RailHawks fall to Rhinos on own goal

CARY -- For the second time this season, an own goal at home by defender Matt Bobo came at the expense of the Carolina RailHawks.

A cross into the box from a Rochester Rhinos player wasn't the hardest of hits, but its placement caused confusion. The ball grazed by Bobo's forehead and into the goal he was trying to protect.

It was the lone tally in the 1-0 Rhinos win, which elevated Rochester (9-5-6, 33 points) to sole possession of second place in the USSF D2 Pro League.

The RailHawks (6-4-6, 24 points) remained in second place in the NASL Conference and fourth overall. Tuesday's match was the first in four consecutive home games for Carolina.

"Ultimately if you don't take your chances and if you give the other team a goal, this is what will happen," RailHawks coach Martin Rennie said.

Two of the RailHawks' best chances both sailed just askew of the opposition's goal. A screamer by Floyd Franks in the 36th minute clipped the crossbar, and a Daniel Paladini shot in the 67th sailed wide despite his having ample space to direct his kick.

A minute later, Bobo's miscue put Rochester on top.

In a previous home game with Baltimore, a 1-0 RailHawks lead ended in a 1-1 tie after a teammate's panicked clear slammed off a converging Bobo and into the net.

"It seems like at home we shoot ourselves in the foot," Rennie said. "Tonight was a good example of that. We gave them a goal out of nothing."

Rhinos goalkeeper Neal Kitson made two highlight saves - one on a Andriy Budnyy header in the 87th and another on a Bobo flick in stoppage time.

Rennie said the team would flip its focus fast from this game to Saturday's showdown with Vancouver.

The NASL Conference-leading Whitecaps (7-3-9, 30 points) are six points ahead of Carolina, but the loss Tuesday prevented the RailHawks from being in position to tie for the conference lead Saturday.

"Being a part of a good team is being able to handle the disappointments," Rennie said. "It's about learning from good performances and learning from bad performances and then making corrective actions."