US Open Cup fourth round & Canadian Championship quarterfinals round-ups, May 7-8

Before we start our rundown of the fourth round action, an observation: For the first three rounds of the cup, comprehensive - and probably a little too comprehensive, if I'm honest - highlights of all games have been available on the US Soccer YouTube channel the morning after the games. Come the fourth round, and the arrival of the MLS clubs, and those highlights are nowhere to be seen. Coincidence or conspiracy? One of the MLS complaints against the Open Cup was a lack of media coverage, which may or may not have had something to do with the fact that it was MLS's own media rights company Soccer United Marketing that was responsible for such things until last year. I might have missed something to do with the new deal US Soccer signed with Turner Sports at the beginning of the year and I wait to be put right if I did.

Anyway. With four MLS sides finally making their bow in the US Open Cup fourth round, the chance for "cupsets" looked good, especially in Texas and northern California, where FC Dallas and San Jose Earthquakes are not enjoying the best of seasons so far. In the end, there was an upset, and it did come in Texas, but at the home of reigning champions Houston Dynamo, who fell to USL Championship outfit Detroit City in a penalty shootout that reached all the way to the respective goalkeepers taking kicks. Dynamo coach Ben Olsen made seven changes from the side that drew 0-0 with St Louis City at the weekend but a good crowd of 7,540 still came out to Shell Energy Stadium and saw the home side take the lead in the sixth minute, Griffin Dorsey finding the net from Hector Herrera's corner. The visitors still hadn't had a shot at goal when Houston scored their second, Latif Blessing ending a period of sustained Dynamo pressure with his first of the season. That was a cue for City to come into the game, going close through Matt Sheldon and Abdoulaye Diop before Ryan Williams fired home from outside the box four minutes before the break. At 2-1 there was all to play for and the game opened up, with both sides having opportunities to score before substitute Yazeed Matthews levelled the scores in the 75th minute, a state of affairs that lasted for just two minutes before Houston sub Adalberto Carrasquilla restored Dynamo's lead. Another side might have folded at that point by Danny Dichio's Detroit team are made of stern stuff and grabbed another equaliser seven minutes from time when Maxi Rodriguez was on target. Ibrahim Aliyu had two good chances to win the game for Houston but the tie went into extra-time, where tired legs led to few decent efforts. A penalty shootout was called upon and with scores still level as they reached the goalkeepers, Dynamo's Andrew Tarbell fired his wide and over. That just left Detroit Carlos Saldana, who fired into the bottom left corner to give the USL side a famous win and a fifth round tie away to Indy Eleven.

The fourth round had started at Highmark Stadium, home of Pittsburgh Riverhounds,who faced USL Championship rivals FC Tulsa in what - given the 'hounds recent form -  should have been a straightforward home win. The game started at a frantic pace, with Pittsburgh 'keeper Gabriel Perotta forced into an early save by Phillip Goodrum in the third minute and Emmanuel Johnson going close for the home side soon after. Once things settled down, the match became a more cagey affair, only coming back to life in the last fifteen minutes when Junior Etou and Bradley Sample had chances to give Pittsburgh the lead, but it was Goodrum who was in the right place at the right time when sub Alexander Dalou picked him out to give Tulsa an unexpected 1-0 win and passage to the next round, where they'll travel to MLS's Sporting Kansas City.

The romance of the cup was most alive at Fifth Third Bank Stadium in Kennesaw, Georgia, last night, where Charlotte Independence of the third-tier USL League One were taking on Atlanta United of MLS. A crowd of over 2,500 were on hand, many of them having made the five-hour journey between the cities, but there was to be no fairytale ending for Independence, even against a United side without Thiago Almada, Giorgios Giakoumakis, and Saba Lobjandize. In fact, United coach Gonzalo Pineda made eleven changes to his starting line-up, although some bigger names such as Dax McCarthy and Nick Firmino did take the field. The visitors gave a good account of themselves in the first-half, keeping a clean sheet while having good chances through Juan Carlos Obregon Jr to take the lead, but their resolution failed seven minutes after the break when Firmino opened the scoring for the hosts, adding a second in the 71st minute. Charlotte still went in search of an unlikely way back into the game but Daniel Rios's close-range shot put the hosts into an impregnable 3-0 lead with just five minutes left on the clock. Atlanta now have to go to Charleston in the fifth round, a formidable prospect on current form.

