Bristol Rhythm AFC tie Greenville United 3-3
An action-packed 90 minutes in Bristol ended in a draw as Greenville United comeback from being down two goals to salvage a point a piece against Bristol Rhythm AFC. Although there wasn’t a winner tonight, both teams displayed real class and fought their hardest until the very end.
The first goal in the match came just 7 minutes after kick-off as Greenville capitalized on a Bristol error, turning it into a counterattack and nailed the finish into the bottom right corner of the Rhythm net. Bristol didn’t let the early goal discourage them, as they clapped back and scored three times in the span of 6 minutes, the first scored by Stan Van den Beld, the second by Alex Panner, and the third was an outrageous finish from Mate Lengyel. The first half ended 3-1 and it really felt at that moment that Bristol had everything under control.
The Greenville halftime team talk must have been truly inspirational as they leveled the score with a one-two punch within the first 10 minutes of the second half. From that point onward, each team was desperate to score the go-ahead goal, Bristol especially generated lots of chances and possession towards the end but ultimately failed to find the winner.
“I’ll be honest, I think there are more positives than negatives to take away from today’s game,” stated Rhythm head coach Louis Sharp. “Obviously a disappointing result but again, we played some nice football.”
Despite losing control in the second half, it must be mentioned that the Rhythm are still undefeated in all competitions this season at their home, Gene Malcom Stadium. Opposing coaches have recently expressed how it is a difficult place to come and play, largely due to the roaring fans and the unorthodox dimensions of the field itself. When asked how important it is to make the home stadium a fortress for the opposition, goal scorer Van den Beld replied that “one hundred percent, it is one of the most important things, other teams hate playing here, which we use to our advantage.”
Both Bristol and Greenville have their sights set on making it into the playoffs now that we are well into the ’25 season. For the Rhythm, just 4 games remain, with their next match away at last place Burlington United, and a difficult run-in to conclude the season follows, facing Appalachian FC away, then two straight home matches against Charlottetown Hops and Hickory FC. Their last three opponents of the season firmly make up the current top 3 of the Southeast Conference of the NPSL.
By Parker W. Cox
Photo Credit: Grace Carter
