A step slow from the start.
A goal short at the finish.
After scoring a combined 10 goals in its previous two games, the Chattanooga Football Club came out a little "lethargic" Wednesday against Memphis City FC, to use CFC coach Bill Elliott's word. The result was a performance that matched, with a second-half goal by the visitors leading to a 2-1 win for Memphis in front of 3,854 at Finley Stadium.
CFC (5-2-4, 4-1-4) remains tied with New Orleans for the NPSL Southeast Conference's West Division lead with 16 points, but the Jesters now have the upper hand with no losses and four regular-season matches to play.
Memphis (3-3-4 in league) was the better team on the field from the beginning Wednesday - more aggressive, with more calls in its favor along the way. The visitors had early opportunities in the box, putting pressure on CFC's defense and goalkeeper Paulo Pita.
"We looked lethargic from the beginning, and I'm not sure why," Elliott said. "Maybe we got a little bit of complacency because we've done so well the last two home games and thought we could show up, but you could see from the very beginning that we were very lethargic tonight. We weren't quick to anything, and you've got to play in this league.
"If you don't, you get beat, and that's what happened."
Still, the home team struck first, with Felipe Antonio scoring off a feed from Jon Finlay in the 16th minute. It was Antonio's team-leading fifth goal of the year.
Yet for the first time in a while, an opposing team's attack put pressure on CFC's defense, and a lot. Memphis's attack never stopped, and after a number of opportunities, Shota Nishi scored in the 34th minute to tie the match.
The second half was more of the same. CFC started to apply some pressure, with some opportunities created by Antonio and Jose Ferraz, as well as subs Luke Winter and Samuel Goni, but it was the visitors who took the lead on a counter when Lewis Jones scored off a pass from Mustapha Wadda in the 67th minute.
Memphis (3-3-4 in league), fighting for one of the three West Division berths into the playoffs, played like a desperate team in need of a win, having lost 3-2 to New Orleans on Saturday. CFC didn't match its opponent's energy, which disappointed Elliott.
"Everybody is going to play their best when they play us," he said. "We know that and we're usually up for it, but tonight we didn't seem mentally (prepared), and we struggled from the beginning."
CFC lost defender Jordan Dunstan, who missed the second half with a right quadriceps injury, and defender Soren Yuhaschek, who had to leave the game due to fatigue. Both will be evaluated, and as of Wednesday night their statuses were unknown for Saturday's road match against Inter Nashville FC.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.