Having beaten Tampa Bay Rowdies 4-1 on Saturday, Memphis 901 were probably quietly confident ahead of their trip to FC Dallas's Toyota Stadium on Tuesday, especially given Dallas had lost 3-1 themselves at the weekend. However, it turned into a one-sided affair, with the visitors unable to even get a shot on target as Dallas field a strong side with just four changes from their last starting eleven. That's not to say Dallas ran riot, Nkosi Tafari's header in stoppage time their only chance in the first-half, but they did find the vital breakthrough in the 73rd minute when Logan Farrington finished a clever set-piece move. Petar Musa had two good chances to extend that lead late on but it ended 1-0 to send Dallas away to Tampa Bay Rowdies in round five.

After going out of the cup to USL Championship opposition last season, San Jose Earthquakes must have been wary of the threat posed by Oakland Roots on Tuesday night, even if Roots' recent poor form forced them to sack head coach Noah Delgado two weeks ago. Indeed, the visitors were by far the more adventurous side in the first-half, especially as Quakes made ten changes to their side, only Jack Skahan starting both this and their derby win over Los Angeles FC at the weekend. Skahan had the first decent chance of the second-half as the hosts took control, Tommy Thompson hitting the post in the 71st minute and Ousseni Bouda twice going close before Quakes did eventually find the net through Bouda with fourteen minutes left to play. Any hope of a late comeback was dashed when Oakland had Johnny Rodriguez sent-off for a bad foul on Bouda in the 82nd minute, and the game played out in the visitors' half, a 1-0 win probably a fair result on the night. San Jose will now visit Sacramento Republic in the fifth round after the USL Championship powerhouses defeated local rivals Monterey Bay FC 2-0 at Heart Health Park. Republic controlled the game in the first half, having a number of chances to score before forcing Kai Greene into conceding an own goal after 27 minutes. They doubled their lead just four minutes later when Rafael Jauregui sent Kieran Phillips through on goal, the former Huddersfield Town man finding the bottom right corner with a good finish. The visitors were much better after that, forcing Republic 'keeper Danny Vitiello into making several saves to keep his clean sheet, a vital dive to his right putting Mobi Fehr's stoppage time effort out for a corner to ensure Sacramento's passage into round five.

Tuesday's final game was another all-USL Championship affair as high-flyers Orange County SC welcomed the youngsters of Loudoun United to Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine. The visitors allowed OC to control the pace of the game, ready to hit them on the break when given a chance, and took the lead after 22 minutes when Wesley Leggett was found inside the box by Kalil ElMedhkar and fired home. It could have been 2-0 just past the half-hour when Tommy McCabe forced Colin Shutler into a diving save, but the home side managed to see out the half just a goal behind. The second-half remained open, with both sides having chances before Thomas Amang scored his third of the season to draw the hosts level, something that lasted just two minutes before Leggett was put through by Gavin Turner for his - and Loudoun's - second. Two minutes after that, Orange County were given a chance to get back in the game when Cameron Dunbar was fouled by Florian Valot in the box, but Dane Jacomen turned Markus Nakkim's spot-kick round the post for a corner. That was as good as it got for the hosts and Loudoun held on for a decent away victory and the chance to meet Los Angeles FC in the next round.

