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NASL FC Edmonton

Eddies Come up Short in 3-2 Thriller Versus Armada FC

October 17, 2015 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
FC Edmonton News Release


EDMONTON, AB - FC Edmonton (7-4-8) played their penultimate match their North American Soccer League (NASL) regular season, Oct. 17 against Jacksonville Armada FC (5-3-9), dropping a 3-2 decision after a wild second half that saw four goals scored in just eight minutes of play at Community First Park in Jacksonville, FL.

Alhassane Keita, Pascal Millien and Akel Barrett put away goals for the home side, while Daryl Fordyce and Sainey Nyassi answered for the Eddies in a losing cause.

In a match with critical postseason implications, it was the visiting Eddies who earned the top chances on net through the opening 30 minutes of play. Their initial chance to pull ahead occurred when midfielder Ritchie Jones received a cross inside the box from teammate Sainey Nyassi, but the Manchester United product was unable to redirect the ball on target.

Jacksonville answered back with their own opportunity on 12 minutes, when Jaime Castrillion, maneuvered around defenders Allan Zebie and Eddie Edward before firing a left footed blast just wide of 'keeper Matt VanOekel's right post.

Armada began to carry the run of play as the half wore on, and were rewarded on 32 minutes off the foot of Keita. The 32-year-old Guinea native buried a shot to the back of the net for the 1-0 lead heading into the half.

The Eddies came out on the front foot to open the second and were able to draw Keita into a second yellow card and ejection from the match on 51 minutes, putting Armada down to ten men with 39 minutes to play. Forward Franke Jonke and midfielder Pablo Cruz entered the match moments later as the Eddies set their sights on levelling the match.

Daryl Fordyce equalized for the Eddies on 62 minutes, converting a Jonke rebound for his second goal in as many games. Just three minutes later, Nyassi put the Eddies up 2-1 after receiving a pass inside the box and striking a quick shot to the back of the net.

Just moments after that, Armada were rewarded a penalty kick, with Millien stepping up to the spot and levelling the match at 2-2 with a well-placed strike. Armada stunned Edmonton just three minutes after that, as Barrett was left unmarked in the box, putting the ball to the back of the net for the 3-2 lead.

Despite several quality opportunities on net down the stretch for Edmonton, the visiting side would be unable to level the match once again, falling 3-2 in the match. Fort Lauderdale Strikers' victory over Carolina RailHawks Saturday evening all but dissolves the Eddies' postseason hopes with a just a single match remaining in their season.

The Eddies return to Clarke Field for their regular season finale against Jacksonville, Oct. 25 at 2:00 p.m. For tickets and more information, please visit www.fcedmonton.com.

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