Soccer News: Ottawa’s Vini Dantas and Fort Lauderdale’s Mark Anderson Score Game-Winners
Game-winning goals from Ottawa Fury FC forward Vini Dantas and Fort Lauderdale Strikers midfielder Mark Anderson served as the highlights of the performances turned in by international players in Week 13 of the North American Soccer League (NASL) Fall Season.
Dantas and Anderson’s goals helped their respective clubs stay in the hunt for one of the three remaining spots in The Championship, the league’s four-team postseason tournament.
Week 13 commenced last Wednesday in Ottawa, and Dantas was the one to get the much-improved Fury FC on the board first against the Atlanta Silverbacks. The Brazilian forward found the net in the 21st minute after a great individual effort, and his teammate, Scottish midfielder Nicki Paterson, added a second just 12 minutes later off an assist from Brazilian forward Oliver. The two goals were all Fury FC needed to post a 2-0 win – its first ever triumph at TD Place.
Fury FC continued its fine form over the weekend, coming away with a point following their road clash with the San Antonio Scorpions at Toyota Field. The 1-1 draw saw Colombian midfielder Rafael Castillo find the net once again for the Scorpions, who remain in second place in both the Fall and Combined Standings.
Down in Fort Lauderdale, Anderson rebounded from missing an early penalty kick to notch his fifth goal of the season. The second-half strike lifted the Strikers to a 1-0 home win over the Carolina RailHawks, and put them just two points below the RailHawks in the Combined Standings with one game in hand. Slovakian goalkeeper Kamil Čontofalský had four clutch saves for the Strikers, picking up his fourth shutout of the year. The win also extended Fort Lauderdale’s home unbeaten streak to six games.
Elsewhere on Saturday, Bulgarian forward Georgi Hristov scored an important equalizer from the penalty spot to give the Tampa Bay Rowdies a 1-1 draw against visiting FC Edmonton at Al Lang Stadium. Up in New York, German goalkeeper Kristian Nicht had six saves for Indy Eleven as they grinded their way to a scoreless draw against the New York Cosmos at Hofstra University’s James M. Shuart Stadium.
