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Aug. 29, 2017 at Sylvan Lake Park

Availability: HC Anthony Pulis, GK Jake Fenlason

HC Anthony Pulis

Orlando City B host the Bethlehem Steel on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

Yeah, it’s gonna be a tough game. I mean, they’re a very, very athletic team. They got lots of power, lots of pace. The tricky thing with Bethlehem is probably what a lot of teams that play us in counter is trying to protect their lineup’s going to be difficult the fact that Philadelphia Union don’t have an MLS game this weekend, we’re expecting quite a lot of MLS players to come across and get some minutes. So we’re preparing for that eventuality, but the full focus, as always, will be on us and making sure our level of performance is good.

OCB are currently riding an 11-game unbeaten streak.

I think the boys are obviously really confident. We’re in a good position. The task for myself and the coaching staff, I think, at the moment, is to try and make sure we guard against complacency, which, hopefully, shouldn’t be too difficult because we’ve got a real level-headed bunch of guys. But that is always the worry is that players can get a little bit too carried away with things, and football has a horrible habit of biting you in the backside sometimes when you’re least expecting it. So we need to make sure we bring our A-game tomorrow night.

Following the conclusion of the Bethlehem match on Thursday, the United Soccer League Lions will have played seven games in August.

OCB have so far gone 3-0-3.

Yeah, this is the last game of a seven game month, if you’d like. We knew coming into August that it was going to be a huge month for us. Lots of games in a short space of time, lots of points available, and that’s what I said to players is that I’m viewing this as an opportunity to get good performances in and collect as many points as we can, and we’ve done a good job of that so far, and hopefully we can finish off the month of August well tomorrow night.

OCB are coming off a 3-0 win over Louisville City FC, currently the No. 1 team in the Eastern Conference.

Yeah, like I said, great for their confidence. Keeps building the momentum that we built up. I said before the game, and I genuinely believe that Louisville are the best team in the East. For us to go there and beat them 3-0 is a fantastic result. I don’t think many teams have gone there and done that and shut them out. But we always go through video, we go through positives, negatives. We debrief the game, and then once that’s done, we put it to bed, and we’re completely focused on tomorrow night against Bethlehem.

Goalkeeper Josh Saunders was announced as out for the remainder of the season with a neck injury, promoting perennial OCB starting goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. to the Major League Soccer side.

Mixed. Mixed, to be honest. Pleased for all that he’s now getting the opportunity to be involved with the MLS 18. Disappointed that we’re losing such a fantastic goalkeeper ’cause he’s been excellent for us this year. But then also pleased for Jake Fenlason because he trains so hard every single day, and he hasn’t had a lot of minutes over the course of the two years that he’s been with us. And he got an opportunity to play at the weekend, did exceptionally well, and, hopefully, now, he can carry that form into Thursday night.

Forward Michael Cox scored twice in the win over Louisville.

It wasn’t by design [that Cox has found his form now]. It was just purely down to performance levels, and he’ll be the first to admit—he didn’t—he had some knee surgery in the offseason, which held him back in preseason, so he was playing catch-up for a lot of the early part of the season, and then we had strikers that were in form, and now he’s come into form a little bit. The disappointing thing is he picked a hamstring injury up right before halftime, which is why we had to bring him off. So, that’s gonna be a blow, but it now gives opportunities to other guys. But, hopefully, we can get him healthy again, soon, and if he shows the form that he showed on Saturday at Louisville, then he’s a very good player.

Several of the club’s MLS players are out because of injury, international duty and suspension.

Orlando City SC’s lack of players could potentially draw some of OCB’s best players, including forward Hadji Barry, to the MLS side.

Well I think for our guys that are gonna get an opportunity, first and foremost, they should be really positive in the fact that they’re now getting an opportunity to play because they’ve been working hard all year. Some of them haven’t had as many minutes as they would’ve liked. Now they’re getting an opportunity, and that was the message this morning is the guys that are gonna step up now, they’re getting a shirt, and they have to make sure they don’t give that shirt away. And, like I said, this is the situation we’re in. The MLS team are down some players, so the guys that maybe would have been with us quite frequently, now, probably won’t be ’cause I would imagine they’ll be going to New England with the MLS team. That’s part and past this team, and we’re kinda used to that now.

Though OCB are in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, they are still just two points above the ninth-place Pittsburgh Riverhounds.

To make the playoffs in the USL, teams need to be in the top eight.

I mean, without being too cliché, it’s the next game. We wanna perform well, we wanna see if we can get three points and the move on from there. I know there’s been a lot of talk about the table and the standings, and I’m trying to keep myself away from that, at the moment, ’cause seven games is an awful lot, and a lot of things can change. That’s why I said before: This game has a horrible habit of kicking you when you least expect it. So, we need to make sure we’re ready for tomorrow night, and, hopefully, we can get another victory.

