NASL Jacksonville Armada FC

RECAP: Armada Hold Indy Eleven to Scoreless Draw In

Published on October 12, 2016 under North American Soccer League (NASL)
Jacksonville Armada FC News Release


Armada Hold Indy Eleven to Scoreless Draw InRescheduled Midweek Match
Armada Hold Indy Eleven to Scoreless Draw InRescheduled Midweek Match
(Jacksonville Armada FC)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - In his first game without the "interim" tag, Armada head coach Mark Lowry delivered what has come to be expected during his short tenure at the helm: another positive result.

In a match rescheduled from Saturday due to Hurricane Matthew, the Boys in Blue held the NASL Spring champions to a scoreless draw at Community First Park, giving them points from eight of 10 games since Lowry took over on Aug. 7.

While drawing at home is bittersweet, the result extends the Armada's run to five straight unbeaten. And along with the club's first-ever road victories (Ottawa Fury and Minnesota United), there's reason for optimism under Lowry.

On Wednesday night, Jacksonville (3-8-7 NASL Fall, 4-12-12 Combined) looked prepared and solid against an opponent that stayed true to its reputation.

Indy, winless on the road this Fall and well-known for stout defending and counter-attacking, ceded possession and tried to draw the Armada in.

But while the hosts owned the ball (62 percent), they stayed disciplined on defense, too. Centerbacks Tyler Ruthven and Mechack Jérî-me shut down the league's second-leading scorer, Eamon Zayed, holding him to zero shots.

At the other end, all that possession mostly yielded what Lowry called half-chances.

In the first half, Charles Eloundou sent a few shots over the bar, Matt Bahner forced a diving save with a long-distance blast, and Alhassane Keita was denied from a tight angle.

The squads opened up a bit after the break, with two good chances during a back-and-forth 53rd minute. Dylan Mares fired just wide for Indy, and Eloundou misfired a cross after Zach Steinberger found him open in the box.

In the 65th, Lowry brought on Jemal Johnson, and he turned his first touches into a run and near-post shot to force a save. Minutes later, Jérî-me teed up a free kick from the famed "Jérî-me Zone" that Indy's Jon Busch had to go down to stop.

The final minutes brought several desperate attempts to break the deadlock. Ruthven and Jérî-me both made crucial tackles in the last 10 minutes to deny the Eleven opportunities for a late winner, and goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo stuffed Justin Braun in stoppage time to preserve the clean sheet. Eloundou also forced a stoppage time save by Busch.

The Armada will be back in action Saturday, when they host the first-place New York Cosmos at 7 p.m.

MATCH REPORT:

Starting XI:

JAX (4-2-3-1): Gallardo, Wallace, Lagerblom (Johnson 65') Ruthven, Jerome, Bahner (Burke 74'), Maripuu, Steinberger, Eloundou, Keita, Scaglia (Gebhard 86'),

IND (4-4-2): Falvey, Busch, Ring, Palmer (Janicki 74'), Mares (Lacoix 61'), Smart, Zayed (Youla 79'), Ubiparipovi, Braun, Franco, Vukovic

Scoring Summary:

N/A

Discipline:

JAX: Eloundou (caution) 40'

IND: Falvey (caution) 67'

IND: Ubiparipovi (caution) 85'

Attendance:

1,254

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Armada Hold Indy Eleven to Scoreless Draw InRescheduled Midweek Match
Armada Hold Indy Eleven to Scoreless Draw InRescheduled Midweek Match
   



North American Soccer League Stories from October 12, 2016


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