SANDY, Utah -- D.C. United goalkeeper Bill Hamid was masterful in goal to lead his team to a 1-1 draw on the road against Real Salt Lake on Friday.
Hamid returned in May from knee surgery and was in fine form, having recorded three shutouts in his four league matches entering Friday night. While he didn’t keep a clean sheet against RSL, he did keep United’s head above water until a 92nd-minute equalizer from Jared Jeffrey earned a point on the road for D.C.
All told, Hamid made seven saves on the night and faced 13 shots from inside the box.
“He's one of the best keepers in this league,” RSL forward Yura Movsisyan said. “He's a big boy, covers a lot of the goal and does really well on the ground.”
Movsisyan may have been the favorite victim of Hamid on the night. Two headers only found their way into his grasp, while three point-blank shots couldn’t find a hole to sneak through as Hamid smothered them.
He also beat Joao Plata to a ball in the box and cleared it without a problem in the 61st minute and stoned Olmes Garcia in a 1-on-1 opportunity moments before DC’s equalizer. Most importantly, he left RSL to bemoan letting two points at home slip away despite controlling the run of play on the offensive end.
“I've seen performances like that out of him the last couple years,” D.C. United head coach Ben Olsen said after the game. “When he's in a zone it's extremely difficult to score, which is nice to see because on the day as a team we were second best.”
For his part, Hamid credited his teammates for staying in the match until the end.
“What stood out to me tonight was our willingness to keep going and keep fighting and to not give up until the last second," he said.
Hamid said “he feels good to be back” and the 2014 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year showed he’s ready to keep putting up stellar performances now that he's back to full fitness.
