Jacksonville Armada at Fort Lauderdale
By Roberto Cavendish (@cavcircus)
Lockhart Stadium is the soccer equivalent of the Midwestern basketball fieldhouse Gene Hackman’s cupid-faced team finds its championship form within during the movie Hoosiers.
Lockhart is a four-sided, open-cornered arrangement of metal bleachers which holds just over 20,000 fans. Built in 1959, it was a soccer-specific stadium before the invention of soccer-specific stadia. The original Ft. Lauderdale Strikers of the original NASL played there, and outside the stadium in that era, an assortment of Ford Pintos, Toyota Celicas, and Chrysler K-Cars parked nose to nose with matching bumper stickers declaring “I’m a Striker Liker.”
It is a plain pitch for plain, direct, unvarnished athletics. After making their regular season debut at blinged-out EverBank Field, after running headlong beneath the Tokyo-cool glare of the world’s largest video boards (built by NFL Jaguars owner Shad Khan), it is in Lockhart vs. the Strikers that the 1-0 Armada will face their next labor—the challenge of winning a road match in a hostile environment.
The two teams enter the contest on different planes of emotion. Last Saturday night the Armada dazzled the NASL, drawing a record home crowd and gunning in their formations with a fully automatic and weaponized offense, as they went up 3-0 by the half to beat Edmonton 3-1. While all that was unfolding, Fort Lauderdale held a tough home opener with the New York Cosmos, losing 0-1 to New York but forcing the biggest Cosmo of all, Raul, out of play with tender hamstrings. Leading into Match 2, such a first week result would seem to leave the Armada flying flags and Fort Lauderdale sharpening teeth and tightening laces.
Both teams have the benefit of two preseason matches vs. the other. This leaves the Strikers understanding that the Armada have smaller-sized forwards that can be Charles-Barkleyed out of the way with body English should they target the goal too finely. And it leaves the Armada with the knowledge that the Strikers can be counted on to either run ragged after the precise geometry of the Villareal-Hoyos ball matriculation, or that the Strikers are perfectly capable of counterattacking off the mislaid pass, shelling the Armada net with the right foot while the left tries to find the shape of an Armada defender’s exposed limb.
Fort Lauderdale is—why avoid it—rough and tough as new-era NASL sides go. With the exception of GK Miguel Gallardo and defenders like Matt Bahner, Jacksonville is smaller, and sleeker. This creates fascinating asymmetries for the fan, and “whatever happens” type marching orders for the team’s starters. On paper, the Armada should keep the ball in contact with the ground, and not make the match one of contested headers and chest catches of long-booted balls. The Strikers should beware an orderly zig-zag of ball movement that starts with Gallardo and threatens to stretch as far as Alhassane Keita or Jemal Johnson.
In terms of starters, Jacksonville should have everyone on the roster available. One area to watch is the space that star-import MF and sometime scoring threat Marcos Flores can find. Disguised in the Edmonton romp was the fact that Flores repeatedly found himself hemmed in to a 2 meter band along the right sideline, which reduced his game manager role to making footed “throw-ins” under pressure to teammates very close by. Flores is supposed to constantly find space to create surprise and open lanes for the fast legs of the two forward wingers. An older, looser-limbed player, Flores prefers to avoid hard contact with bodies or the turf, and there is wisdom in this habit given the shared hopes that he will be integral to the club’s full April to November campaign in 2015. But the Strikers are not a team to accommodate the avoidance of contact, and so Flores’ effectiveness will be tested.
The Strikers should provide a spirited Joe Nasco in the goal, and will be presenting the intriguing talents of recent Brazilian imports Leo Moura, Marlon Freitas, Stefano Pinho, and PC Giro. Giro and Pinho know what the back of the Jacksonville net looks like, having themselves put up 3 of the 5 goals the Strikers thumped in during a 5-0 rout of Jacksonville at a Lockhart friendly last month.
Glory fades. By Saturday evening the rain-glistening glory of the historic opening win at home will feel far away for the Armada FC. A new glory waits in the turf at Lockhart Stadium, but it will need to be wrested from the viselike grip of the men in red and gold who reside there.
The Jacksonville Armada FC now visit the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in NASL Week 2. All will be told Saturday April 11 at Fort Lauderdale’s Lockhart Stadium, the bout kicking off at 7:30 p.m. Eastern, available streamed on ESPN3 or in the Jacksonville local television market on CW 17 (Comcast Cable Channel 9).
