Indy Eleven Collects First Win in Comeback Fashion over New York
Eamon Zayed’s Pair of Stoppage Time Goals Lifts “Boys in Blue” to 2-1 Win over First-Place Cosmos
INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, April 16, 2016) – Indy Eleven turned a potentially disappointing defeat into a breath-taking victory during second half stoppage time against the New York Cosmos, as Eamon Zayed’s late brace gave the home side a 2-1 comeback win in front of 9,067 fans at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium.
Indy Eleven looked poised to end its six-game draw streak against the Cosmos with a loss after going down on Nico Kranjcar’s 51st minute penalty kick, but it instead snapped the run with a victory thanks to Zayed’s late-game dramatics.
Neither side could break through during a stingy first 45 minutes of play. Indy Eleven had some early joy in attack through wide play and the crosses that came from it, but only one opportunity – Nemanja Vuković’s sidewinder off a Brad Ring service that bounced just wide in the 31st minute – would result in any danger. New York’s four shots in the half would all come from distance, with Sebastian Guenzatti’s 33rdminute effort from 20 yards out that missed high looking the most threatening.
Indy Eleven’s Dylan Mares would have the best chance of the stanza in stoppage time when he turned inside on his defender and fired a left-footed blast from 15 yards that forced Cosmos netminder Kyle Zobeck into a two-handed parry over for a corner.
The home side looked to get the go-ahead goal in the 49th minute when Justin Braun nodded home another Ring cross at the top of the six, but the offside flag came up on a bang-bang call. That wave-off would loom large just a minute later, as New York countered on the other end to set up the game’s first tally. Guenzatti’s lunge for Juan Arango’s cross inside the six was judged to be altered by the sliding tackle of Greg Janicki, which drew a penalty kick for the visitors that Kranjcar slammed past the right of Indy goalkeeper John Busch to put New York up 1-0.
While Indy would push numbers forward for an equalizer, it was New York that would get the better chances on the counter up through the end of the regulation 90 minutes. Jairo Arrieta would get a good look in the 56th minute, but Busch did well to cut off the angle and force the shot to be pushed into the outside netting. Lucky Mkosana almost made an immediate impact following his insertion for Arrieta in the 81stminute, as he slipped through the Indy center backs and fired off a shot from 20 yards out that missed just wide of the right post.
The home side would enter the five minutes of injury time by taking its own trip to the penalty spot, ironically with Janicki being fouled by New York defender Hunter Freeman as he tried to track a looping corner that was sent into the heart of the area by Don Smart. While Zobeck would correctly guess to his left on the PK, Zayed placed it just out of reach and inside the right post to even the proceedings at 1-1.
Indy fans might have thought the seventh straight draw between the two sides was meant to be after Justin Braun’s diving header off of Smart’s exquisite first-time cross four minutes into stoppage flashed just wide left. However, the home side’s push wasn’t over, as on the game’s final attack Mares’ sent a shot that Zobeck did well to block, but the rebound fell right to Zayed, who swept home from the doorstep to give Indy Eleven its first win of the Tim Hankinson era.
Indy Eleven will enjoy its Spring Season bye week next weekend before getting back to action on Saturday, April 30, when “Indiana’s Team” will travel to Oklahoma for its first meeting with Rayo OKC (8:00 p.m. ET, live on beIN Sports). The squad will return home to Carroll Stadium on Saturday, May 7, to take on FC Edmonton; tickets for the match are available starting at $11 in the Brickyard Battalion and East Goal Top sections at www.www.indyeleven.com or over the phone at 317-685-1100 (Mon.-Fri., 9:00a.m.-5:00 p.m.).
NASL Spring Season
Indy Eleven 2 : 1 New York Cosmos
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,037
Indy Eleven:
Spring Season: 1W-2D-0L (5 pts.)
New York Cosmos:
Spring Season: 2W-0D-1L (6 pts.)
Scoring Summary:
NYC – Nico Kranjcar (penalty kick) 51’
IND – Eamon Zayed (penalty kick) 90’
IND – Eamon Zayed (unassisted) 90+5’
Discipline Summary:
IND – Nemanja Vuković (caution) 50’
IND – Justin Braun (caution) 57’
IND – Greg Janicki (caution) 65’
NYC – Hunter Freeman (caution) 89’
IND – Brad Ring (caution) 90+5’
OPTA STATS: See the full array of statistics available at the Opta MatchCenter
Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2, L–>R): Jon Busch; Nemanja Vuković (Marco Franco 73’), Greg Janicki, Colin Falvey (capt), Lovel Palmer; Duke Lacroix (Don Smart 63’), Nicki Paterson (Wojciech Wojcik 76’), Brad Ring, Dylan Mares; Justin Braun, Eamon Zayed
Eleven bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Cory Miller, Neil Shaffer, Daniel Keller
New York Cosmos (4-2-3-1): Kyle Zobeck; Ayoze, Carlos Mendes (capt) (Gabriel Farfan 86’), Jimmy Ockford, Hunter Freeman; Michael Lahoud, Adam Moffat; Niko Kranjcar (Andres Flores 70’), Juan Arango, Sebastian Guenzatti; Jairo Arrieta (Lucky Mkosana 81’)
Cosmos bench: Brian Holt (GK), David Ochieng, Yohandry Orozco, David Diosa
Indy Eleven Collects First Win in Comeback Fashion over New York
Eamon Zayed’s Pair of Stoppage Time Goals Lifts “Boys in Blue” to 2-1 Win over First-Place Cosmos
INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, April 16, 2016) – Indy Eleven turned a potentially disappointing defeat into a breath-taking victory during second half stoppage time against the New York Cosmos, as Eamon Zayed’s late brace gave the home side a 2-1 comeback win in front of 9,067 fans at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium.
