Fury Extend Road Unbeaten Streak in Tampa Bay
Published on October 10, 2015 under North American Soccer League (NASL)
Ottawa Fury FC News Release
OTTAWA, ON (October 4, 2015) - Ottawa Fury FC extended their NASL record road unbeaten streak to 10-matches Saturday night in Tampa Bay with a 1-1 draw against the Rowdies that saw forward Tom Heinemann set a club record netting his eighth goal of the season. It was a valuable point earned in the race for the Fall Season Championship with Minnesota United FC downing Fort Lauderdale 2-1, Ottawa's lead in sits at three points with the two clubs now tied atop the NASL Combined standings with the Loons holding the tiebreaker.
"It was a very difficult game. We did well to be up at halftime, but in the second half we didn't do enough to finish the game," said head coach Marc Dos Santos. "I felt we lost our midfield and didn't keep possession in a moment that we should of. At the end of the day, this could be a very important point for us."
With four matches remaining in the NASL regular season heading into Saturday night's clash at Al Lang Stadium, both Ottawa and Tampa Bay were in need of points, but for different reasons. For Ottawa it was to inch close to a Fall Season Championship and a home match in the Championship Semifinals, for Tampa Bay it was to get an edge in the race for the fourth and final postseason position.
It was a strategic and calculated opening 40 minutes from both clubs. Limited time and space to work in the midfield and no opportunities in or around the 18-yard box.
As the opening half enter the final five minutes, there was a rise in the pace of the match and after Andrew Wiedeman created some space for himself to open a shooting lane he looked to get
Ottawa's first chance on goal. Wiedeman's shot would be blocked, but Tom Heinemann collected the rebound, warded off the Rowdies defender before turning to strike a low shot at the near post that beat Matt PIckens to give Fury FC the 1-0 lead heading into halftime. The goal was Heinemann's eighth of the season, the most goals scored by a Fury FC player in a season, eclipsing the club record of seven set by Oliver in 2014.
The second half started much like the first half, but as the half wore on, Tampa Bay started to commit more players forward which resulted in a couple of opportunities for Fury FC on the counter attack. In the 77th minute, Darnell King received a yellow card after a foul on Paulo Junior, his second yellow of the match, thus reducing the Rowdies to 10-men.
Ottawa would threaten on a few set pieces, but 11-minutes Tampa Bay were reduced to 10-men midfielder Freddy Adu lobbed a pass over the Ottawa defence into the path of Brian Shriver who beat Peiser to pull the Rowdies level two minutes from time.
It was an anxious four-minutes of stoppage time, but the match would end in a 1-1 draw - a valuable point for both clubs as the Rowdies move into the fourth and final postseason position with Fort Lauderdale losing in Minnesota.
Fury FC are now unbeaten in 10-straight matches on the road (6W-4D-0L) and remain unbeaten when scoring the first goal of the match this season (13W-3D-0L). Ottawa continue their impressive form with just a single loss in their last 22 match (12W-9D-1L).
Fury FC return home to TD Place for their final home match of the regular season October 18. Ottawa will host San Antonio at 3:00pm as part of Fan Appreciation Day. Tickets to the October 18 match are available at OttawaFuryFC.com where fans can also purchase tickets to the Championship Semifinal and Championship Final.
North American Soccer League Stories from October 10, 2015
- Fury Extend Road Unbeaten Streak in Tampa Bay - Ottawa Fury FC
- Minnesota Joins New York, Ottawa on List of Postseason-Bound Clubs - NASL
- Armada Fall 3-0 to RailHawks on the Road - Jacksonville Armada FC
- RailHawks Impress at Home, Earn 3-0 Victory over Jacksonville Armada FC - North Carolina FC
- Minnesota United Secures Spot in Postseason with 2-1 Win - Minnesota United FC
- Strikers Come up Short in Minnesota - Fort Lauderdale Strikers
- Rowdies Earn Crucial Point with Gutsy 1-1 Draw against Ottawa - Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Indy Eleven Downed 1-2 by San Antonio Scorpions - Indy Eleven
- Scorpions Beat Indy Eleven 2-1 to Keep Playoff Hopes Alive - San Antonio Scorpions
- FCE Match Preview vs. New York Cosmos - FC Edmonton
- Delegation from Sister City Cologne, Germany, to Attend Tonight's Indy Eleven Game - Indy Eleven
- Get Through the Bye Week Blues with Kickabout - Atlanta Silverbacks
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