Early Indy Eleven Lead Pushes Past Jackonsville Armada FC
Indy Eleven topped Jacksonville Armada FC at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium to jump back into first place along with the New York Cosmos on both the Combined Season and Fall Season standings. The match marked the most goals scored in an NASL regular season game by Indy Eleven as the Indianapolis club get back on track to its most successful season.
NASL Soccer News: Indy Eleven scored early and often in a thorough 5-2 victory over Jackonsville Armada FC in front of 8,017 fans at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium, setting a club record for the most goals scored in an NASL regular season game in the process.
That wasn’t the only record that fell on the evening as forward Eamon Zayed’s second hat trick of the season marked his ninth, tenth and eleventh goals in league play, breaking both the single-season and career goal-scoring records, previously held alongside Kleberson. The Brazilian World Cup champion initially claimed both records by scoring all eight of his goals in checkers during the club’s inaugural 2014 season.
“The big discussion all week was not coming out of the locker room with a true commitment to engage in battle from the opening whistle [in previous games],” said Indy Eleven head coach Tim Hankinson. “So, we felt this was something we had to prove to ourselves tonight and come out and go straight to high pressure as a wakeup call and get on top of Jacksonville, and it worked out.”
A rough opening 10 minutes for both sides was highlighted by Mechack Jerome’s rocketed free kick from 35 yards out in the third minute that was punched away by Indy Eleven goalkeeper Jon Busch. Indy Eleven’s sharpness would start to develop soon thereafter, and it showed in the 13th minute when Justin Braun accepted Dylan Mares’ cutback pass from the endline, took a touch and shrugged off a tackle before slotting home from eight yards out to start the scoring onslaught.
Three minutes later it was Zayed scoring his first of the night. After starting the play with a tackle in midfield, Zayed was rewarded for making a run on the counter when Don Smart whipped in an early cross that the Irishman finished 1-v-1 on Jacksonville ‘keeper Sean Lewis to double the early Indy lead.
Jacksonville showed signs of life in attack after Indy’s second, but it was a gift by the Eleven backline on a failed clearance attempt that allowed Alhassane Keita to open the visitors’ account in the 33rd minute. After collecting the ball just outside the area, the Guinean attacker was able to dribble inside and unleash a shot that beat Busch to the upper left corner, breathing life back into a match that was becoming one-sided.
But the reprieve would be temporary, as a failed clearance of Armada FC’s would bite them just three minutes later. This time it was Indy Eleven left back Nemanja Vukovic doing the punishing, as the Montenegrin collected the ball 25 yards out and bounced a far post shot past Lewis to push things to 3-1, where the score would stay entering the halftime break.
It was Zayed doing the goal-scoring damage for the home side in the second half, but he had plenty of help from his fellow Boys in Blue, starting in the 58th minute when Mares’ shot to the near post beat Lewis but rang off the woodwork. A deflection off of Braun took the ball into the path of Zayed, who swept home from the doorstep for his 10th of the season and a 4-1 advantage for the Eleven. It would take only seven more minutes for Zayed to finish his hat trick, this time bagging Braun’s rebounded shot to give “Indiana’s Team” a new high-water mark in regards to scoring in league affairs.
“It was great, a whole team performance,” Zayed said of the win. “Especially after the Miami game, we wanted to go out and make a statement and we’ve done that tonight. It was emphatic. We’ll look forward to now Saturday’s game with confidence.”
Zayed had two more golden chances for his fourth off cross by Smart in the second half, but the only other goal would be credited to the Armada, although it would be scored by in the 80th minute on an own goal by Colin Falvey. The Indy captain, making his first start of the Fall Season after coming back from a right hamstring injury, accidently knocked in Matt Bahner’s cross from the left flank at the near post while sliding in to fight off Keita.
Keita was also in the heart of the only other excitement down the stretch, a 89th minute scuffle with Indy center back Greg Janicki that saw both players red carded – and both teams get involved in some pushing and shoving, although only Beto Navarro of Armada FC would be shown any further discipline by being cautioned.
With the three points, Indy Eleven jumped back into first place on both the Combined Season (31 points, even with New York but ahead on goal differential) and the Fall Season (13 points) standings.
The Eleven will not have long to celebrate the win, as the squad will return to action in the middle match of a three-game homestand this Saturday, Aug. 6, when it plays host to “Class of 2014” mate Ottawa Fury FC. Kickoff at Carroll Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. ET
Source/Photo Credit: Indy Eleven
