SAN JOSE, Calif. -
Goalkeeper Bryan Meredith sure knows how to make an entrance.
In his Earthquakes debut two weeks ago, Meredith made two huge saves in a 6-5 win in a penalty kick shootout against Sacramento Republic FC in the fourth round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open, after the teams drew 2-2.
Now Meredith and his teammates are ready for more.
Meredith will man the nets again when the Quakes host the LA Galaxy in the U.S. Open Cup round-of-16 Wednesday night at Avaya Stadium. The Quakes will be gunning for a second win in five days over their arch rival.
Spot duty is never easy, but Meredith’s resolute performance in PKs against Sacramento has given him and his teammates a shot of confidence heading into tonight’s match against LA.
"It's hard to explain how I feel during it,” Meredith said of the shootout. “But once you make a save you kind of get into the groove. The way we came back against Sacramento was a great and it gives us reason to believe we can go further in this tournament.”
David Bingham, the Quakes regular starter, isn’t surprised about Meredith’s Open Cup success, insisting that he’s the key for San Jose’s deep run in the tournament.
“I thought he played great. He’s worked hard this whole year and last year. He deserves these games in the Open Cup,” Meredith said. “I have no doubt in my mind that he’s going to play well moving forward, and we’ll make a deep long run in the Open Cup and, hopefully, bring home that trophy.”
While Chris Wondolowski’s second half brace lifted San Jose back into the match against Sacramento, it was Meredith’s performance that ensured the win, reassuring the confidence that Quakes head coach Dominic Kinnear has had in him all along.
"I think it's good that the whole squad is contributing this season," Kinnear said.
Kinnear gave Meredith a shot of confidence before the Sacramento game, telling him the U.S. Open Cup was his tournament.
“It was nice to hear, for sure,” Meredith said. “It’s nice to know that you’re going to get games, and it’s nice to have the coach give you that respect and let you play.”
But Meredith, 25, doesn’t seem interesting in reliving old glory. For professionals, it's always about what's ahead.
“I try not to look back too much at games that I’ve played,” Meredith said this week. “It was definitely good to get out there and get a game in under my belt, for sure. I just got to keep doing the little things correctly and keep helping the team and hope that continues Wednesday against LA.”
Meredith, who signed with the Quakes in 2014, has carried himself this week as he has done every other week.
Goalkeepers, like boy scouts, must always be prepared.
“You prepare the same way for every game,” Meredith said. “You never know when your number is going to get called; when you’re going to come off the bench or when you’re gonna start. Nothing really changes between last week’s game and this week’s game.”
