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NASL Jacksonville Armada FC

Match Preview: Armada Set for Saturday Night Clash with Silverbacks at Community First Park

August 14, 2015 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
Jacksonville Armada FC News Release


JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Fresh off a dominating 3-0 win over the Carolina RailHawks on Wednesday evening, the Jacksonville Armada FC will look to build upon its momentum against the Atlanta Silverbacks at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Community First Park, presented by Tropical Smoothie Café.

In perhaps their most complete performance of the season, the Armada's backline put the clamps on Carolina's attack, which in turn proved to be the fuel for Jacksonville's onslaught of pressure in the front. Veteran Colombian midfielder Jaime Castrillón, who scored more than 70 goals in 10 years in the Colombian first division and led Major League Soccer's Colorado Rapids with eight goals in 2012, notched his first goal of his North American Soccer League career in the 32nd minute when he took a rebound off an Akeil Barrett shot and blasted into the back of the net on an eye-catching backward side kick.

Just a minute later, Barrett, who was named Farah & Farah Man of the Match, took a cross from forward Pascal Millien and blasted a shot on the ground from the top of the box into the bottom right of the goal. Forward Jemal Johnson nailed the RailHawks' coffin shut in the 62nd minute when he hit a rocket from more than 25-yards out and into the goal. Armada goalkeeper David Sierra, who prevented several Carolina scoring chances, recorded the ninth clean sheet of his career and second shutout of the season.

Currently sitting in second place on the NASL Fall Season table, Atlanta brings a four-match unbeaten streak to Jacksonville and is coming off a 3-3 draw with the San Antonio Scorpions last Saturday in Atlanta. Pedro Mendes, Junior Burgos and Jamie Chavez each scored for the Silverbacks in the contest. Mendes is the reigning NASL Player of the Week and was also named to the NASL Team of the Week on Wednesday after compiling three goals and an assist in starts against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers and Scorpions.

The Silverbacks look completely different than the squad that finished the Spring Season at the bottom of the table and with just seven goals to their credit. Already eclipsing that scoring mark with 14 goals in the Fall Season, Atlanta added Mendes along with his twin brother Paolo and Burgos in July to help bolster its attack.

In two previous meetings with the Silverbacks in Atlanta, the Armada were not able to secure three points. On May 16, Atlanta got on the board in the game's first minute when a through ball from Chavez made it past Jacksonville's back line to Hans Denissen, who scored when he was left all alone with Armada 'keeper Miguel Gallardo. Armada forward Alhassane Keita notched the equalizer in the 20th minute off a feed from midfielder Marcos Flores, but that was the end of the scoring as the match ended in a 1-1 draw.

On July 11, the match looked destined to end in the same result as the previous contest when Atlanta forward Michael Reed converted off a long strike in the 60th minute off an assist from Chavez, and in the 80th minute, it looked as though Jacksonville would knot the score when Keita's cross deflected off Armada forward Tommy Krizanovic and into the back of the net. But a controversial handball call negated the goal, and the Silverbacks held on for a 1-0 win.

Below is a breakdown of each team and the match.

WHEN & WHERE

Saturday, Aug. 15 at 7:30 p.m. ET | Community First Park

THE TEAMS

Jacksonville Armada FC (2W-1D-4L, 7 pts., 8 th NASL Fall; 5-4-8, 16 pts., 8th NASL Combined)

Atlanta Silverbacks (2W-2D-2L, 8 pts., 6th in NASL Fall; 5-7-4, 22 pts., 5th NASL Combined)

SERIES HISTORY

Atlanta leads, 1-1-0

LAST RESULT

Silverbacks 1, Armada FC 0 - 7/11/15 in Atlanta | Recap | Video Highlights

WATCH

- CW17 in Jacksonville | Cole Pepper - PXP, Andy Kidd - Color and Krissty Andaur - Sideline

- ESPN3.com

LISTEN

- Sports Radio 930-AM in Jacksonville | Stuart Webber - PXP and Bob Veal - Color

- Also streamed live on sportsradiojax.iheart.com

READ

- Live Twitter updates on @ArmadaFCgameday - #JAXvATL

- Live stats on ArmadaFC.com

WHAT'S AT STAKE

For Jacksonville, another three points could mean a move up in the Fall Season standings to as high as fourth place and potentially sixth place in the Combined standings. It would also be the team's first two-match winning streak since their string of two consecutive wins at home against San Antonio and Indy on May 2 and May 9, respectively.

Should Atlanta win, it would help close the gap on Fall Season first-place Ottawa Fury FC and give it more cushion with third-place club FC Edmonton. Even a draw could potentially give the Silverbacks a full three-point advantage over the Eddies. Even more important, a Silverbacks win on Saturday could put them in fourth place on the Combined table with a Minnesota loss or draw, which would give Atlanta a spot in the playoffs if the regular season were to end after Sunday.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Jacksonville: Since being inserted into the starting lineup after Flores sustained his hamstring injury at Minnesota United FC on July 15, Barrett has settled into his attacking midfielder role nicely, scoring two goals in helping the Armada to a 2-1-1 record in four consecutive starts. In that stretch, Jacksonville's nine total goals is its highest scoring output of any four-game period in NASL play. With the return of Lucas Trejo after serving a one-match suspension from his red card against Tampa Bay and the possible return of regular starter Matt Bahner, Armada head coach Guillermo Hoyos could have a difficult decision on his hands Saturday on who to start in the back with the solid performance of left back Joseph Toby, left center back Nicolas Perea (normally a midfielder), right center Fabricio Ortiz and right back Shawn Nicklaw in the shutout against Carolina.

Atlanta: With the Silverbacks' added firepower in the Fall Season, they have not lost their edge in the back either. Anchored by left center back Paul Black, center back Simon Mensing and right center back Rauwshan McKenzie along with defensive midfielders Josh Hughes and Michael Reed on the wings in a 3-5-2 scheme, Atlanta has managed to hold a three score differential with 11 goals conceded. Atlanta has allowed more than two goals just once in the Fall Season, and starting goalkeeper Steward Ceus ranks fourth in the league with 40 saves.

NOTABLES

Though the scoring has been light each time the Armada and Silverbacks have played, it isn't due to a lack of attempts. Jacksonville holds a combined 21-16 shots advantage over Atlanta and are second in the league with 128 shots behind New York (136).

Getting out to a lead has proven to be important for Jacksonville as it is 0-2-8 when the opponent scores first and 5-1-0 when getting on the scoreboard first.

Both Keita and Barrett have netted goals in two of the last three matches. Keita found the back of the net in a 3-3 draw with Minnesota on July 18 and scored twice at Tampa Bay on July 31. Barrett scored his first professional goal in the draw against Minnesota before his strike against Carolina.

LOOKING AHEAD

The Armada will head to San Antonio to take on the Scorpions at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 22 before returning to Jacksonville to host the Scorpions at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 29 at Community First Park. Tickets to the Aug. 29 match, starting at $12, can be purchased by calling 1.844.2.Armada or visiting armadafc.com.

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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.

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