This week's hot topics in the Orlando City organization
1) Reevaluating after a win- The 3-0 score line of last week’s 2011 USL PRO Championship rematch win over the Harrisburg City Islanders looked great on the surface. Forward Dennis Chin scored twice, the first time in his career with Orlando that he’s knocked a brace, while Goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo recorded his fifth shutout of 2012 to lead the Lions’ defense in what seemed like a dominating victory.

What was boiling underneath, though, was an unhappy coach that saw something past the three points that Orlando gained. “I thought our first half performance was very ppor and lacked the required effort,” Orlando City Head Coach Adrian Heath said after the match. “Some of our guys are living on borrowed time as of now, and I want better performances out of all of them.”

Strong words from the former Everton star, who was clearly displeased with his team despite the win. Heath even said he’s going to look at options for trades, leaving no stones unturned on the way to the 2012 regular season end. It’ll be interesting to see what Heath does in this upcoming week, as Orlando makes their push for a second championship.

2) Back to back- After staying home for a majority of the month of June, Orlando will be up in Ohio and Pennsylvania to face the Dayton Dutch Lions and Pittsburgh Riverhounds on the 29th and 30th, respectively. This marks the first time the club plays back to back road matches in franchise history.

Orlando’s opponent on Friday, Dayton, has only won only a single match so far in 2012. Even though the Dutch Lions sport a lowly 1-7-5 record, the club has made a run in the U.S. Open Cup- winning their first three matches to advance to the tournament’s quarterfinals. Dayton is set to play Sporting Kansas City on Tuesday, who Orlando fell to at the end of May in the third round of the Open Cup by a score of 3-2.

3) Rescheduling- Last night, the match between Mississippi Brilla FC and Orlando City U23s was rescheduled due to Tropical Storm Debby. This is the first time in the organization’s young history that a game was rescheduled due to weather. The rescheduled match will take place on Tuesday, July 3, at 7 p.m. at the Seminole Soccer Complex. The pro team is also moving things around, training at XL Soccer World tomorrow due to the excess rain.

With the rescheduling, the U23s will be going through a tough stretch at the beginning of July. The Lions, who currently sit in fourth place in the Southeast Division with a record of 4-2-4, play five matches in two weeks starting with the rescheduled match on July 3 to close out the season. The team then plays on the 6th, 10th, 13th and 15th to close out the PDL regular season. Three of the last five matches will be in Orlando at the U23s home venue at the Seminole Soccer Complex.


Next Games

Jun 22
FFC
7:30 PM
TICKETS
Jun 29
Richmond
7:30 PM
TICKETS
Jul 03
@ Wilmington
7:30 PM
 

Standings

   
GP
W
Pts
1. Orlando City 13 10 32
2. Harrisburg City Islanders 11 8 25
3. Charleston Battery 12 7 23
4. VSI Tampa Bay 11 7 22
5. Richmond Kickers 10 6 22
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