Cosmos Fall 1-0 to San Antonio in Regular Season Finale

Published on November 2, 2014 under North American Soccer League (NASL)
New York Cosmos News Release


SAN ANTONIO - The New York Cosmos fell 1-0 against the San Antonio Scorpions in the club's regular season finale on Saturday night at Toyota Field. The Cosmos will return to San Antonio next week to take on the Scorpions in The Championship - the NASL's four team postseason tournament and Cosmos head coach Giovanni Savarese is confident the loss won't carry over to the postseason semifinal clash next weekend.

"I trust my players," Savarese said after the match. "I'm very confident that our guys are going to come back here and perform in the best possible way. I'm looking forward to the match next week. I feel like next week is going to be a completely different match than tonight."

Part of that confidence comes from knowing he didn't play his strongest XI, resting several starters ahead of next weekend's match against the Fall Season champions. Among those sidelined was Cosmos defender Hunter Freeman, who had played in every minute of every match of the 2014 Season.

Those who played, though, impressed Savarese.

"I was very content with the performance of the team today," he said. "I thought we deserved a little more than losing 1-0 at the end. But this is how the game is. It's not about deserving; it's about the result at the end."

The Cosmos (5-8-5 this Fall Season) had the better of play in the opening 20 minutes and nearly struck for the opening goal of the match in the 13th minute when striker Mads Stokkelien found a streaking Diomar DÃ-az, but the midfielder's attempt was wide of goal.

DÃ-az turned provider five minutes later when he found Hunter Gorskie with a free kick. The defender, who wore the captain's armband in the match, attempted a diving header but was unable to find the net.

San Antonio (11-2-5 during the Fall Season) claimed all three points on a goal by defender Adrian Cann in the dying seconds of second half stoppage time. The Scorpions captain tapped in from the edge of the six-yard box following a scramble after a Rafael Castillo corner kick.

"It's a shame to lose at the last second of the game, but that's what happened," Savarese said. "We're back here next week. It's going to be one game and hopefully we're going to qualify for the final."

As was the case last year, the Cosmos ended the regular season by playing their postseason opponent. Last fall, the Cosmos knocked off Atlanta before beating the Silverbacks in the 2013 Soccer Bowl.

Savarese said he will have a full roster at his disposal when the quest for a second straight NASL title begins back in San Antonio next Saturday, Nov. 8 at 8:30 p.m. ET.

"All the players are healthy," he said. "We did everything necessary in order to be able to have everyone healthy for next week."

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



North American Soccer League Stories from November 2, 2014


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central