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Anatomy of a PFC Goal: Josh Heard vs. Valour FC – April 17th 2022

Anatomy of a PFC Goal is a series breaking down brilliant or memorable goals scored by Pacific FC through the years.

It will look into the before, during, and after to describe how the goal was constructed and finished off, and how it affected the match.

This series is best viewed horizontally or on a computer to view the photos more clearly.


Before we get into anything here, I thought it would be helpful to introduce myself as I’ll be using the first person in this and other series going forward. My name is Jack, I’m a member of the Pacific FC team – not a player, as much as I wish that was the case – but a member of the office staff at the club nonetheless. You can find me on twitter (@jack_longo) and can give me your thoughts on this article there, as long as they’re solely positive…

Alright, now let’s get into it!

For our first look back through this series Anatomy of a PFC Goal, I’ve decided to go back to the beginning of the 2022 Canadian Premier League season to rewatch a literally PERFECT example of how to counter attack with speed and purpose.

First, you can watch the goal in full to see the breath-taking counter attack at full speed. Then we’ll break it down below.

Before

In the second match of the 2022 season, Pacific welcomed Valour FC to the Island for another early-season examination of the Tridents’ title defence.

Pacific had beaten Forge FC in their season opener (and a rematch of the previous CPL Final) to start the year on a high note. Valour on the other hand, drew away to FC Edmonton thanks to a last-minute bicycle kick goal from Tobias Warschewski as they slightly stumbled out of the gate.

In this match, the Tridents were on the front foot right from the start. A couple of half chances preceded the opening goal of the game – which easily could’ve been (and probably will be) a choice for this series – in the 20th minute. Just six minutes later Valour received a red card which further allowed Pacific to run the show. In the 32nd minute Pacific doubled their lead before an own goal just before halftime gave Valour a glimmer of hope.

The goal we’re talking about here came just after the halftime interval.

During

*Notes – White lines indicate ball movement, yellow lines indicate player movement, and circles indicate important players in that frame. Text corresponds to the image below it.*

It’s the 56th minute. Pacific are defending a corner from the near side. Including the corner taker, not pictured, are six of Valour’s nine outfield players are above Pacific’s 18-yard box. Callum Irving (circled) awaits the delivery as a crowd forms around the penalty spot.

Heard Goal #1

Valour play in a driven cross from the corner kick which allows Irving to snatch it above the crowd as it’s played directly into his six-yard box.

With the ball now in his possession, Irving scans his options for a target to play to and take advantage of this important “Attacking Transition Moment”. Irving sees Manny Aparicio making a forward run and quickly throws the ball into his path.

Heard Goal #2

Aparicio meets the ball and plays it through to Marco Bustos with a single touch as Bustos makes a forward run in the outside channel on the right side. At this time there are seven Valour players making recovery runs who are caught behind the play due to the speed at which Pacific have executed this counter. Josh Heard (circled) also recognizes this moment as his opportunity to get forward and join the attack.

Heard Goal #3

From there, Bustos carries the ball into Valour’s defensive third, creating a 3v2 overload with Heard and Aparicio. Aparicio continues his sacrificial underlapping run which draws out a defender and creates space in the central channel.

Heard Goal #4

Here Bustos cuts inside, losing his marker while spotting Heard entering the vacant space in the central channel. Bustos plays him the ball, breaking Valour’s last line of defence at the top of their penalty area.

Heard Goal #5

Heard receives the ball and uses his first touch to control it with his left and set up his next action.

Heard demonstrates sharp decision making in a crucial moment as he cuts the ball inside with his second touch, sensing the Valour defender has overcommitted their approach while applying pressure.

Heard Goal #6

This action provides Heard just enough time and space to finish with a clinical strike with his left foot which goes underneath the goalkeeper as he comes off his line to challenge.

Heard Goal #7

This goal typifies head coach James Merriman’s desire to play front-footed football and take chances to create goals in transition.

After

Heard’s goal made it 3-1 for Pacific and eventually proved to be the winner after a late Valour penalty saw the scoreline finish 3-2.

It gave Pacific back-to-back wins to start the season and continued the good vibes off the back of the previous season’s CPL Final victory.

Looking again at how this kind of free-flowing goal is scored, it essentially comes down to intelligent attacking players linking together through great speed of thought and excellent decision making. All three of Aparicio, Bustos, and Heard knew what space to occupy and how to coordinate their movement so that it was almost impossible to track them at full speed. Not every team can score this kind of goal so seamlessly, but thanks to how Merriman sets up his team, Pacific fans are lucky enough to often see expansive football such as this.

And with that we have the first entry in the Anatomy of a PFC Goal series.

Let’s hear from you! Comment on our social media post to give your take on this goal. Did you see it in person? Was it as good as you remember?

And what are some of your favourite PFC goals that you would like to see broken down next?


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