The pick of the early action on Wednesday night came from WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina, where 2023 USL League One champions North Carolina FC met 2023 USL Championship winners Phoenix Rising. After North Carolina accepted promotion into the Championship over the winter, the two now share a league but that didn't lessen the spice surrounding the tie, which exploded in an accordingly fiery way. The first goal went to the visitors after just nine minutes, a clever move involving Panos Armenakas and Gabi Torres finished off by Juan Carlos Azucar, and the pace didn't let up with Oalex Anderson and Remi Cabral going close for their respective sides. In the 24th minute, Lawrence Wykes - who'd already picked up a yellow card just before the goal - fouled Anderson and was shown a second yellow, sending Rising down to ten men for the next hour plus change. That put the home side on the front foot, with six attempts at goal in the next fifteen minutes before they, too, lost a man to a second yellow, Paco Craig receiving his marching orders. Things were less frantic in the second-half, with no concrete opportunities before Azucar hit the bar in the 88th minute, forcing the game into extra-time. Four minutes into the added thirty minutes, the home side went down to nine men when Ezra Armstrong received his second yellow but Jake McGuire's save from Rising's Emil Cuello was as near as things got to a goal in that first period. After the turnaround, substitutes Erickson Gallardo and Giulio Doratiotto combined to give Phoenix the lead again, 2-1 turning out to be the final score when Rafa Mentzingen's best chance of a leveller went wide.

Phoenix will now travel to Seattle after Louisville City's shot at causing an upset in the Evergreen State were stymied by Seattle Sounders at Starfire Sports in Tukwila, usually home to Sounders' reserve side Tacoma Defiance. Sounders made ten changes from the side that drew 0-0 with Los Angeles Galaxy at the weekend, only Josh Atencio keeping his place, and the first-half was a cautious affair, not a single shot on target before Paul Rothrock opened the scoring for Sounders with a tidy finish in the 41st minute. The second-half was also a cagey affair, with goalmouth action at a premium until Danny Musovski doubled Seattle's lead with a header from a set-piece on 63 minutes. That was the cue for City to wake up, and they went close up the other end before Alex Roldan handballed in the box to give the visitors a penalty, fired into the top right corner by Sean Totsch. Taylor Davila then brought a save out of Andrew Thomas in the Sounders goal but it looked like the home side had done enough to go through until Jorge Gonzalez grabbed an equaliser for Louisville a minute from time, forcing the game into extra-time. City had the best chances of the first period of extra-time, with Thomas having to save from Sam Gleadle and Wes Charpie, while City 'keeper Daniel Faundez was on hand to prevent Danny Musovski giving Sounders the win with five minutes left on the clock. That sent the tie into a penalty shootout, with Totsch missing his opening effort, with two saves from Thomas and three from Faundez leaving things level at 3-3 after six rounds. The seventh penalty from each team was converted, but Thomas saved from Kyle Adams and then stepped up himself to fire home the winning kick to take Sounders through.

There was another twist in the Indy Eleven stadium saga ahead of their home tie with San Antonio FC on Wednesday night when the arrival of a wealthy investor seemed to indicate that, if MLS were the grant a franchise to the Railroad City, it would be to Indy Eleven as a club in the planned Eleven Park complex. There's still plenty of water to flow under that bridge and the team got down to business against their USL Championship rivals in quick smart fashion, opening their account just two minutes into the game when Augustine Williams scored his second of the season. The visitors from Texas were left further reeling eight minutes later when Scottish midfielder Jack Blake doubled Indy's lead, but came back into the game strongly, controlling the rest of the first-half and going close to reducing arrears through Machop Choi, Juan Agudelo and Mohammed Omar. It was a similar story after the break, with just one Blake effort finding the target, saved by Kendall McIntosh in the visitors' goal, but San Antonio simply weren't able to break down a resolute home defence, their last decent chance coming ten minutes from time when Hunter Sulte saved from Jose Mulato. Indy move on to face Detroit City in round five.

