Birmingham Legion played host to New Mexico United at Dannavant Valley Fields on Wednesday evening, and the pair ended up sharing the spoils in a 4:4 draw. The USL Championship Group Stage fixture produced seven goals across two halves, with both sides trading blows from the opening whistle. It was a result that kept Birmingham in mid-table while New Mexico maintained their position near the summit.
R. Williams opened the scoring for the hosts in the 11th minute, but Z. Bailey levelled shortly after in the 16th. N. Reid-Stephen then put Birmingham ahead again just three minutes later, though J. Heaps picked up a yellow card in the same period. M. Howell was substituted in the 43rd minute after collecting a booking in the 39th, and the match remained cagey until after the break.
The second half exploded into life. G. Hurst equalised for New Mexico in the 64th minute before J. Melto Quiah turned the game on its head with a goal in the 66th. R. Williams was booked for his efforts in the 69th, and the hosts responded with a flurry of changes in the 74th minute — C. Gloster, N. Reid-Stephen, O. Jabang, R. Williams and T. Pasher all came on. It was to no immediate avail.
R. Damus got Birmingham back into it with a goal in the 77th minute, but G. Diarbian restored New Mexico's lead just six minutes later. L. Archimede came on for the hosts in the 83rd minute as they pushed for an equaliser. S. Antwi and C. Nava both picked up yellow cards in stoppage time, and then R. Damus struck again in the 90th plus nine minutes to rescue a point for Birmingham.
There is not much to say about the statistics — both sides logged zero attacks and shared possession at 0.5, which tells you nothing you didn't already know from watching the game. Birmingham sit 11th with 19 points from 22 matches, while New Mexico remain second on 41 points. The home side have won three, drawn ten and lost nine this season, and this result extended a run of draws that has seen them play out 2:2 against Charleston Battery and Indy Eleven recently.
