When the defending league champions come calling, it’s always a big game. It’s also a chance to test yourself against the best and see how you stack up.

That’s just the opportunity South Georgia Tormenta FC had Saturday night at Eagle Field as they hosted the reigning champion Omaha Union at Erk Russell Park Saturday night. While TFC didn’t come away with a win, they did hold Omaha scoreless in a 0-0 draw to net them their first point on the young season.

“Our team can go toe-to-toe with the gold standard in the league,” said Ian Cameron, TFC head coach. “They were the best team in the league last year and we proved, even with adversity, that we can go toe-to-toe with them and we can take a lot out of that.”

Super proud to get the point with the boys,” midfielder Gabriel Cabral said following the game. “Even with one man down, I think we deserved the win, but we’re just trying to get better ahead of the next game.”

The closest either team came to scoring was in the 10th minute of the match when Tormenta’s Arthur Bousa was able to get behind the defense to receive a cross from the left side, but his strike hit the crossbar and the Union goalkeeper Rashid Nuho was able to corral the rebound off the bar.

Tormenta had another opportunity about 10 minutes later when they were able to draw a foul, setting up a free kick from about 23 yards away. Adrian Billhardt’s low line drive shot was able to get under the jumping wall of defenders, but once again, Nuhu was there to scoop up the shot and end another scoring opportunity.

“We’ve got to score more goals,” Cameron said. “Omaha are a great team and they don’t give many chances.”

Cameron said he was confident that as the season progresses, the team will be able to find the back of the net more and more.

“The longer these relationships build and the more confidence they get, we trust that will come,” he said.

Tormenta had a chance late in the match to et on the board with another free kick from about 25 yards out in the 79th minutes. Cabral’s shot was heading for the back of the net, but Nuho made a diving save to deflect the ball out of bounds to keep the game scoreless.

Four minutes later, Omaha had one of their best chances of the night to get in the board, but goalkeeper Pablo Jara was able to make the save and preserve the shutout.

Defensively, Tormenta was able to shut down the Union attack and limited the number of chances Omaha had.

Tormenta played the final 15 minutes down a man after Joshua Phelps was issued a red card following a hard tackle near midfield. In total there were six yellow cards issues in addition to the ejection on the night.

“Our boys are not going to stop being physical and sometimes that’s just how it plays out,” Cameron said. “The last two games we’ve played we’ve had the same referee and that’s his way of refereeing games. He likes to give out a lot of cards very, very quickly.”

Tormenta plays today when they participate in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup for the first time as they travel to face the Birmingham Legion. They return to league play on Saturday when they travel to Greenville,

S.C. to face the Triumph. Their next home game will be Saturday, May 7 when they host Charlotte Independence. 

Back to  U.S. Open Cup action

South Georgia Tormenta FC heads to Birmingham, Alabama, in preparation for its fixture against Birmingham Legion FC in the third round of the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S Open Cup. Tuesday’s match will be the first time both teams meet in an official competition.

“The team have put on two strong performances the past few weeks. The team deserved more in the attacking end, but that just takes time and relationship building," Tormenta coach Ian Cameron said. "Our defensive unit has been reliable since the start of the 2022 season. We expect to bring a challenge to Birmingham who are a good football team that have a lot of technical midfielders, and this will be a nice challenge for our young midfielders."

Tormenta FC entered play in the U.S. Open Cup on April 7 in a Lowcountry clash against USL Championship side Charleston Battery, and Arthur Bosua’s lone goal in the 65th minute sealed the 1-0 win for Tormenta FC. The professional team clinched its first Open Cup win in club history. The match against Birmingham Legion will mark the team’s first time playing in the third round of the U.S Open Cup.

On Saturday, South Georgia entertained fans to a 0-0 draw against the 2021 USL League One winner Union Omaha. With 11 shots and eight on target, Tormenta FC showed it continues to be a threat to any team.

Birmingham kicked off its 2022 USL Championship season with a 1-1 draw against the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Birmingham currently sits in 11th in the USL Championship Eastern Conference after a 1-0 defeat at Detroit City FC. Birmingham made its U.S Open Cup debut in the second round of the competition with a 3-1 win against Southern States SC.