Menace set aside

The Thunder Bay Chill may be threatening to run away with the Heartland Division, but none of their challengers are about to hand them anything the easy way.

The Chill, winners of five straight heading into Friday night’s Chapples Field contest against archrival Des Moines, survived plenty of second half scares to down the Menace 3-1, a pair of Sullivan Silva goals providing the early boost and a Jordian Farahani blast in the 87th minute the insurance to finally put away their pressing opponent.

With the Menace giving Chill goalkeeper Stephen Paterson plenty to worry about as time wound down and clinging to a one-goal lead, Farahani said he was just glad to see the ball sneak past Des Moine goalie Jhojan Obando.

“A 2-0 lead is the scariest lead in soccer,” a bare-chested Farahani said after the game, which pushed the Chill (8-1-0) six points ahead of second-place Real Colorado with a pair of games in hand, and seven ahead of Des Moines (5-4-2).

“As soon as they came back with one we knew the pressure was going to be on, so getting that third goal and getting the insurance was huge. It gave us a little bit of relief at the back. It was a good battle today.”

Farahani couldn’t say enough about Paterson’s performance.

The Thunder Bay goalie, who entered play with five shutouts in six appearances, didn’t get the goose egg, but came through when it counted.

After substitute Jordan Schmoker cut the Chill lead in half in the 66th minute – the first goal the Chill allowed at home all season – Paterson raised the drawbridge and defended the Thunder Bay castle like the bravest knight of them all.

He stopped Charlie Bales from in tight in the 71st minute, snatching up a loose ball with Logan McDaniel circling for the equalizer and booting it out of harm’s way.

Then, three minutes later he brushed aside a header with eyes for the back of the net from Jeffrey Kyei. Under different circumstances both could have easily turned into goals, which is why it’s so important to have a player like Paterson defending the net, Farahani said.

“Steve is the back-stone of our team. He’s the reason we only have two goals against so far this season. He comes up big for us all game and that goal wasn’t his fault. It was a defensive breakdown. He’s definitely our key player, that’s for sure.”

Silva, who has seven goals despite nursing an injured foot, said everyone realizes the importance of the wins, with less than half a Premier Development League season to go.

“It was important. They made a mistake and I was fortunate to score,” said Silva, who now has seven on the season.

“Obviously we couldn’t move the ball as good as before. They are a really good team as well. But we got the job done, so that’s the most important thing.”

Knowing they need to keep piling up divisional wins against the likes of the Menace, Chill coach Tony Colistro was relieved to get the first one out of the way. But, with a rematch on Saturday’s agenda, there’s no time to rest on their laurels.

“We still have these guys three times, so there’s a nine-point swing there. So we have to come out and work just as hard tomorrow,” Colistro said.

Pitch marks: Chill midfielder Matt Luac is expected to miss the rest of the season after breaking his ankle in Winnipeg ... The league won't have a Final 4 weekend this season. Instead, after the four-team conference tournament to open the playoffs, there will be a national semifinal, followed on Aug. 4 by a national final.