NASL Jacksonville Armada FC

Armada FC Return to Jacksonville for Fall Home Opener with Spring Champions Cosmos

July 17, 2015 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
Jacksonville Armada FC News Release


JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (July 17, 2015) - The Jacksonville Armada FC return to Community First Park at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday for their North American Soccer League Fall Season home opener against the Spring Season Champions New York Cosmos.

The Armada are coming off a 4-0 loss at Minnesota United FC on Wednesday. Jacksonville played without two of its key offensive players for the majority of the game - Marcos Flores and Alhassane Keita, and played with only 10 men for the entire second half. Flores went down with a hamstring injury in the 35th minute and was subbed out for Tommy Krizanovic, and Keita was shown a red card in the 45th minute when his leg went high and collided with Minnesota goalkeeper Sammy Ndjock's face when going for the ball. The Armada were also without regular starting right back Matt Bahner, who sat out the game with a knee injury, and regular starting left midfielder Lucas Scaglia, who served a one-match suspension for receiving two yellow cards against Atlanta on July 11.

The Cosmos last played on July 5 and notched a 1-1 draw with Indy Eleven in New York. After Indy got on the board first in the 26th minute, Cosmos midfielder Walter Restrepo scored the equalizer in the 78th minute off a rebound from a 'keeper save to help New York extend its NASL unbeaten streak to 11 games.

The teams last met in New York on June 13 in the Spring Season finale and played to a 3-3 draw. After falling behind 2-0 in the first half, Pascal Millien, who is currently unavailable on international duty with the Haitian national team at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, lifted the team on his shoulders and played a part in the Armada's next three goals. He started his attack in the 59th minute when he found the upper left of the goal on a feed from Johnson.

Millien evened the score at 2-2 in the 73rd minute when he fired a laser shot past New York 'keeper Jimmy Maurer from 13 yards out. After the Cosmos went up 3-2 on a Lucky Mkosona strike in the 79th minute, Millien curved in a cross to defender Joseph Toby in the box, who deflected the ball off his right heel and into the top right corner of the goal. It was Toby's first professional goal. The draw allowed the Cosmos to finish one point ahead of the Tampa Bay Rowdies to clinch the spring title.

Below is a breakdown of each team and the match.

WHEN & WHERE

Saturday, July 18 at 7:30 p.m. ET | Community First Park at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville

THE TEAMS

Jacksonville Armada FC (0W-0D-3L, 0 pts., 11th NASL Fall; 3-3-7, 12 pts., 10th NASL Combined)

New York Cosmos (0W-1D-0L, 1 pt., 10th in NASL Fall; 5-6-0, 21 pts., 2nd NASL Combined)

SERIES HISTORY

Series tied, 0-1-0

LAST RESULT

Cosmos 3, Armada FC 3 - 6/13/15 in Hempstead, N.Y. | Recap | Video Highlights

WATCH

- CW17 in Jacksonville | Cole Pepper - PXP, Mauricio Ruiz - Color and Krissty Andaur -- Sideline

- ESPN3

LISTEN

- Sports Radio 930-AM in Jacksonville | Stuart Webber - PXP and Bob Veal - Color

- Also streamed live on sportsradiojax.iheart.com

READ

- Live Twitter updates on @ArmadaFCgameday - #JAXvNYC

- Live stats on ArmadaFC.com

WHAT'S AT STAKE

For Jacksonville, a win would go a long way toward getting the ship back on the right course to being a contender in the NASL Fall and Combined standings. Although the Armada have yet to notch three points on the road this year, a return home should help as they are 3-1-1 (W-D-L) in regular season contests played in Jacksonville and are 2-1-1 at Community First Park.

Although the Cosmos already have a spot in the NASL Championship locked in, they haven't played in two weeks, and championship-caliber teams typically have a steady stream of momentum. It will be a chance for New York to get back into a groove and extend their league-best unbeaten streak as well as reinforce its reputation as the team to beat.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Jacksonville: With Keita unavailable for this game as he serves the first of his two-match suspension from his red card on Wednesday along with other key injuries that could play a factor, all eyes should be on forward Jemal Johnson. Johnson has three goals to his credit this season, and that number could be higher by at least two. He has had several shots narrowly miss the goal, including two on Wednesday at Minnesota. Johnson also played for the Cosmos in 2013-14, so there is also the extra motivation to perform well against a former team.

New York: While it is hard not to watch Spanish legends Raúl and Marcos Senna (Brazilian born), striker Lucky Mkosana has established himself as a vital part of the Cosmos attack with his elusiveness and nose for the goal. He is tied with midfielder Leo Fernandes for second in scoring with three goals apiece. Goalkeeper Jimmy Maurer has also been Mr. Automatic in net, notching an NASL second-best 30 saves and 0.91 GAA.

NOTABLES

Despite their scoring woes (271 minute scoreless streak), the Armada have not been letting up on the attack. Jacksonville leads the NASL in shots taken with 102, 10 ahead of the New York Cosmos.

When it comes to trying to score on the Cosmos this season, no one knows better than Jacksonville. The Armada's three goal performance at New York on June 13 is the best scoring effort any team has had against the Cosmos this season in NASL play and the most any team has scored against New York in a league match since Carolina beat the Cosmos 5-4 on Sept. 20, 2014 in Cary, N.C.

ADDED MATCH VALUE FOR ATTENDING FANS

Early arriving Armada fans will be able to enjoy the USMNT v. Cuba Gold Cup quarterfinal match, which will be shown on large screens at the Armada's pre-game Matchday Experience area on Duval Street from 5 p.m. and inside Community First Park on the scoreboard screen from 6:30 p.m. ahead of the Armada v. Cosmos match.

LOOKING AHEAD

Jacksonville will enter an off week before returning to Community First Park to seek revenge with Minnesota United FC at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, July 31. Tickets are available by calling 1.844.2.Armada or by going to armadafc.com.



North American Soccer League Stories from July 17, 2015


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