BRADENTON, Fla. (Feb. 8, 2014) – The Chicago Fire Soccer Club defeated D.C. United 2-0 in preseason action Saturday evening at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. Fire Homegrown product Harry Shipp tallied a goal and assist as the Fire won their second consecutive preseason match.
With both sides trading looks on goal, the Fire’s best goal-scoring opportunity in the first half came in the 44th minute when Dilly Duka unleashed a long-range, bending effort that forced a diving save from D.C. United ‘keeper Bill Hamid.
After a scoreless first half, Fire Head Coach Frank Yallop fielded an entirely new group of 11 players to start the second half in a move that would pay immediate dividends.
In the 48th minute, Quincy Amarikwa received a throw-in from Steven Kinney and found Benji Joya, who dribbled into the box and bent his right-footed shot past Dykstra and off the left post. Shipp, who was trailing the play, pounced on the rebound and sent his sliding, left-footed shot into the goal for the opening goal of the match.
Shipp would again prove dangerous in the 80th minute when he received a Hunter Jumper throw-in and turned towards goal. The Fire Academy product dribbled into the box and with a low, driven cross, found Grant Ward unmarked at the penalty spot and the Englishman calmly doubled the Fire’s lead.
Next up for the Men in Red in Bradenton are defending USL-PRO champions Orlando City SC on Feb. 11 at 6:00 p.m. CT and D.C. United on Feb. 12 at 9:00 a.m. CT.
The Fire will host 2013 MLS Supporters’ Shield winners New York Red Bulls for Opening Day, presented by Giordano’s Chicago Pizza, at Toyota Park on Sunday, March 23 at 2:00 p.m. CT. The Men in Red will begin their 17th season two weeks prior on the road when they visit Chivas USA at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif., on Sunday, March 9 at 2:00 p.m. CT.
Single game tickets to the Fire’s 17 MLS Regular Season home matches and to the July 26 international friendly against Barclay’s Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur FC are now available via Ticketmaster and www.Chicago-Fire.com.
Chicago Fire 2 – 0 D.C. United
Chicago Fire: Sean Johnson (Kyle Reynish 46’); Marco Franco* (Steven Kinney 46’), Bakary Soumare (Patrick Ianni 46’), Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (Austin Berry 46’), Gonzalo Segares (Hunter Jumper 46’); Patrick Nyarko (Grant Ward* 46’), Alex (Harry Shipp 46’), Jeff Larentowicz © (Logan Pause 46’), Dilly Duka (Victor Pineda 46’); Chris Rolfe (Benji Joya 46’), Juan Luis Anangono (Quincy Amarikwa 46’)
- 2014 MLS SuperDraft Pick
- Guest Player
D.C. United: Bill Hamid (Andrew Dykstra 46’); Cristian Fernandez (Taylor Kemp 32’ (Travis Golden 79’)), Jeff Parke (Jalen Robinson 46’), Bobby Boswell (Steve Birnbaum 46’); Nick DeLeon (Christiano Francois 46’), Perry Kitchen (Zach Barnes 46’), Davy Arnaud (Victor Munoz 46’ (Michael Seaton 79’)), Jared Jeffrey (Kyle Porter 46’), Fabian Espindola (Luis Silva 46’); Eddie Johnson (Conor Doyle 46’)
Scoring Summary
CHI – Harry Shipp (Benji Joya, Quincy Amarikwa) 48’
CHI – Grant Ward (Harry Shipp) 80’
Misconduct Summary
DC – Davy Arnaud (caution) 39’
DC – Conor Doyle (caution) 86’
