It was pretty, fast, dominant, thrilling, goal-filled, majestic…
There are plenty of adjectives which you could use to describe Ottawa Fury FC’s 4-1 dismantling of their 2014 NASL expansion brethren, but few would do the second-year club’s performance justice. Sinisa Ubiparipovic and Tom Heinemann dominated in the final third, while the previously struggling Andrew Wiedeman finally opened his Ottawa account with a brace.
Ottawa made Indy look foolish all night long, shredding the Eleven’s defensive corps and making goalkeeper Kristian Nicht look porous – again.
5 Takeaways From Fury FC Win in Indy
Here are my five takeaways from Saturday night’s 4-1 Ottawa victory:
- Oh Sinisa! – Bosnian-American midfielder Sinisa Ubiparipovic was simply a creative monster in the midfield for Ottawa, opening his 2015 account just nine minutes into the match. ‘Ubi’ one-timed a Tom Heinemann pass beyond Nicht beautifully, setting the tone for the rest of Saturday’s match, and worked hard all match – not always a trait of his.
- Midfield Link-Up – The partnership that has formed between Fury FC midfielders Richie Ryan and Mauro Eustaquio can only be described as beautiful. Formerly mentor and understudy, the two now play together in manager Marc Dos Santos’s 4-3-3 to perfection. When one of the two pushes up the pitch, the other slides into the holding midfield position seamlessly, and vice-versa. It’s really pretty to watch.
- D-(fence post sign) – While Ottawa goalkeeper Romuald Peiser remains rooted to (only) eight clean sheets thanks to a 60th-minute Duke Lacroix goal, Fury FC’s defence was solid yet again in Indianapolis. Centerback duo Rafael Alves and Colin Falvey neutralized every threat that Indy sent their way; pacy Dane Richards was invisible, while big man Wojciech Wojcik had no effect after entering in the 63rd minute.
- Honeymoon Over in Indy – While the announced attendance of 9866 was still far and away the largest in the NASL on Saturday night, Indy’s gates have dropped noticeably in year two. No longer selling out, sections of the supporters’ end were empty on Saturday night at ‘The Mike’. With over a season and a half of poor soccer under their belts, the Eleven need to pick up their form before the end of the season, or risk losing further ground in their market.
- Marc Dos Santos the Legend – With far from the largest budget in the league, Ottawa boss Marc Dos Santos has turned Fury FC into a veritable powerhouse in the NASL. Unbeaten in twelve, Fury FC reclaimed the top spot in the NASL standings with the win in Indy, and now sit a comfortable eight points inside the playoffs. He is literally the best thing to happen to soccer in Ottawa (outside of club president John Pugh, you know, bringing a team to the nation’s capital in the first place).
Ottawa will be back in action next Saturday, when Minnesota United FC will come to town in a battle of likely playoff teams. Kick-off is slated for 7 p.m. at TD Place.
Main Photo courtesy Indy Eleven
