to separate what you can and visualize the games we have and control what we can.
“We have to be their supporting role and hope everything is all right while taking care of business here.”
He told BostonSportsJournal.com that his in-laws’ place in Myrtle Beach made it through the storm.
He also said that his alma mater’s Seahawk men’s soccer team has been out of action since before the storm hit; the UNC-Wilmington campus had closed on Monday.
“They’ve taken it really rough,” he said. “They were actually supposed to play Northeastern this past weekend, and that got cancelled. The school’s shut down, the university’s closed until further notice; the soccer team was supposed to have their alumni game this weekend at home, and they had to move the game to Elon, so they’re playing Hofstra at Elon this weekend.
“They haven’t been able to practice; I talked to our coach last week, and they’ve relocated twice because of the flooding. They’re trying to get everyone together centrally in North Carolina to get some practice in before their game this weekend.”
And now it’s time for Knighton, should he get the No. 1 role, to focus on Saturday’s matchup against Chicago — and training while Florence’s remnants pushed through the Commonwealth Tuesday.
“It’s a must-win game,” he said. “All three of our remaining home games are must-win games; if we win those three and pick up one on the road, we should be in pretty good shape. Our focus is solely on Chicago this weekend, and hopefully, we can continue the run we’ve been on and get three points at home.”
Knighton found himself in keep for the Sept. 5 match against New York City FC and retained the starter’s jersey for Saturday’s match in LA.
“It’s been nice to finally play some games,” he said. “Matt (Turner)’s done very well this season, and it’s been tough to break into the lineup. I’ve been training every day as if I was going to start that week because you don’t know what’s might happen; hopefully get chance and ready when your name is called on.
“The last two games have shown that I’ve been waiting, and working my tail off waiting for an opportunity.”
Knighton’s play has certainly helped the Revs: even though both NYC and LA held a good deal of possession and created chances, Knighton has held firm.
“You take what they give you,” he said. “It’s all about a matter of making yourself big, finding the right spot in the goal, and trying to make the save to keep us in the game.
“Obviously we’re trying to stay as compact as possible, and limit their opportunities. There are times in the game where stuff is going to happen; LAFC has an unbelievable atmosphere there, it’s very loud and sometimes you don’t always hear the calls but you’re doing everything you can to make sure guys know they’re on their left or the right. Hopefully, they hear you and you’re on the same page tactically.”
_________________
_________________
_________________
- July 11: Bastian Schweinteiger had scored in the fourth minute of second-half stoppage time to pull the Fire level with Philadelphia, 3-3. But in the seconds after the restart, David Accam scored for the Union. The losing skid was at two.
- July 21: Nemanja Nikolic had scored in the 62nd minute to bring the Fire to level terms with Toronto. Three minutes later, Jonathan Osorio scored the winner for the Reds.
- August 4: Schweinsteiger had scored a few minutes after halftime to tie things up at 1-1 with Real Salt Lake. But Damir Kreilach scored in the 75th for Real.
- August 18: Nikolic had scored in the 70th minute to pull level with Montreal, but in the first minute of second-half stoppage time, Daniel Lovitz scored for L’Impact. 2-1 Montreal.
- August 23: Nikolic had put Chicago ahead, 1-0, on Columbus in the 67th minute. Twenty minutes later, Niko Hansen pulled level for the Crew. It was their first point in seven weeks.
_________________
_________________
“He adds another dimension to scoring goals: whether it be the final pass, a cross, or a strike himself. He’ll be a welcome addition to an already good squad.”
_________________