Preview: Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Minnesota United FC
When the United faithful tune in this Saturday, they’ll see a few familiar faces from Minnesota’s competitive game. Stefan Antonijevic, Darnell King, Kamil Contofalsky and Martín Núnez had all laced up for the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the 2014 NASL Championship Semi-Finals. United tragically lost that game on penalties and the lingering sadness from that night still clings to the consciousness of the Loon Army. United’s job when they step out onto Al Lang Stadium’s newly expanded pitch will be to take the first decisive step towards helping their fans forget that crummy night in November.
In the way is as formidable an opponent as Minnesota could face. The Tampa Bay Rowdies are coming into this game after decisively slaying the defending NASL Champions 3-1 and will want to kill another giant on Saturday. The attacking style of play we saw Tampa use to dismantle the San Antonio Scorpions will pose significant challenges to the aging and somewhat blunderprone Minnesota defense. Preseason games have not inspired confidence in this area and since United have primarily trained away from Minnesota, there have only been limited opportunities to deploy the fan favorite Iron Skillet Training Method. Darnell King who made some significant attacking plays in the NASL semi-final, also did well against the Scorpions.
One area the Loon Army be confident in is Minnesota’s attacking force. The United team bus resembles nothing so much as a clown car when it comes to their midfielders: More and more just keep stepping out of it with no end in sight. My Minnesota season preview already laid out the challenge of predicting the starting lineup and little has happened since to change that. In late 2014 the team used a wall of defending midfielders to push the ball to the wings where it was pushed forward and then over to a dependable striker in Ramirez. With even more talented attacking talent now available in the center with Ibson and JC Banks we’ll likely see the team change tact somewhat.
United last two scrimmages (both closed doors) have brought in some positives. The draw against the University of Nebraska in Omaha brought a goal by Christian Ramirez; His first in 2015. Christian’s confidence in the box will be closely studied for signs that his massive haul from 2014 was not a fluke. Minnesota’s win against Orlando City SC led to a spectacular goal by Miguel Ibarra (http://gfycat.com/CriminalPassionateCowrie) off an assist by Daniel Mendes. Historically Ibarra has been somewhat skittish in taking scoring opportunities and seeing him finish in this fashion is excellent
The men tasked with stopping the Ibarra-Ramirez-Ibson juggernaut will be led by NASL Week 1 player of the week, Stefan Antonijevic. At 6’6” Antonijevic will be a fearsome presence on the pitch and his ability to make long attacking passes has terrorized Minnesota in the past. His partner at center-back Tamika Mkandawire is a veteran of the English leagues in his second season with the Rowdies. Available in reserve is Brad Rusin who Minnesota fans know as ‘the Frosted Goon’ thanks to the elaborately styled hair he played with during his last tenure in the NASL. Sitting next to Rusin on the bench will be all-time Minnesota nemesis Martín Núnez. Since leaving Minnesota Núnez in 2013 has seemingly never failed to score against his old team.
Minnesota’s first test of the 2015 NASL season might also be their most closely watched. After MLS commissioner Don Garber chose to visit Minnesota on March 25th, a lot of curious eyes will want to see just what all the fuss around “the United” is. Away games are now broadcast throughout the state and there is considerable pressure for the impression the Loons provide on Saturday to be a good one. History is certainly in Minnesota’s favor with a 9-6-7 record against the Rowdies with the last loss coming in May 2013.
3 things to watch:
Who starts in attack for United – Kick’s legend Alan Willey says modern teams hardly ever start 2 strikers and even less frequently when they’re on the road. Ramirez is likely to start in front of a stacked midfield with Campos on the bench.
United’s marking on set pieces – Preseason games have shown that Minnesota need to tighten up their set piece marking. Stefan Antenijovic in particular ran circles around the man asked to mark him in San Antonio.
Ibson – The Brazilian has an impressive resume but hasn’t impressed in the Brazilian league recently. Will he come out of the gate raring for United?
Nach’s prediction:
A high-scoring game with Minnesota coming out on top off the backs of its attackers.
About the author:
Nachiket Karnik is the co-host of the Two United Fans podcast on YouTube and TUFcast on iTunes. He can be found on Twitter @lockstockspock and @twounitedfans.
