Published On: Sun, Jun 17th, 2012

Strikers Defeat Edmonton 1-0 but lose Morales to lower-leg injury

By: Pedro Heizer

The Fort Lauderdale Strikers got the revenge they wanted after the 1-0 loss to Edmonton last weekend in Canada. Fort Lauderdale came back home and in front of 2,663 defeated FC Edmonton 1-0 in a sensational goal by Andy Herron.

The Strikers came out rather strong, having four shots on goal while FC Edmonton only had one. Andy Herron had two great opportunities but to no avail. First was a great shot that missed just high of the crossbars in the sixth minute, and the other was a great through ball in the 20th minute that seemed as if he was a little out of gas at the end of a great break and the weak shot that was no problem for Edmonton keeper Lance Parker.

“I thought we were the better team the whole game,” Shore said. “I thought we had a lot of chances in the first half. We hit the post twice. At halftime we were frustrated not to get a goal.”

In the 22nd minutes, forward Leopoldo Morales and FC Edmonton forward Kenny Caceros collided in a 50/50 ball that Morales got the worst of it. The injury was so gruesome that forward Andy Herron smothered Morales with his body to prevent him from seeing his own leg, and other players shielded their eyes. After the game, Shore called it a lower-leg fracture, Patrick Otte came in to replace Morales.

At the beginning of the second half, FC Edmonton came out strong with Michael Cox having two shots on goal after the entire Edmonton team had only one in the entire first half.

The Strikers finally got a break in the 68th minute when Walter Restrepo ran down the right side of the field and had a terrific pass to Andy Herron who shot a blast to the goal for his fourth goal of the season, his first since coming back from injury on April 21.

“We thought at some point we would break through. And we did” Said head coach Daryl Shore.

After the goal, Restrepo ran to the bench and picked up a Morales jersey and waived it around in respect to their fellow teammate. “Walter and Polo are roomates,”said head coach Daryl Shore after the game “Our guys were pretty distraught,” head coach Daryl Shore said. “A lot of them saw his foot. Walter, he was the worst one. He was really broken up.”

Next up for the Strikers is a trip North as the face the Minnesota Stars on Saturday, June 23, at 8:30pm EDT.

photo by Rosa Cavalcanti

 

About the Author

Discover more from The Boca Raton Tribune

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading