Even though their beloved team had just been relegated into non-existence, fans remained at Torero Stadium on the campus of the University of San Diego more than an hour following the San Diego Loyal’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Phoenix Rising FC in a USL Championship Western Conference quarterfinal match on Oct. 22.
The sellout crowd of 6,000 cheered on players, still wandering on the pitch, soaking up every little bit of magic – and heartbreak – the club had bestowed on the local soccer community for the past four seasons.
The Loyal, operating at the Division 2 level in US Soccer’s structured pyramid, had announced prior to the end of this season that this would be its last in the wake of the arrival of a Division 1 Major League Soccer franchise in 2025 and the inability to find a suitable new location for a stadium, practice facility and soccer academy.
The Loyal would disband and trudge off to the soccer graveyard that has claimed so many teams in the region upon its last kick. That would turn out to be after its final game in this year’s playoffs, however long the club remained alive in each knockout phase.
Staying loyal to the end in front of a sellout crowd Photos by Phillip Brents
The Loyal earned the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference quarterfinals and hosted sixth-seeded Phoenix amid an at-times drizzling rain. A win would have catapulted the Loyal to a semifinal match against Orange County that following weekend.
After that, how knows? Loyal players said they wanted to go as far as possible. A league championship? Who knows with positive thinking?
A loss? Well, there was no tomorrow, forget about next season.
The fans cheered each player during pregame introductions, reciting each player’s surname following the public address announcement, as per traditions. Fans, virtually all of whom were decked out in Loyal swag, held up Loyal signage proclaiming their love for the team.
They didn’t want it to end.
Nobody did.
The Loyal did its best to keep its promise, leading by scores of 1-0, 2-1 and coming back in the waning stages of regulation to force a 3-3 standoff and overtime.
Ronaldo Damus scored all three goals for the Loyal to earn the team’s Man of the Match award.
His first two goals – in the fifth and 25 minutes – were electrifying. His third goal came on a penalty kick in the sixth minute of second-half stoppage time that ignited pandemonium in the stadium.
Ronaldo Damus was back celebrating in the 25th minute after slotting home a volley pass from teammate Evan Conway for a 2-1 Loyal lead. Photo by Paul Maritnez
But Phoenix had its own secret weapon in midfielder Dariusz Formella, who finished the game with two goals, including the game-winner. It was his shot to the far lower corner in the final minute of overtime – 119th minute, officially – that did in the Loyal so dastardly.
But the Loyal’s legacy will live on even though the team will now fade into oblivion.
The Loyal displayed its entertaining brand and style of soccer in front of a sell-out crowd that continued to support its team until the very end. Thousands of loyal fans, supporters and season ticket holders remained in the stands after the final whistle had blown to soak in the final moments of what the club meant to them.
The feeling was mutual from players, who remained on the pitch to join supporters for one final “San Diego, We Are” chant. Every player went through the hundreds of dedicated fans lined up to say their final goodbyes. The players showed their gratitude with hugs and tears, thanking the people of San Diego for their support in 2023 and over the past four seasons.
“It was a great game, an exciting game,” Loyal coach Nate Miller summed up. “We wanted to have a journey in the playoffs to show everyone what we were about. It was a love affair (with the fans) that has to end now. What we take out of all this is gratitude.”
Loyal midfielder Joe Corona, the 2008 San Diego Section Player of the Year out of Sweetwater High School, set up Damus’ first goal with a perfect pin-point pass while making a run on the right flank. Damus met the ball and tapped in a shot from the six-yard box to send the crowd into a frenzy.
Photo by Paul Martinez
But fate had other things in store.
Phoenix tied the match, 1-1, in the 17th minute on a penalty kick by midfielder Panos Armenakas, whose shot easily beat Loyal ‘keeper Koke Vegas, who dove in the other direction. The spot kick was set up when Loyal forward Adrien Perez was called for a foul on Phoenix forward Danny Trejo in the penalty box.