OCB entered this season with just four returning players.

Of course [there’s a sense of accomplishment]. I mean, it’s not easy when you have to do so much rebuilding. But, from a personal point of view, from my development as a coach, it’s been a fantastic experience, and the joy that I see with the group when they grow and they bond and they get better together over the course of the season shows that we’re doing something right. So, long may that continue.

Admittedly, Pulis said he doesn’t like to single out players, but he made an exception for center-back Seb Hines and his approach to playing with the club’s USL side.

Well I think everybody deserves credit. When we talk about building a foundation where we’re strong defensively, I talk about the whole group. And it’s something that we’ve worked on a lot all year. So, from the forwards right the way back. I’d like to give a special mention to Seb Hines, to be honest, because, as an experienced MLS player, to come across and play so many games at USL, he’s been outstanding for us. And Seb probably could’ve been forgiven for being not too enamored by the fact that he’s had to come and play in USL because he’s been used to playing at high level all his career. Every game he’s come across and played, he’s been fantastic, not just on the pitch but off the pitch, for the younger guys as well and to be an example for them. So, having people like that around, and you’ve got the experience of Lewis Neal to help the younger guys—I’ve been pleased, and I don’t like singling players out. They’ve all done great, and we said at the start of the year that every single player on our roster is gonna be needed, and that’s been shown, and that’ll be proven, again, tomorrow night.

GK Jake Fenlason

Fenlason started his second game of the season in the win over Louisville.

He held the No. 1 team in the East to zero goals with his eight-save performance.

I mean, it’s good. Obviously, unfortunate what happened to Josh, but, you know, what I—patience, and, you know, I’m just ready to play.

Edwards Jr. is third in the USL in saves with 75.

The Charlotte Independence’s Cody Mizell is second (76), and FC Cincinnati’s Mitch Hildebrandt is first (78).

I think from the whole goalkeeping staff that we have here, I’ve learned from a lot, especially from Earl since I’ve been around him more than I have with Josh and Joe [Bendik] and Mason [Stajduhar]. I mean, with Earl, I think a lot of it is—I’m kinda put into the same situation as him. He hasn’t really played much, and then now he’s getting his opportunity, so it’s good to look at him from that point of view that, you know, he’s taken advantage of it and has obviously played really well.

In 2016, Fenlason played 98 minutes in two games, starting one of them.

He started his first and only other game of 2017 in a 1-0 loss to Toronto FC II on June 14.

I think [playing last season’s] obviously a good thing because, you know, you don’t want to be entirely nervous before you go up into a big game with Louisville, but I think it’s still kinda iffy because, obviously, you haven’t gotten the minutes, and you’re still, “Can I do this mentally?” Not from a physical standpoint ’cause, physically, you do all of your work out here. But, from a mental standpoint—am I ready to play?

Fenlason credits the team’s outfield players for helping him to a clean sheet against Louisville.

I think [the strength of outfield players has] got a lot to do with it. And they made my job a little bit easier; made the angles a little bit easier for me to make saves. I think, you know, we were going into that game with a big…unbeaten streak, so I think just confidence of the group in front of me was really key in how I play.

For Fenlason, the game plan by Pulis and the staff helped the preparation for a shutout.

I think we had a really good game plan, and that’s all with Ant and [assistant coach Rob Valentino] watching a lot of games and, you know, figuring out what we could do collectively, defensively in order to stop them, and, you know, obviously, they’re very attacking-minded and wanted a lot of the ball, but I think if we just, you know, defended like we did, if we knew we were gonna get something out of it, and three points is big time for us.

Against Bethlehem, Fenlason sees a fast and athletic team.

In attacking half, they’re very fast, very athletic. They’ll hit you on the counter, and we just gotta be ready, defensively proactive and just waiting for them to, you know, maybe make one of those attacking runs forward, and we just counterattack after that. So, counter their counter.

Fenlason had an always-ready mindset before Saunders was listed as out for the season.

I think it’s just all about patience. Like you said, you never really know what might happen, but it’s always a possibility of it happening. And I didn’t even know it was gonna happen, and you just have to be ready, and you just gotta take advantage of it when it does happen.

If there’s one lesson Fenlason learned during his time on the bench, it’s that of the importance of communicating with his back-line.

I’d say just talking with the back-line and, you know, getting good chemistry with them just in case something does happen. You have to go in there, and, you know, make it seem like there’s nothing that changed. So I think having good chemistry with them and communicating with them and talking with them both on and off the field is massive.

Fenlason has seen collective support from all of his teammates.

I think it’s just collectively. I mean, we’re all, like, good, tight group of guys when we go on trips. You know, obviously, I’ve friends out in the field, and, you know, they’re all very happy when won that game, but I think just, collectively, it’s good group of guys.

For more on OCB, as they look to gain separation between them and the bottom half of the league, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.