Match Preview: Ottawa Host San Antonio in Final Home Game of Regular Season
October 16, 2015 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
Ottawa Fury FC News Release
OTTAWA, ON (October 16, 2015) - When head coach Marc Dos Santos outlined the key areas of improvement for his second-year club prior to the start of the 2015 season, one of the main ingredients for success was making TD Place a fortress. With seven wins and points in 12 of their 14 home matches Ottawa has become a daunting place for visiting teams. Mixing one part defence, one part offence and a heavy heap of loud and passionate fans and you've built yourself a fortress.
"The fans have been the difference," said forward Andrew Wiedeman who scored in front of the biggest crowd of the year when Ottawa hosted Minnesota in August.
Leading scorer Tom Heinemann has been mesmerized by the growth of the Fury fan base. "Watching this entire project grow has been incredible. TD Place seems to get louder every game and we can't thank our fans enough for their support."
With three matches remaining in the NASL Regular Season, Fury FC host the San Antonio Scorpions in their final home match before the postseason. Ottawa require seven points to claim the club's first piece of silverware - the Fall Season Championship - that would ensure they host the Championship Semifinal on November 8. Ottawa can reach the 7 point mark through any combination of points won by themselves or lost by Minnesota.
Sunday's regular season home finale is also Fan Appreciation Day and Fury FC would love nothing more than to secure all three points to honour the cornerstone of this fortress.
While the ambition to capture all three points and inch closer to the Fall Season title is clear, the opponent for Sunday are facing a must-win scenario. The current holders of the Soccer Bowl have fallen on hard times during their reign as NASL Champions and while their hopes of returning to the postseason for a second straight season hasn't yet been extinguished, they could fuel their ambitions of returning to The Championship with a win.
"We are in a moment of the season where every team is battling for something important," said head coach Marc Dos Santos. "San Antonio knows that only the win will give them a chance to reach the postseason, while we also know that only the win will put us in an even better position to win the fall season."
"This should be a very good match between two teams that have a lot to fight for."
The Scorpions have picked up points in six of their last 10 matches and while scoring doesn't appear to be an issue for them, conceding goals is as San Antonio has surrendered a league-worse 47 goals. Though their play away from Toyota Field has seen them take just two wins from 12 road matches, science shows that Scorpions get aggressive when backed into a corner and with the postseason on the line San Antonio are up against the wall.
After their 12-games unbeaten streak was snapped, Fury FC have put together another impressive unbeaten run that has now hit 9-matches. Five wins and four draws has maintained Ottawa's position atop the NASL Fall Season standings where they have sat since July 22. To extend the unbeaten run to an even 10-games, Fury FC will have to do it without the services of their captain and Ryan is sidelined with a hamstring injury.
Goalkeeper Romuald Peiser, who is in the running for both the NASL Golden Ball (MVP) and Golden Glove could tie another NASL record with a win for most wins in a season. Richie Ryan is also in the running for the Golden Ball, while head coach Marc Dos Santos is a prime candidate for Coach of the Year and Mauro Eustaquio and Oliver have been nominated for Young Player of the Year.
Ottawa will close out the NASL Regular Season on the road with stops in Jacksonville on October 21 (7:30pm) and after a 10-day break the season finale in Atlanta against the Silverbacks on October 31 (4:00pm). Fans can purchase tickets to the Championship Semifinal and Final at OttawaFuryFC.com where they call also renew or buy Season Tickets for 2016.
MATCH OFFICIALS:
Referee: Yusri Rudolf
Assistants: Peter Pendli and Andre Pickler
Fourth Official: Pierre-Luc Laziere
North American Soccer League Stories from October 16, 2015
- Loons Look for Three Points on Final Regular Season Road Trip - Minnesota United FC
- FCE Match Preview vs. Jacksonville Armada FC - FC Edmonton
- Match Preview: RailHawks Travel to Fort Lauderdale in Search of Three Vital Points - North Carolina FC
- Match Preview: Ottawa Host San Antonio in Final Home Game of Regular Season - Ottawa Fury FC
- Several Fury Candidates in Running for NASL Awards - Ottawa Fury FC
- Silverbacks to Welcome Rowdies, Adu into the Jungle - Atlanta Silverbacks
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