The Carolina RailHawks and Montreal Impact will meet Saturday for the first time since the RailHawks eliminated Montreal in the semifinals of last season’s playoffs.

That Carolina ended Montreal’s season and the way it did so – on Tom Heinemann’s go-ahead goal in the 89th-minute and then having the equalizer negated in stoppage time – creates plenty of buzz for the rivalry’s renewal at WakeMed Soccer Park at 7 p.m. But let’s toss a cup of gasoline on that bonfire for the fun of it and have a look back at the series’ history and how it got so compelling and contentious.

How compelling?

Eight of 16 all-time meetings have ended in a tie or been decided by one goal. Montreal holds an 8-4-4 advantage in the all-time series, though Carolina is 4-3-3 against the Impact under coach Martin Rennie.  

How contentious?

The RailHawks have seen 39 yellow cards, five red cards and been whistled for 216 fouls (avg. 13.5 per game), while Montreal has been issued 28 cautions, five reds and whistled for 211 fouls (avg. 13.1 per game) in the series.

The simplest hypothesis for the team’s bitterness toward each other rests with the age old adage, “success breeds contempt.”

When the RailHawks began play in 2007, Montreal was the reigning USL-1 Commissioner’s Cup winner. In their history, Montreal has won three league championships, with the latest coming in 2009. They also made a stirring run to the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals in the spring of 2009. They have a glistening stadium and tremendous support – 8,000 to 12,000 fans regularly turn out at Stade Saputo.

In short, they’re an excellent franchise on and off the field.

Since Rennie took over the RailHawks, Carolina has finished ahead of the Impact in both seasons and holds an edge in the series during that span. They were runners-up in 2009 and last season’ NASL Conference champions.

In short, the RailHawks have closed the gap on the Impact.

While Montreal and the Triangle have little in common that might stir such antagonistic feelings toward the other, the Impact and RailHawks made it clear very quickly in their first-ever meeting that they would not play nicely.

On July 8, 2007 at Stade Saputo, Carolina’s Anthony Maher and Montreal’s Andres Arango became entangled, leading to an on-field scuffle between both teams that ended with Maher and Arango being ejected – in the fifth minute. Carolina’s Joey Worthen scored twice in the space of 13 minutes in the first half, but the RailHawks were unable to protect the lead. Charles Gbeke scored twice in three minutes in the second half, and the matched ended a 2-2 tie. It would be the only point Carolina would earn at the Impact’s expense until August 2009.

In the team’s final meeting of the 2007 season, Montreal visited WakeMed Soccer Park with the RailHawks reeling from a seven-match winless streak.  The Impact extended the RailHawks’ misery with a 4-1 thrashing, scoring three unanswered goals over the final 45 minutes.

The three meetings in 2008 were a wash for the RailHawks. Not only did Montreal win all three of them, but they shut out the RailHawks in all three, too. Combined score? 7-0.

Things turned for the RailHawks on Aug. 30, 2009. In Rennie’s first trip to Stade Saputo, Carolina trailed 1-0 before John Cunliffe scored following a brilliant run in the 63rd minute. As he raced behind the Impact’s goal in celebration, he shushed the Impact’s Ultras supporters section. It was Carolina’s first goal on the Impact in 301 minutes.

Three days later, the team’s met again at Stade Saputo. Again, the RailHawks fell behind 1-0. Sallieu Bundu appeared to have equalized for the visitors, when he won a 50-50 ball over Montreal goalkeeper Matthew Jordan, then tucked the ball into the open net. But Bundu was ruled to have fouled Jordan, the goal was negated and the RailHawks suffered a 1-0 defeat. Also in that match, Rennie was shown a red card in the 68th minute when he kicked a water bottle in frustration – and it sailed in the direction of the fourth official.

Carolina got its revenge three weeks later in the 2009 regular-season finale. Daniel Paladini scored on a 59th-minute penalty kick and Brian Plotkin sealed the RailHawks’ first-ever win over the Impact with a goal in the 90th minute.

The rivalry took a new intensity in 2010 – when the teams met once in the preseason, four times in the regular season, and twice in the playoffs. Carolina took the season series 2-1-1, and the draw was the one the stood out the most. After 60 quiet minutes on June 26 at WakeMed Soccer Park, the final 30 were action packed. Bundu scored the game’s first goal in the 61st minute, and Floyd Franks put Carolina ahead 2-0 on a 73rd minute PK. Two minutes later, Simon Gatti drew a goal back for Montreal.

Just when Carolina thought it had three points secure, the match took a twist. In the third minute of stoppage time, Bundu jumped to block a Montreal pass into the box. It grazed his arm and the referee pointed to the spot. Tony Donatelli converted the try, ending the match a 2-2 tie. But the RailHawks didn’t go away quietly. Rennie and assistant coach Paul Ritchie objected so vehemently, both were later assessed suspensions by the U.S. Soccer Federation.

When the teams drew each other for the league semifinals, there was little doubt the 180 minutes spread over two days in Montreal and Cary would be terse and drama-filled.

Carolina opted to travel for the opening leg so it could host the return leg. Montreal took a 1-0 lead at Stade Saputo thanks to a goal by Leonard Di Lorenzo. The RailHawks thought they had the equalizer late, but once again, the referee’s ruling didn’t go their way. Heinemann’s second-half equalizer was negated by an offside ruling.

The RailHawks returned to WakeMed Soccer Park facing a 1-0 deficit and were playing for their season.

Brad Rusin evened the series on aggregate when he redirected a Matt Watson shot into the goal in the 72nd minute. Just when extra time seemed likely, Heinemann capitalized on another breakaway. Sprung free by Watson, Heinemann beat the Impact’s offside trap, broke in on Jordan’s goal and crushed a shot by the Impact goalkeeper at the near post, setting off delirium among the nearly 3,000 at WakeMed Soccer Park.

But it didn’t end there.

Montreal crashed forward in the game’s dying moments. Donatelli hit a blistering shot that RailHawks goalkeeper Eric Reed deflected. Marco Terminesi jumped on the rebound and slipped in the gut-wrenching equalizer. As the Impact celebrated their improbable comeback, the goal was waved off. The linesman on the far side of the field was standing with his flag aloft. Terminesi was judged to have been offside when Donatelli struck his shot. 

No goal.

When the final whistle sounded, the RailHawks celebrated. Montreal players and coaches protested vehemently, berating the officiating crew and RailHawks club officials trying to contain the brouhaha. Three players and a club official were assessed fines and suspensions, and the club was hit with a $5,000 fine.

With all that as the backdrop, what could possibly be in store when the teams meet for the first of three scheduled meetings in 2011 this weekend? Get your ticketsand be on hand Saturday at WakeMed Soccer Park to find out.