NASL FC Edmonton

Eddies Draw Undefeated Indy Eleven 1-1 to Close out Road Trip

Published on May 7, 2016 under North American Soccer League (NASL)
FC Edmonton News Release


FC Edmonton (2-2-2) wrapped up their second North American Soccer League (NASL) match in four days with a 1-1 draw against the undefeated Indy Eleven (2-3-0), May 7 at Michael A. Carroll Stadium in Indianpolis, Il. The Eleven jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the opening half before the visiting Eddies responded with a goal of their own to level the match in front of 7,415 fans.

Indy's Greg Janicki registered his team's lone goal on Saturday night, while striker Jake Keegan notched his second goal of the NASL season for the Eddies.

Despite both sides' defensive mindset, Saturday's match opened with a back-and-forth exchange between the Eleven and the Eddies. After missing last match, Eddie Sainey Nyassi made his presence known early with two dangerous rushes up the right wing.

An extended trip into the 18-yard-box for the Eleven proved to be fruitful on 22 minutes, as a Nicki Paterson-taken free kick to the right of Eddies goalkeeper Matt VanOekel took a bounce before finding Janicki in the box, who connected from in-close with a right footed chip to put the home side up 1-0.

VanOekel came up big minutes later to deny Justin Braun on what looked to be a second Indy goal. The towering 'keeper was able to scramble inside his box and swallow up a loose ball to prevent any further danger and keep his side within a goal.

The Eddies' responded on 32 minutes, with a flick-on header by Keegan that just skimmed the outside of Indy's left post. It was a preview of things to come, as the Eddies were able to push back into the attacking third five minutes later. This time, Keegan connected with a Nyassi diagonal into the box with a second header that arced perfectly over the top of Busch to level the match at 1-1.

Keegan continued to be a target as the Eddies began to find their legs, with teammate Eddie Edward finding the striker in transition on 43 minutes, but the play was called offside on what would have been a late first half corner for the visitors. The two sides would into the break in a 1-1 deadlock.

It was an uneventful opening to the second half of play, with neither side generating much in the way of threatening opportunities. A pair of chances for the Eleven would go wide of VanOekel's left post, including a strike from Omar Gordon on 70 minutes.

Both teams played it safe as the second half continued, with both Indy and the Eddies' substitutions failing to push either side ahead, despite a pair of glorious opportunities for the Eddies in the dying minutes of the match. Both teams would settle for a point in a 1-1 draw, with the Eddies collecting four of a possible six points on the road to put them in fifth place in the NASL table.

"It was a tough game, a tough, tough game," FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller stated following the match. "I thought the players deserve enormous credit and were unlucky to not get the three points. I thought we played some very good football, defended very resolutely the entire game and limited a good Indy team to very few chances. I'm very, very pleased with the road trip...I think it's a credit to the players and their fitness levels that they come away from home and are the better team on both nights."

It's a quick turnaround once again for the Eddies, who return to Clarke Field for the first leg of the Amway Canadian Championship preliminary round against Ottawa Fury FC on May 11. Kick-off in the match is set for 7:00 p.m. MT.

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