Eddies have to go for jugular against Strikers
FC Edmonton hopes to use home games to move up standings
Ask anyone from FC Edmonton what they’ve accomplished this year and you’ll find out right away what the Eddies think of their 2-2-2 start.
“We’ve had a lot of positive things said about us, (but) we haven’t won anything. We haven’t accomplished anything,” said head coach Colin Miller, who pointed out that the team got seven of a possible nine points in the past three games.
Miller’s assessment doesn’t mean the first-year head coach is down on his squad as FC Edmonton heads into Sunday’s 2 p.m. matchup with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers at Clarke Field.
It’s quite the opposite actually, as the Eddies are no longer satisfied with a win here or there, which appeared to be the case at times last season.
Now, the goals are bigger and better, with Edmonton within striking distance of the firstplace Carolina RailHawks.
FC Edmonton will have the luxury of playing four of its final six games at home as it tries to move up the table in the North American Soccer League spring schedule.
“We want this to be a really difficult place for any opposition to come in and play against us, so the guys are well aware of what’s at stake,” said Miller. “We’re three points off the top of the league and we’re trying to go for it on Sunday again.”
While the Eddies are coming off a bye week and eager to return to action, Fort Lauderdale is likely to rest some players. The Strikers had a penaltykick win over the Laredo Heat earlier this week in the U.S. Open Cup, an American club tournament, and will play the Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas this coming Tuesday.
“You can’t get carried away. We have no given right to win a game of football. We have to go for the jugular, if you like,” Miller said of the advantage the Eddies may have Sunday because of the Strikers’ busy schedule.
“I want us to have that ruthless mentality. We know that they’ve played 90 minutes plus extra time on Tuesday night. We know they’ve travelled.”
The Eddies went through a similar gruelling schedule earlier this season while competing against the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Amway Canadian Championship.
“We got through it OK, so we can’t use that as this will be a gimme on Sunday, because it won’t,” Miller said. “This group is so focused on trying to keep our own house in order and we can’t look to see anybody else’s weaknesses.”
The Eddies’ inward focus on detail and controlling their own destiny has been a hallmark of Miller’s team, which is off to a solid start this season. The onfield results provide evidence that Edmonton’s behind-thescenes work is paying off.
Life has been particularly good for goalkeeper Lance Parker, who has the NASL’s stingiest defence playing in front of him. The Eddies have surrendered only six goals.
“The whole team is bigger, faster, stronger and they’re making my job a lot easier, which of course I like,” said Parker. “The less shots I have to see, the less likely teams are to score, so the guys in front of me have all been playing extremely well together.
“We’re a lot sharper on set pieces than we were last year and that’s probably the biggest (difference). The communication is good in the back, our shape is good, and marking and tracking runners was another thing we had trouble with last year that we’ve improved on this year.”
The Eddies hope the progress continues with the second half of the spring schedule set to unfold.
“We’re a confident group right now and you just kind of feed off each game, each practice, getting better and better,” Parker said.
NOTES: Miller confirmed Friday that captain Albert Watson will make his Eddies debut on Sunday. The defender from Northern Ireland had been out with a medial collateral ligament injury suffered during the offseason … The matchup with the Strikers will be the Eddies’ second televised game of the season on The Score. It will be shown on tape-delay at 6 p.m. Sunday.