New York Cosmos Win NASL Fall Season Title

Published on October 26, 2013 under North American Soccer League (NASL) News Release


(MIAMI, Fla.) - The New York Cosmos got the victory and three points they needed to win the NASL Fall Season title and secure the remaining berth at NASL Soccer Bowl 2013 where they will face the host Atlanta Silverbacks on Saturday, November 9 at 7.30pm.

The Cosmos fell behind after only three minutes to a goal by Scorpions Polish striker Tomasz Zahorski, but were a constant threat and the game swung in their favor in the space of three second half minutes. Former Spanish international Marcos Senna pounced to equalize in the 52nd minute then Bulgarian striker Stefan Dimitrov gave his side the lead two minutes later and despite having a man sent off, New York held on to win 2-1.

"All the guys knew that we needed three points to go to the Soccer Bowl and its not easy to do when you're a goal down, but we came back after halftime ready to do the job," said Cosmos assistant coach Carlos Llamosa. "In the second half we tried to be more aggressive and fortunately for us we were able to capitalize."

The Cosmos won five Soccer Bowl titles as members of the original North American Soccer League, their last triumph coming in 1982 when a goal by Giorgio Chinaglia defeated the Seattle Sounders 1-0. The legendary club returned to NASL action on August 3 and have won eight games, drawn four and lost only one to qualify for NASL Soccer Bowl 2013.

Victory means New York has opened an eight-point lead at the top of the NASL standings and cannot be caught by their nearest challenger the Tampa Bay Rowdies, who play away to FC Edmonton on Sunday at 4pm ET and can only generate a maximum of six points from their last two games.

The NASL Soccer Bowl 2013 clash between the Silverbacks and Cosmos will air live on ESPN3 and ESPN Deportes at 7.30pm on Saturday, November 9.

Goals by forwards Nicholas Addlery, Brian Shriver, midfielder Austin Da Luz and defender Henry Kalungi gave the Carolina RailHawks a 4-0 victory over the visiting Atlanta Silverbacks in front of 4,189 spectators at WakeMed Soccer Park. Carolina continued its unbeaten home streak, which now stands at 15 games in competitive games this year.

"It was great to watch and it could have been seven or eight (goals) as we were able to put in our chances tonight," said RailHawks coach, Colin Clarke. "It was fun to watch we got a lot of positives from this match."

RailHawks striker Shriver took over in the race for the NASL Golden Ball top scorer award with his 13th goal of the season, moving him one ahead of Hans Denissen of the San Antonio Scorpions and Georgi Hristov of the Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Minnesota United FC forward Pablo Campos scored twice to move to 11 goals on the season as his side signed off at home with a 3-1 win over the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.

"We're really building something special here and I think tonight was important for that," said United coach Manny Lagos. "I'm proud of the guys tonight. It is so important for us to let our fans know that there are some great things about this club and that soccer is going to be here in Minnesota for many years to come."



North American Soccer League Stories from October 26, 2013


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.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central