USL Championship leaders Charleston Battery took nothing for granted against 2022 USL League One winners South Georgia Tormenta at Patriots Point on Wednesday, even if they did make five changes from the side that beat Hartford Athletic at the weekend. With six goals from nine league games so far this season, MD Myers led the Battery line and opened the scoring in the 21st minute with the first decent chance of the game, his shot finding a way past Drew Romig in the Tormenta goal. Romig did make saves from Diego Gutierrez and Aaron Molloy, interventions which looked valuable when Pedro Fonseca ran on to a fast breaking pass from Phillip Spengler to level the scores with a shot from outside the box. The visitors no doubt hoped that they'd go in level at half-time but Myers had other ideas, heading in a cross in the third minute of stoppage time to restore Battery's lead. Just past the hour, Charleston coach Ben Pirmann decide to bring on top scorer Nick Markanich to put the game to bed, and his pass found Myers a few minutes later, but the striker saw his effort well saved by Romig. Markanich, Jake La Cava, and Chris Allen all had shots saved as the visitors left themselves vulnerable in search of an equaliser but Tormenta's efforts paid off seven minutes from time when Gabriel Rodriguez scored from close range to send the game to extra-time. Markanich was busy again once play resumed but Tormenta were able to repel anything Battery threw at them, at least until time added on right at the end of 120 minutes when Myers finally grabbed his hat-trick, slotting in from a corner to give Charleston the win and a home tie with Atlanta United of MLS.

One of three teams still alive from round one at the start of round four, New York City FC II were the last of eight MLS Next Pro sides to enter this year's competition, in their case at the expense of their MLS first team. Still, they've made a good case for their inclusion, with wins over Motown FC, New York Red Bulls II, and USL Championship club Hartford Athletic, and there must have been a few nervous glances at Colorado Springs Switchbacks when the USL Championship side were drawn away to the baby Pigeons. That was before Switchbacks won their last two, of course, and they'd have gone into Wednesday's match at Belson Stadium in Queens with some confidence. That probably lessened after Mexican winger Jonathan Jimenez opened the scoring for the home youngsters with the first chance of the game in the sixth minute, and didn't get much better when Switchbacks 'keeper Luis Zamudio had to save Drew Baiera's shot two minutes later. The visitors made eight changes from the team that beat El Paso Locomotive 2-0 on Saturday but came back into the game, going close through Tyreek Magee and Jairo Henriquez before the first-half dribbled to a close. The second-half wasn't low on action but only Jonas Fjeldberg for the Switchbacks tested either 'keeper, and the game was as good as done when Aidan Rocha was dismissed for two yellow cards two minutes from time.

After completing that 2-0 win, City's next adventure will bring New Mexico United to town after the USL Championship side knocked out MLS opposition in the shape of high-flying Real Salt Lake. True, RSL made eight changes from the weekend, leaving star player Chico Arango on the bench, but that shouldn't take away from a solid performance by United that simply did not allow their more illustrious visitors to grab hold of the game. The home side had the first good chance of the game, Sergio Rivas's thirteenth minute shot saved by Gavin Beevers for a corner, and they took a quick two-goal lead when Zico Bailey shocked the few visiting fans with almost identical goals in the seventeenth and nineteenth minutes. Real were also shocked, this time into action, going close through Zavier Gojo and Braian Ojeda before Fidel Barajas reduced the arrears ten minutes before half-time. Any hope the MLS side might have had of taking a one-goal deficit into the break was shattered four minutes into stoppage time when Daniel Bruce found Nicky Hernandez on the edge of the box, the midfielder firing home to give New Mexico a 3-1 halftime lead. Real coach Paolo Mastroeni didn't panic, declining to make a substitute during the break, and he was rewarded when Diego Luna made it 3-2 four minutes into the second-half, setting things up nicely. Substitutions did come on the hour and Real went close through Berlin Jaqueson five minutes later, but they were still trailing with nine minutes to go, when Arango was brought on. His arrival paid no immediate dividends and his job was made even harder five minutes from time when Nicky Hernandez hit the post from distance and Jacobo Reyes made it 4-2 in the follow-up. That signalled the end for the visitors and it was United who went closest to adding to the score as the game petered out, a night to enjoy for the 5,266 fans in attendance, a half-full stadium the only blemish on the night for the USL Championship club.