Indy Eleven looked poised to end its six-game draw streak against the Cosmos with a loss after going down on Nico Kranjcar’s 51st minute penalty kick, but it instead snapped the run with a victory thanks to Zayed’s late-game dramatics.
Neither side could break through during a stingy first 45 minutes of play. Indy Eleven had some early joy in attack through wide play and the crosses that came from it, but only one opportunity – Nemanja Vuković’s sidewinder off a Brad Ring service that bounced just wide in the 31st minute – would result in any danger. New York’s four shots in the half would all come from distance, with Sebastian Guenzatti’s 33rdminute effort from 20 yards out that missed high looking the most threatening.
Indy Eleven’s Dylan Mares would have the best chance of the stanza in stoppage time when he turned inside on his defender and fired a left-footed blast from 15 yards that forced Cosmos netminder Kyle Zobeck into a two-handed parry over for a corner.
The home side looked to get the go-ahead goal in the 49th minute when Justin Braun nodded home another Ring cross at the top of the six, but the offside flag came up on a bang-bang call. That wave-off would loom large just a minute later, as New York countered on the other end to set up the game’s first tally. Guenzatti’s lunge for Juan Arango’s cross inside the six was judged to be altered by the sliding tackle of Greg Janicki, which drew a penalty kick for the visitors that Kranjcar slammed past the right of Indy goalkeeper John Busch to put New York up 1-0.
While Indy would push numbers forward for an equalizer, it was New York that would get the better chances on the counter up through the end of the regulation 90 minutes. Jairo Arrieta would get a good look in the 56th minute, but Busch did well to cut off the angle and force the shot to be pushed into the outside netting. Lucky Mkosana almost made an immediate impact following his insertion for Arrieta in the 81stminute, as he slipped through the Indy center backs and fired off a shot from 20 yards out that missed just wide of the right post.
The home side would enter the five minutes of injury time by taking its own trip to the penalty spot, ironically with Janicki being fouled by New York defender Hunter Freeman as he tried to track a looping corner that was sent into the heart of the area by Don Smart. While Zobeck would correctly guess to his left on the PK, Zayed placed it just out of reach and inside the right post to even the proceedings at 1-1.
Indy fans might have thought the seventh straight draw between the two sides was meant to be after Justin Braun’s diving header off of Smart’s exquisite first-time cross four minutes into stoppage flashed just wide left. However, the home side’s push wasn’t over, as on the game’s final attack Mares’ sent a shot that Zobeck did well to block, but the rebound fell right to Zayed, who swept home from the doorstep to give Indy Eleven its first win of the Tim Hankinson era.
Indy Eleven will enjoy its Spring Season bye week next weekend before getting back to action on Saturday, April 30, when “Indiana’s Team” will travel to Oklahoma for its first meeting with Rayo OKC (8:00 p.m. ET, live on beIN Sports). The squad will return home to Carroll Stadium on Saturday, May 7, to take on FC Edmonton; tickets for the match are available starting at $11 in the Brickyard Battalion and East Goal Top sections at www.www.indyeleven.com or over the phone at 317-685-1100 (Mon.-Fri., 9:00a.m.-5:00 p.m.).
NASL Spring Season
Indy Eleven 2 : 1 New York Cosmos
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,037
Indy Eleven:
Spring Season: 1W-2D-0L (5 pts.)
New York Cosmos:
Spring Season: 2W-0D-1L (6 pts.)
Scoring Summary:
NYC – Nico Kranjcar (penalty kick) 51’
IND – Eamon Zayed (penalty kick) 90’
IND – Eamon Zayed (unassisted) 90+5’
Discipline Summary:
IND – Nemanja Vuković (caution) 50’
IND – Justin Braun (caution) 57’
IND – Greg Janicki (caution) 65’
NYC – Hunter Freeman (caution) 89’
IND – Brad Ring (caution) 90+5’
OPTA STATS: See the full array of statistics available at the Opta MatchCenter
Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2, L–>R): Jon Busch; Nemanja Vuković (Marco Franco 73’), Greg Janicki, Colin Falvey (capt), Lovel Palmer; Duke Lacroix (Don Smart 63’), Nicki Paterson (Wojciech Wojcik 76’), Brad Ring, Dylan Mares; Justin Braun, Eamon Zayed
Eleven bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Cory Miller, Neil Shaffer, Daniel Keller
New York Cosmos (4-2-3-1): Kyle Zobeck; Ayoze, Carlos Mendes (capt) (Gabriel Farfan 86’), Jimmy Ockford, Hunter Freeman; Michael Lahoud, Adam Moffat; Niko Kranjcar (Andres Flores 70’), Juan Arango, Sebastian Guenzatti; Jairo Arrieta (Lucky Mkosana 81’)
Cosmos bench: Brian Holt (GK), David Ochieng, Yohandry Orozco, David Diosa
