NASL FC Edmonton

FC Edmonton Heads to Tampa Bay in Search of Fifth Straight Win

Published on August 19, 2016 under North American Soccer League (NASL)
FC Edmonton News Release


FC Edmonton Heads to Tampa Bay in Search of Fifth Straight Win
FC Edmonton Heads to Tampa Bay in Search of Fifth Straight Win
(FC Edmonton)

EDMONTON, AB - FC Edmonton (11W-3D-4L) heads back on the road to face Tampa Bay Rowdies (6W-6D-7L), August 20 at Al Lang Stadium in North American Soccer League (NASL) action. Kick-off in the match is set for 5:30 p.m. MT.

One of the hottest teams in the NASL, the Eddies currently sit tied with Spring Season Champions Indy Eleven in the Fall Season standings with 19 points. In the Combined table, the Edmonton-based club sit just one point shy of Indy, with a match in hand. Keys to success this season for head coach Colin Miller and his squad include stifling defence, timely goals and outstanding goalkeeping. The combination of all three has resulted in the team already surpassing it's 2015 point total with 14 games remaining.

Led by captain Albert Watson, who will play in his 100th match as an Eddie on Saturday night, FC Edmonton's back line has been a key factor in the team's current shutout streak, which has reached 254 straight minutes. Up front, the team is led in scoring by New York native Jake Keegan with five goals, but it has been the play of striker Tomi Ameobi that has carried the team's scoring in their recent string of victories. Ameobi has been directly involved in the team's last three goals, assisting on Keegan's most recent tally before registering goals in back-to-back, 1-0 wins against Puerto Rico FC and Minnesota United FC. 'Keeper Matt VanOekel leads the NASL in clean sheets with nine, as well as a league-low, goals-against-average (0.56).

The Rowdies are coming off of back-to-back losses against New York Cosmos and most recently Minnesota on Wednesday night. It has been an up-and-down August for the Florida club, who, despite featuring a wealth of talent that includes former England international Joe Cole, have been unable to string together a consistent run of form to push up the league standings. Led by first-year head coach Stuart Campbell, the Rowdies sit six points outside of the fourth and final postseason spot in the league's Combined Standings.

Tampa Bay got the better of the Eddies in their most recent encounter, April 14 at Al Lang Stadium. Former Ottawa Fury FC member Tommy Heinemann continued to cause headaches for the Eddies, scoring in the 73rd minute for the match-winning goal. A penalty kick opportunity at the death for the visiting Eddies was stopped in net by 'keeper Matt Pickens to deny the visitors a share of the points.

"We know we'll be under pressure there in Tampa Bay on Saturday night and we've worked on certain aspects of that here in training," Miller said prior to his team's departure to Tampa Bay. "But our team is playing well now away from home as well as at home. There is a lot of confidence and there is a lot of continuity in the group so that is a real positive for us."

FC Edmonton and Edmonton Supporters Group will host an Official Viewing Party, August 20 at The Tavern on Whyte Avenue as the Eddies take on Tampa Bay Rowdies. Kick-off is set for 5:30 p.m. MT. The match will also be streamed live on NASL.com in Canada and ESPN 3 in the United States.

For tickets and more information to the Eddies' next home match, please click HERE, call 780.700.2600 or visit www.fcedmonton.com

Check out the FC Edmonton Statistics

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



Images from this story

FC Edmonton Heads to Tampa Bay in Search of Fifth Straight Win
FC Edmonton Heads to Tampa Bay in Search of Fifth Straight Win
   



North American Soccer League Stories from August 19, 2016


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