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Chapter 2 of the 2022 Copa Tejas competition took place in Edinburg, Texas Saturday night. San Antonio was back after a two week layoff and RGVFC Toros were on a two match win streak looking to extend. San Antonio FC and El Paso Locomotive took part in Chapter 1 of the Copa Tejas where SAFC came out on top 1-0.
It was Justin Dhillon’s night to shine in the latest edition of the South Texas Derby. It was a physical and challenging match; 34 fouls conceded, 11 yellow cards were issued between the two clubs and one red card was handed to a RGVFC player. Justin Dhillon was able to find the back of the net twice despite all the fouls and physicality. It was the first brace for a San Antonio FC player this year.
Mitch Taintor also added a goal, his fourth of the year in the 62nd minute. Taintor is now tied with Justin Dhillon and Elliot Collier for the club goal lead with four. Taintor also tallied three tackles, five clearances and two interceptions.
Jasser Khmiri, at center back, recorded nine clearances on the night. San Antonio FC now has three defenders in the top ten USL Championship for clearances. Fabien Garcia leads all the USL with 67 Clearances, Mitch Taintor is fifth with 52 and Jasser Khmiri is tenth with 42. Former San Antonio FC defender Liam Doyle, now with LA Galaxy II, is second with 64.
San Antonio FC victory over RGVFC Toros was the ninth of the season, which matches the win total through 11 matches with the 2017 San Antonio FC squad who had nine wins and two draws. In head to head matches, San Antonio FC leads the all time series with 10 wins, 7 draws and 6 losses.
San Antonio FC took over sole possession of first place in the USL Western Conference as Colorado Springs Switchbacks lost to expansion club Monterey Bay 4-2. Former SAFC midfielder, Sam Gleadle scored for Monterey Bay in the victory.
Head Coach Alen Marcina
(On the win…)
“I’m incredibly proud of how resilient the guys were. They battled hard for 90 minutes. You know, we weren’t at our best but we found a way to win. That’s a true testament to their commitment to their resilience, to maintaining their cohesion, to maintain being the aggressors. We’ll learn from this game and move on, but it’s a well-earned three points”
Forward Justin Dhillon
(On his first brace of the season…)
“It feels amazing, I just want to thanks all the teammates because they’re the ones that’re putting in the work with us every single week, and the coaches that continue to give me and everyone else believe. We talked about, you put in the work and you control everything you can, in terms of your work rate and doing everything the team needs. Eventually things will fall and tonight they did. Definitely super blessed about that, and I think the team’s really happy with the win.”
Up next for San Antonio FC is a west coast trip to face Sacramento Republic next Saturday. Sac Republic is currently 7th in the Western Conference and are in the quarterfinal of the US Open Cup.
Lastly,
During the 22nd minute of the SAFC v RGVFC match players and staff from both sides took a moment of silence to remember those lives lost in Uvalde.
If you know a someone deeply affected by the tragedy in Uvalde at Robb Elementary here is a resource to assist during difficult times.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network: https://www.nctsn.org/what-is-child-trauma/trauma-types/terrorism-and-violence/school-shooting-resources
Soy San Antonio Fútbol 