The Loyal, though dismayed at the turn of events, continued to attack and was rewarded just eight minutes later when forward Evan Conway intercepted a pass and sprinted up field, eventually volleying a pass over the Phoenix goalkeeper’s head that Damus managed to float into open space and get a handle on the bouncing ball.
The Haitian striker lay on his back as the ball trickled over the goal line.
A Loyal defensive mistake led to the tying goal in the 42nd minute as Trejo poked the ball through Vegas’ legs.
The first half ended with the teams knotted in a 2-2 standoff.
Phoenix did not look like a team that had not posted a win in its last five games, and that had to be worrisome, especially after the Arizona visitors took a 3-2 lead in the 51st minute (six minutes into the second half) as Formella netted his first goal of the match by depositing a shot inside the post to finish off a run and pass from midfielder Darnell King on the left side.
Phoenix was content to drop back and defend from that point and the waning minutes resembled a shooting gallery in front of Rios Novo as light rain fell.
The Loyal finally got the break it had been seeking when Tumi Moshobane, a substitute for Corona in the 63rd minute, was fouled by defender Mohamed Traore at the top of the right corner of the penalty box to produce whistle and a spot kick.
Damus did not miss on the golden opportunity, sending the large crowd into another towel-waving frenzy.
USL championship rules dictate that two 15-minute overtime periods are played following a regulation time deadlock. That is, full time. There is no golden goal. If the match is still tied following the two overtime periods, a kicks from the mark tiebreaker will decide the winner.
The Loyal absolutely dominated in the first overtime period by taking five shots. Phoenix took the momentum in the second OT period, however, and created its own scoring chances.
And capitalizing on one to write the Loyal’s final chapter.
There was no time for the Loyal to respond and the reality of the situation sank in as the extra minute added for injury time quickly evaporated.
It was time for the fond memories – and team character – to emerge.
Loyal midfielder Alejandro Guido, who entered the game in the 63rd minute as a substitute for captain Charlie Adams, signed autographs for young fans an hour after the disappointing loss.
Guido played all four seasons with the Loyal, earning a consistent place in the team’s lineup. He said he was so wrapped up in the team’s playoff push that the finality of it all eluded him.
“I have no words for that,” the Mater Dei Catholic High School alumnus said. “I was just one of the guys all four years. I really hadn’t thought about it (what his next move would be), but I guess now I have to think about. I guess I will have to make some calls.”
Corona, who played one season at San Diego State University before turning professional with Club Tijuana in Mexico, echoed those sentiments during his single season with the Loyal that produced four goals and three assists.
“It was special,” the Sweetwater High School alumnus said. “It was great playing in front of my family and friends. I was representing San Diego.”
The Loyal was more than just a team for soccer fans to cheer for. It was a family that embraced competition, commitment and connection to the 18 cities and 86 neighborhoods of America’s Finest City while cultivating a diverse and inclusive community on and off the pitch.
“I’m heart-broken,” longtime season ticket holder Steve Wood of Chula Vista said. “There was nothing but love between the team and the fans from the start.”
There will understandably be a void to fill.
The new MLS team would be wise to heed many of the things the Loyal did right in cultivating a vocal and loyal fan base.
The message from the team’s legion of fans came from the heart: “We are Loyal.”
Cornerkicks
Damus set a new single-season club record with 15 goals scored, surpassing Kyle Vassel’s mark of 14 from 2022. The hat trick effort was his second of 2023 and the third hat trick recorded in club history.
Vegas added 120 minutes to his single-season club record for minutes played, finishing the 2023 USL Championship season with 2,910.
Defender Grant Stoneman recorded a club high 8,169 minutes in his four seasons with the Loyal.
Moshobane finished his four-year Loyal career with a team-high 114 USL Championship appearances. Moshobane also finished as the club’s all-time scorer with 25 goals.
Adams finished with an all-time team best 18 assists in his four seasons with the Loyal.
A press release was used in preparation of this story.
Photos by Paul Martinez