Atlanta Silverbacks v Ottawa Fury
Stuart Mactaggart @FuryFanatic
Ottawa Fury will visit Silverback Park this weekend as they face Atlanta on the second match day of the 2015 NASL season. Atlanta won the first visit between the two clubs last season 2-1, while Fury took the other two matches 3-0 and 2-0 respectively.
It will be a big match for Fury as they look to get off to a strong start and push for a playoff position in their sophomore NASL season. Fury seemed strong on the road last season, including a 3-0 win at Silverback Park, and will look to take advantage of an Atlanta team that struggled last season and are still without a long term owner.
Fury face several injury woes heading into the match, including star midfielders Richie Ryan and Sinisa Ubiparipovic, while Julian De Guzman faces a suspension following a red card last week vs Carolina. Ottawa will also be without Brazilian winger Paulo Jr, who picked up a knock last week, and Canadian Phil Davies who is out long term with a broken arm.
Dos Santos has predicted a very physical match in Atlanta, with strong individual battles on the pitch to win the ball. He has criticized the Silverbacks pitch; calling it the worst in the league, but the Canadian coach won’t let that be a factor in Fury controlling the match. Fury’s 4-3-3 formation will ensure they play a wide attacking game, using speed and physicality to create chances.
It will be a tough match for Ottawa, especially missing key players; however the squad should have the depth and skill to steal points in Atlanta. They had an excellent second half v Carolina; however they will need a solid 90 minutes of play if they are to take all three points.
New York Cosmos v.s Indy Eleven
By: John Frusciante @1team_John
The Cosmos got the three points on the road against the Strikers. The Cosmos are on the road again to face Indy Eleven . Indy Eleven was on the road last week at Atlanta and got a late penalty shot to take 1 point away. Indy Eleven return home to face the Cosmos.
This match is their home opener so we are expecting to see another sell out. A injury scare from last week was that Raul pulled his hamstring. TOTAL NASL has learned that Raul trained this week and had an MRI , this week. Everything came back positive and we should see him play in Indy. The Cosmos have a strong attack . The partnership between Mads and Raul was great and will only get better throughout the season. The Cosmos defense was not the strongest against the Strikers but it is expected to get stronger. A player the Cosmos got on loan Samuel Careers had problems with his visa and is expected to travel to New York this weekend , and train with the team next week.
Indy Eleven struggled against the Silverbacks. Indy Eleven has to come out aggressive against the Cosmos and have a strong defense to stay in the game. Indy Eleven have some exciting forwards ( Charlie Rugg, Wojciech Wojcik) . Charlie Rugg last season was on loan from the LA Galaxy . This year Indy Eleven brought him back permanently. Rugg is an impactful player ; last season Charlie scored goals in each match towards the end of the season , so the club is hoping that can translate to this season. Kleberson , a Brazlian midfielder for the Eleven didn’t start last week in Atlanta , he may get the start against the Cosmos if he is 100% fit. This is going to be an exciting fixture because of the atmosphere at The Mike and the talent on the pitch.
Prediction: Cosmos 2 – Indy Eleven 1
FC Edmonton v.s Carolina Railhawks
By: John Frusciante @1team_John
The Carolina Railhawks opened their NASL Spring Season campaign with a 3-1 victory over the Ottawa Fury . The Railhawks are going to face a big challenge when they travel up north to Edmonton . FC Edmonton has the advantage of their home pitch , which is a turf surface. The club has installed a new surface last season but it is still turf and always a hard surface to play on. Besides the surface in Edmonton , there is the weather , hopefully there is good weather at kickoff.
The Carolina Railhawks have the speedster Tiyi Shipalane , who scored a wonderful goal against the Fury. The Fury had a hard time stopping Tiyi . If Edmonton have a solid defense and stop Tiyi and the rest of the attack , than they have a great chance of getting the three points. FC Edmonton lost 3-1 to the Armada , and are looking to get on the right track at home. Edmonton have added some excited new pieces , hopefully we could see their full ability during the match.
A player to watch out for is Hanson Boakai , 18 year old midfielder for FC Edmonton . Hanson is an exciting player and one to watch out for during this fixture.
The Railhawks looked good during their season opener . The Railhawks attack was very strong , for FC Edmonton to win this match , their defense and midfield has to be strong .
Prediction: FC Edmonton 1 – Carolina Railhawks 1