If six goals in Albuquerque seems excessive, then what happened down in St Petersburg, Florida, was beyond the pale. Hosts Tampa Bay Rowdies had been on the rough end of a 4-1 defeat at Memphis 901 at the weekend and the visit of USL Championship rivals Birmingham Legion could have been either the best or worst thing for them. It turned out - eventually - to be the former but they were given a hell of a scare in an incredible game in which both teams fully played their part. It all looked simple for Rowdies, up 3-0 at half-time thanks to two Cal Jennings goals after Damian Rivera's opener, with the visitors not even registering a shot on target. Prosper Kasim did force a save out of Rowdies 'keeper Jordan Farr just after the break and Tyler Pasher drew a corner with a shot midway through the half, but Rowdies held firm. Jennings completed his hat-trick in the 79th minute after being headed through on goal by Danny Christodomo and you'd have forgiven even a Rowdies fan for leaving early to avoid traffic at that point. Three minutes later, though, Legion's talismanic midfielder Enzo Martinez grabbed a goal back with a shot into the bottom left corner, the deficit reduced to two with a distance shot from Kobe Hernandez-Foster a minute from the end of normal time. The fourth official signalled for five minutes of stoppage time, enough for Pasher to bring the gap to just one goal with his 93rd minute effort. As the clock ticked towards the final whistle, Legion went forward again and Pasher was brought down in the box by Eddie Munjoma, picking himself up to level the scores with the final kick of the game and send the tie into the unlikeliest of extra-times. That Herculean effort seemed to deplete Birmingham's reserves and Rowdies controlled the first period of extra-time, going ahead once more when substitute Manuel Arteaga fired home, and he grabbed a second for 6-4 once play had resumed for the second period. That wasn't the end of his game, though, as he received a second yellow card three minutes into stoppage time. Rowdies not get to host FC Dallas in round five and local fans should miss it at their peril!

Wednesday's final two games provided two more chances for a "cupset", with USL League One's Union Omaha in great form at home to an inconsistent Sporting Kansas City of MLS probably the best chance of a third-tier versus top-tier giantkilling in some time. Yet to lose in eight games this season, Omaha drew a near 5,000 crowd to the borrowed Caniglia Field at the University of Omaha and gave the fans something to cheer just past the half-hour when Lagos Kunga opened the scoring. Sporting, who made eight changes to the team that lost 1-0 to Real Salt Lake at the weekend, had earlier forced Rashid Nuhu into making saves from both Felipe Hernandez and Erik Thommy, and kept up the pressure afterwards, Nuhu again called into action to deny Zorhan Bassong just before the break. They did manage to get back on level terms three minutes into the second-half when Marinos Tzionis fired in off the post from distance and then introduced first-team regular Alan Pulido, Johnny Russell, and Daniel Salloi in search of a winner. The Omaha defence, though, held fast and it wasn't until two minutes from time that Nuhu was tested again, tipping a curling effort from Russell around the post for a corner. The game went into extra-time and calmed down once more, with chances at goal rare and wasted, although Russell did hit the post. The nearest Omaha came to finding a winner was when Adam Aoumaich's shot was saved by Sporting 'keeper John Pulskamp and it seemed we were heading for penalties when Tzionis found Pulido on the edge of the box, the striker finding the bottom corner to give Sporting a home tie against FC Tulsa in round five.

The rebuilding job being done by former MLB star Jose Bautista at Las Vegas Lights is still very much a work in progress but he will have enjoyed the visit of MLS giants Los Angeles FC to his re-shaped Cashman Field last night, even if the result didn't quite go the way he'd have wanted. LAFC head coach Steve Cherundulo showed that he respected the Lights by picking a side that included both Denis Bouanga and Timothy Tillman, giving Kei Kamara his second start at the head of an attack built to score goals. The first-half brought just two shots on target, both of them well-saved by Lights 'keeper Nicholas Ammeter, but the 0-0 deadlock was broken just two minutes into the second-half when Kamara headed home from Tillman's corner to give the Black & Gold the lead. Bouanaga had a shot saved straight after but the home side managed to get back on level terms in the 56th minute when Shawn Smart headed home from the back of the six-yard box. LAFC went forward again, Bouanga going close just before the hour, and regained the lead on seventy minutes when Cristian Oliveira scored from close range. The game was wrapped up a minute into stoppage time when Oliveira grabbed his second and LA's next hurdle on their way to US Open Cup glory will come in the shape of a home tie against Loudoun United.

