The Swope Park Rangers (3-10-6, 15 points) suffered a 4-0 loss at the hands of Ottawa Fury FC (8-3-8, 32 points) on Saturday night at TD Place Stadium. Ottawa went on a scoring frenzy by scoring all four of their goals in an 18-minute span.
SPR head coach Paulo Nagamura fielded his youngest lineup of the season, as the average age of the Rangers’ starters was 20.2 years old. Three players were on loan from Sporting Kansas City, including captain Graham Smith, Wan Kuzain Wan Kamal and Tyler Freeman.
For the first 35 minutes of the match, neither side could get the edge. Ottawa came out with confidence, getting into the attacking third multiple times before the 10-minute mark. After their quick start, the Rangers started to settle in. The first Rangers attempt came in the 14th minute when prolific goal scorer Felipe Hernandez fired one from distance that was just off target. Ayyoub Allach fired the first shot on goal in the 26th minute, but goalkeeper Callum Irving was there to make the save.
Led by manager Nikola Popovic, the former head coach of the Rangers, Ottawa nearly grabbed the lead in the 37th when Thomas Meilleur-Giguere’s redirected corner almost found the back of the net. His header was just off target, but the hosts would not have to wait long to take the lead. In the 39th minute, Kevin Oliveira and Wal Fall displayed some terrific combination passing near the box and Oliveira was played in on goal. The former SPR midfielder scored from point blank range and the hosts did not look back.
Two minutes later, Ottawa came back down the field and scored their second. This time captain Carl Haworth found Christiano Francois off a cross to double the lead.
Halftime did not cool off the Fury as they came out ready for more. In the 47th minute, Haworth tumbled right on the edge of the box after contact from Camden Riley. A penalty kick was awarded, and it was Fall’s turn to score. He sent Pulskamp the wrong way and converted his penalty.
Haworth then split the SPR defense on the right side, got into the box and slotted the ball back post into the back of the net in the 57th minute.
SPR swung in a few good crosses throughout the night, but the Canadian goalkeeper was ready for them. In the 83rd minute, 17-year-old Tucker Lepley made his professional debut. He is now the 15th Sporting Kansas City Academy product to get minutes for the Rangers, continuing the pipeline to the pros ideals this club has.
The Swope Park Rangers will return home next Saturday, July 27, to take on Charleston Battery (6-4-8, 26 points). The teams will duke it out at Children’s Mercy Park at 7 p.m. CT with a live stream available on ESPN+.
2019 USL Championship
Game 19 of 34
TD Place Stadium | Ottawa, Ontario
Attendance: 4,636
Weather: 90 degrees and mostly cloudy
<strong>Score</strong> |
<strong>1</strong> |
<strong>2</strong> |
<strong>F</strong> |
Swope Park Rangers (3-10-6, 15 points) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Ottawa Fury FC (8-3-8, 32 points) |
2 |
2 |
4 |
Swope Park Rangers: John Pulskamp; Killian Colombie (Kaveh Rad 73'), Graham Smith (C), Camden Riley, Alexsander; Wan Kuzain, Felipe Hernandez, Ayyoub Allach; Jerome Ngom Mbekeli (Tucker Lepley 83'), Wilson Harris, Tyler Freeman (Sean Karani 53')
Subs Not Used: Max Trejo, Dylan Hooper, Will Little, Ethan Vanacore-Decker
Ottawa Fury FC: Callum Irving; Carl Haworth (C), Thomas Meilleur-Giguere, Nana Attakora, Onua Obasi; Charlie Ward, Chris Mannella (Thiago 58'), Wal Fall (Antoine Coupland 85'); Christiano Francois, Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare, Kevin Oliveira (Maxim Tissot 63')
Subs Not Used: David Monsalve, Robert Boskovic, Jamar Dixon, Protais Mutambala
Scoring Summary:
OTT - Kevin Oliveira 4 (Wal Fall 3) 39'
OTT - Christiano Francois 6 (Carl Haworth 5) 41'
OTT - Wal Fall 7 (Penalty Kick) 48'
OTT - Carl Haworth 6 (Charlie Ward 3) 57'
Misconduct Summary:
OTT - Chris Mannella (Yellow Card; Unsporting Behavior) 30'
SPR - Ayyoub Allach (Yellow Card; Dissent) 74'
OTT - Wal Fall (Yellow Card; Persistent Infringement) 77'
OTT - Carl Haworth (Yellow Card; Unsporting Behavior) 79'
OTT - Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare (Yellow Card; Persistent Infringement) 89'
<strong>Stat</strong> |
<strong>SPR</strong> |
<strong>OTT</strong> |
Shots |
5 |
12 |
Shots on Goal |
1 |
6 |
Saves |
2 |
1 |
Fouls |
13 |
22 |
Offsides |
2 |
3 |
Corner Kicks |
2 |
3 |
Referee: Sebastian Noshinravini
Assistant Referee: Stephanie Fortin
Assistant Referee: Gerard-Kader Lebuis
Fourth Official: Sean Hornsby
