The first one is always the hardest.
Even for a collegiate standout and first round pick, finding the back of the net only gets easier once you’ve actually done it.
For OCB forward Hadji Barry, all he needed was a confidence boost.
“It’s been a lot of games now that I haven’t scored a goal,” Barry said after Sunday night’s 2-1 win over the defending champion Rochester Rhinos. “As a forward you need confidence and this is a confidence booster for me.”
It took Barry five games to score a goal for OCB, and then he scored another one 20 minutes later. The first came on one of his many runs at the back line, when Tony Rocha made a great challenge at midfield to spring Barry free. The former UCF Knight slotted it into the bottom corner for his first career USL goal.
Then in the second half, Barry showed his off his ball skills. He dribbled around several defenders, found some space and ripped a shot from 20 yards out, giving him a brace and setting up his team for a 2-1 victory, as well as earning Barry USL Team of the Week honors.
“I thought he was excellent,” OCB head coach Anthony Pulis said. “Hadji’s got a lot of potential. He worked his socks off and I’m really pleased for him that he’s got his rewards with the two goals.”
There aren’t many rewards much greater than a game-winning brace for your first two goals. It was fitting considering how much work Barry had put into earning them.
“He’s been getting a little frustrated with himself because he hasn’t scored,” Pulis said.
The frustration stemmed from more than just the goal drought.
Barry has played five games for OCB and three with Orlando City in MLS. His physical gifts – “he’s very quick, very athletic, very powerful,” according to Pulis – are easily visible when he’s on the field and his soccer sense shows why he was the 13th overall selection in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft. But even still, Barry hadn’t scored. And it took more than a few runs Sunday to get the goal.
“When you get those balls it’s rewarding for you. Even if you’re tired you want to get the next one,” Barry said. “But once you make some runs and you’re not getting balls, it gets you a little tired. Once the game got going I was able to get those balls.”
“I feel like once I break that through then the rest is easy for me. Hopefully I get more coming into the next games.”
