In the End it was Simply Zungul vs. Ilijevski
Dennis DillonSt. Louis Globe-Democrat
It seemed only apropos that the denouement of the Major Indoor Soccer League championship game was a scene involving Steve Zungul and Slobo Ilijevski. After all, they had been the leading characters throughout Sunday's matinee at the Checkerdome. Zungul, the driveshaft of the New York Arrows' offense (108 regular-season goals) who holds exclusive rights to the MISL's most valuable player award (he has won the honor three times running), already had scored three goals and assisted on a fourth. Ilijevski, the Steamers' Yugoslavian goalkeeper, had made 30 saves. And now, with the score tied 5-5 and the final minute in regulation melting away, their paths crossed in the moment of truth.
New York's David D'Errico had tackled Ty Keough in front of the Arrow bench, and the ball squirted out to Luis Alberto. Alberto immediately passed to Zungul, who was parked in a familiar spot - near the penalty area - with his back to Ilijevski.
"I tried to block the shot," said Ilijevski, who vacated the goal and attempted to separate Zungul from the ball. "When I saw Zungul turn the other way, I tried to grab him for a foul. I just caught him (for a split second by the jersey) and he was gone, because he was in the speed."
"It wasn't his mistake," said Zungul, "because a couple of other times he had come out to make the save when I had a chance to score. Just for one second he missed me."
That was all the time necessary for Zungul who, turning to his right, swung his left leg and tapped in the game-winning goal with 30 seconds left.
Ilijevski, who, given a second chance, said he would have stayed back in waiting for Zungul, summed up the play matter-of-factly.
"It was just me and Zungul. It's a 50-50 chance for me. I tried to catch him and he was gone. He just beat me this time. I tried my best."
Is Zungul the best forward in the league, Ilijevski was asked?
"He's the best player in the league," answered the St. Louis goalie. "He's a great player - his technique, his shot, everything."
A good guess would be that Zungul spent 50 of Sunday's 60 minutes on the field. Most of that time, he stalked the area in front of Ilijevski. He attempted 15 of New York's 56 shots and would have had a half-dozen more if it weren't for the tackling of Keough and Carl Rose.
"That Zungul...he's always in a position to score a goal," said Steamer Coach Pat McBride. "And (the Arrows) always look for him. It doesn't look like he's doing a whole lot. He just picks his spots. He's the only player in the league who can play the way he does. They found him with a great pass, and he made a great move."
If there were any second-guessers to Ilijevski's strategy, McBride was not among them.
"He had to come out,"McBride said. "If he doesn't, he's a sitting duck. I was hoping Slobo would get there the same time the ball arrived. He was just short. He forced (Zungul) into making a good play."
Making Zungul's performance seem even more fascinating was this bit of self-revelation: He was at only 70 percent capacity Sunday because of a groin injury suffered during Friday night's semifinal game.
"I couldn't shoot with my right foot," he said. "Every time I got the ball, I worked it to my left foot."
If there was another player who seemed destined to alter Sunday's script, it was Steamer forward Tony Glavin. After the Arrows took a 2-0 lead in the first quarter, Glavin, the "Pocket Rocket" from Scotland, scored three of four second-quarter St. Louis goals in a 10-minute span. But in the final scene, it was Zungul and Ilijevski who were the protagonists. Zungul said he had a premonition about the moment. "I was dreaming about that goal all through the game," he said. "I thought I'd get the chance, and I did. It was a sneaky ball," he said, smiling. "It was my last ounce of power left."
With their third championship trophy inas many seasons, the Arrows certainly have the credentials to qualify as the MISL's best team. And what is the best team's best player's evaluation of the Steamers?
"They have a beautiful team and the best crowd in the whole MISL," said Zungul. "I have to congratulate them even though they lost the game. After us, they are the best team in the league."
Until the last 30 seconds Sunday, the Steames nearly wrestled that distinction from New York.
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