The penalty was dispatched with a ruthless, top-corner precision that left Angus Gunn no chance.
3-3.
The tiny away section of Apex fans was a pocket of stunned silence, while the rest of Vale Park erupted into a deafening roar of pure, unadulterated ecstasy.
On the pitch, Apex United was imploding.
"My fault! My fault!" David Kerrigan was yelling, beating his chest in frustration for his heroic but ultimately disastrous recovery run that led to the penalty.
"It wasn't just you" Grant Hanley roared back, his face a mask of thunderous fury. "We went to sleep! All of us! We thought the game was won!"
Ethan stood on the sideline, a feeling of horrifying déjà vu washing over him.
The 'Team Complacency' modifier. It was back.
He could feel it, a creeping, insidious poison infecting his players' decision-making.
Their shoulders slumped, their passes became sloppy, and the easy confidence of the first half was replaced by a frantic, finger-pointing panic.
