NASL Ottawa Fury FC

Fury FC Dominate in 1-0 Win over FC Montreal

March 20, 2015 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
Ottawa Fury FC News Release


(Montreal, QC) - Marc Dos Santos' side remains unbeaten in pre-season play following a dominant performance at Olympic Stadium Friday afternoon taking a 1-0 victory over FC Montreal.

"This was a more realistic setup for us," said Fury FC head coach Marc Dos Santos. "I was pleased with the performance. We should have been leading 2-0 or more at halftime, but I thought we should have put this game away much earlier and we gave a young FC Montreal team a chance to stay in the game with a slim score line."

Fury FC wasted no time building their confidence Friday afternoon at Olympic Stadium with Andrew Wiedeman scoring seconds into the match. Last season's leading scorer Oliver found space down the right side and his cross into the path of the former TFC striker was met with a crafty touch that found space at the back post to give Fury FC an early 1-0 lead.

"We started strong, but then we probably settle back to much in the first half," said Wiedeman who was felt his team did manage the control and pace of the game very well. "You don't really want to be piquing right now - you want to be there when we open on April 4."

"We want to get through this pre-season undefeated, but it is also important to focus on the process. We want to play attractive football and today we did that for large parts of the game."

Nicki Paterson would produce the next threat knocking a shot over the bar from the top of the 18-yard box - this first of two chances that he would put over the bar in the opening half. Paulo Junior also caused grief for the FC Montreal defenders. The Brazilian was denied once by the keep and had his header miss just wide at the back post.

Midfielder Sinisa Ubiparipovic garnered plenty of attention in the midfield and was fouled on numerous occasions. When Ubiparipovic bit back, receiving a yellow, it marked a rise in intensity to the match.

Off the reset, FC Montreal looked a more in-controlled side, but after about 10 minutes, Fury FC began to again dominate the pace of the match owning a lion's share of the possession. Nicki Paterson, Paulo Junior, Tom Heinemann and Rafael Alves would all have chances of goal, but finding the target proved to be what kept the score line close all afternoon.

Fouls were aplenty in the second half, but Dos Santos was pleased with how his squad responded to the physical play. "I'm very happy with how we handled ourselves, how we responded and how we kept the right mentality in a game like this."

When asked if he had a good idea of what his Starting XI is going to look like, Dos Santos gave a confident "yes" but also was emphatic about the importance of the next two weeks of camp that will include two final pre-season fixtures - March 28 against Syracuse University in Canton, NY and March 31 against Wake Forest University in Cary, NC.

Fury FC will host their Fan Fest Saturday afternoon at TD Place (Gate 3) from 1-3pm where fans will be introduced to the entire squad and coaching staff and have the opportunity to meet with players for autographs and pictures. Fury FC will also be unveiling a youth soccer initiative that is expected to be a big hit in the youth soccer community.



North American Soccer League Stories from March 20, 2015


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