FC Edmonton fights back twice to earn a point on the road

The San Antonio Scorpions earned a point in a 2-2 draw with FC Edmonton thanks to Omar Cummings’ league-leading eighth goal and two assists from Billy Forbes.

Forbes and Cummings showed early on why they are the Scorpions’ go-to offensive weapons. In the 17th minute, Rafael Castillo played a ball to Forbes on the right side of the Edmonton 18-yard-box. Forbes was tackled and briefly lost possession, but Cummings picked up the loose ball and fired a shot into the left inside netting to give the Scorpions a 1-0 lead.

However, the young Eddies - whose lineup totaled just two goals on the season heading into the night - found their first goal in the 36th. Forward Michael Nonni tapped in a cross from left winger Johann Smith, evening the score before halftime.

With inspiration from Julius James’ video message on the scoreboard, the red and black found the net once again in the 57th minute, this time from César Elizondo. Billy Forbes made a high-energy run along the left wing into the box, played the ball across goal, and found Elizondo with no one in front of him. The Costa Rican forward deposited his first goal of the season into the back of the net to give the Scorpions the 2-1 advantage.

The most dramatic goal of the night came in the 72nd, this time off the foot of Edmonton midfielder Cristian Raudales. Left back Allan Zebie found Raudales unmarked on the edge the right side of San Antonio’s area. With a lack of pressure on the ball, Raudales stepped up and blasted a one-time effort past a diving Scorpions goalkeeper Daryl Sattler to even the game once again.

One of the last real chances for the Scorpions came in the 78th minute with Forbes and Elizondo teaming up again to nearly give the Scorpions the winner. Forbes made yet another run into the left area of the box and played a cross. Elizondo was able to get a foot on the ball, but the shot sailed up and over the crossbar, preserving the tie.

While the Scorpions couldn’t find the defense to capture their second win in a row, Billy Forbes made Scorpions history by appearing in his 35th consecutive game for the Alamo City boys. His 35-game streak surpassed former Scorpions forward Esteban Bayona’s all-time consecutive match streak, further cementing the Turks and Caicos Islands international’s legacy. Forbes’ two assists, his fourth and fifth of the season, also vaulted him to the top of the league’s assist leaders, tying him with Tampa Bay’s Georgi Hristov.

As has been the case for the Scorpions this past week, rest will prove to be extremely valuable as the Scorpions will travel to North Carolina to face the third-place RailHawks on Saturday night to play their third game in eight days.