Forge FC had already declared May 7th to be a School Day Match, although it was scheduled to be a Canadian Premier League game against HFX Wanderers. When they drew CF Montreal in the Canadian Championship quarterfinals, the 10,000 schoolchildren who'd bought tickets to see what was most likely their first professional soccer game were instead treated to MLS opposition and certainly made themselves heard, even if the pitch of those cheers was higher than usual. In the end, a total of 14,923 were in attendance at 11am local time on a Tuesday morning to see the CPL champions take on their more senior opponents. The home side gave them something to cheer half an hour in when Beni Badibanga laid on a pass for David Choiniere - whose younger brother Matthieu was in the Montreal line-up - to fire home. The visitors tested Forge 'keeper Christopher Kalongo towards the end of the half but the Hamilton side held on for a 1-0 lead at the break. Montreal made four changes at half-time and two of those - Raheem Edwards and Bryce Duke - combined for an equaliser seven minutes into the second-half. Forge went very close to finding a winner in the last few minutes but it ended all square, perfectly set up for the return in Montreal in two week's time.

Poor weather in Calgary didn't prevent a crowd of over 4,000 flocking to ATCO Field to see local CPL side Cavalry FC take on MLS Western Conference high-flyers Vancouver Whitecaps on Tuesday night, and they were rewarded with some decent action and a glimmer of hope for the second leg. Caps made several changes from the 0-0 draw with Austin FC at the weekend but fielded a strong side that was led from the front by Brian White. The first half was very even, at least until Levonte Johnson fired in a shot from 25 yards that left Cavs 'keeper Marco Carducci stranded. Being down 1-0 forced the home side to open up and they went close through Lleyton Brooks midway through the half, but that also left them vulnerable, with a speculative long ball forward from Bjorn Utvik not dealt with by Callum Montgomery, allowing Johnson to score his and Caps' second. Both sides had chances to score as the lock ticked down and Cavs finally got a reward for their efforts in the third minute of stoppage time when Malcolm Shaw scored from a difficult angle to reduce the arrears, and they even could have drawn level when a free-kick caused chaos in the Whitecaps box before eventually being cleared. The teams meet again in Vancouver in two weeks.

The all-CPL tie between Atletico Ottawa and Pacific FC, both topping the table with ten points from four games so far this season, turned out to be every bit as close as the statistics would have suggested, the proverbial fag paper finding it difficult to slide between the two. In a game of few chances, a crowd of just under 2,000 saw Ottawa have the best of what concrete goal chances there were, but it was no surprise to see Pacific's defensive midfielder Cedric Toussaint given man of the match, largely for his efforts in breaking up Ottawa's attacks. It's advantage Pacific, then, as the teams play again in Langford in three weeks' time, by which time they will have also met in the league...

Almost 6,500 fans flocked to Complexe Sportif Claude-Robillard in Montreal last night to see Ligue 1 Quebec qualifiers CS Saint-Laurent take on MLS opposition in the shape of Toronto FC. Toronto had breezed past semi-professional opponents in the last round, dismissing Simcoe County Rovers 5-0, but Saint-Laurent were expected to provide tougher opposition, fielding a side sprinkled with players with professional experience. To their credit, Toronto picked a strong side, despite making eight changes from the team that beat FC Dallas 3-1 at the weekend, and the home crowd were buoyed by a goalless scoreline at half-time, possible due to Saint-Laurent 'keeper Konstantinos Maniatis making saves from Cassius Mailula and Deandre Kerr, and a clearance off the line by young defender Nathan Goulet from Jonathan Osorio. A triple substitution at half-time by the Reds paid dividends five minutes into the second-half when Matty Longstaff fired home, and DeAndre Kerr made it two just before the hour when he latched onto a long ball to shoot past Maniatis, although there was a clear handball by TFC defender Aime Mabika in his own area seconds before, waved off by the referee. Saint-Laurent's heads never dropped, although they were caught out by Federico Bernardeschi's quick free-kick fourteen minutes from time for a 3-0 final score and will rue not getting a rub of green, especially from referee Michael Venne who seemed keen to give things the way of the professional side more often than not. They play again in Toronto in two week's time.