HEMPSTEAD, N.Y.

There may always be some healthy competition between the Bytown Boys and Stony Monday Riot -- Ottawa Fury FC's official supporters groups -- but they were all one big happy family Sunday night.

About 120 fans representing both groups took the bus to Long Island to cheer on Fury as the second-year NASL club faced the New York Cosmos in the league's championship final. The group left before 6 a.m. Sunday, arriving at Hofstra's University James M. Shuart shortly before kickoff, accompanied by Fury mascot Sparky.

"It's absolutely epic, I can't believe we're actually here," said Jon Eden, moments before Fury took the pitch. "Tonight, no matter your supporters' beliefs, we're united."

Eden and a few others also had fun taking a few playfull jabs at the retiring duo of Spanish legends Raul and Marcos Senna.

"Senna's 39, Raul's 37, we're going to go 120 minutes tonight and they're going to (run out of gas)," he said.

Not only does Fury have some of the loudest and proudest fans in the league, they're also some of the classiest. That was on full display Sunday as the group showed up with a couple dozen signs in blue, white and red and featuring an image of the Eiffel Tower. The group held up the signs during a moment of silence honouring the victims of Friday's terror attacks in Paris.

Nicely done.

PITCH BITS

It didn't take long for the rough stuff to start as Cosmos forward Gaston Cellerino tried to knock down a high ball but instead kicked Fury midfielder Mauro Eustaquio in the face, earning a yellow card for his efforts. That didn't deter the Cosmos, who opened the scoring moments later ... A rare miscue by Fury goalie Romuald Peiser saw the goalie whiff on the ball when it was touched back to him by defender Mason Trafford. It was cleared harmlessly away, but there definitely seemed to be some nerves for the Ottawa side early on ... Fury captain Richie Ryan had Ottawa's first shot on goal in the 21st minute, sending a hard, dribbling shot in that Cosmos keeper Jimmy Maurer had to dive for ... The turf looked rough at Hofstra University, an obervation confirmed by a local scribe who said the turf hasn't been replaced since the Cosmos returne to the league. "They're just happy to have a field," he said ... Andrew Wiedeman, playing on Tommy Heinemann's right flank, was Ottawa's best forward of the first half, showing good pace down the side and generating Ottawa's lone corner kick of the half ... Rafael Alves was called for a foul for going over the back of a Cosmos player trying to head the ball. The same play happened 10 minutes later with the New York player running into Heinemann the same way, but no call ... Maurer was shown a yellow card in the 41st minute for kicking the ball away after Fury had been awarded a corner kick ... Fury had more energy in the second half but the Cosmos ramped up the physical play, particularly directed at Heinemann who took his share of knocks in this one. But Fury was still having a miserable time finding the final touch around the Cosmos goal, even when they got themselves into a great position for a scoring chance. The frustration started to set in for Fury as the game got chippier ... Raul wasn't a huge factor in this one but made his presence known when he and teammate Carlos Mendes ran into Peiser on a corner kick. The Cosmos scored but the goal was immediately called back ... Devastating break for Mason Trafford as the Fury was sent off on a red card after trying to jump over Sebastien Guenzatti but landing on him with two feet. Fury would equalize right after but New York quickly replied.

HERE AND THERE

New York is 11-3-1 at home in 2015, with Ottawa responsible for the Cosmos' lone loss of the campaign, with Fury downning New York 4-1 in the midweek clash on Sept. 22 ... At the risk of spending too much time talking about Raul's final game, Fury defender Mason Trafford had a great line about dealing with the mystique around the legendary Spanish footballer. "He's a fantastic player. He has the reputation and he has the name Raul, so we all know what he's done," Trafford told Sportsnet's John Molinaro. "But at the same time, he's not an alien. He has two legs. He's the same as us." ... Fury came into Sunday's final unbeaten in a league record 13 games with eight wins and five draws since dropping a 2-1 decision to Minnesota in mid-August ... Was it just me or were the 120 or so Fury supporters louder than the rest of the Cosmos fans from the opening kick? That didn't change much even after New York scored as Stony Monday Riot and the Bytown Boys brought the noise ... One major difference from the home of the Cosmos and Fury? A lot more tailgating in the open-air parking lot before Sunday's game ... The spring/fall season format in the NASL may not be perfect but there's something special watching the league's two best teams go at it. No love lost there, but plenty of respect. At least a couple famous faces in the house Sunday: NBA star and Puerto Rico FC owner Carmelo Anthony was there, as was Dominic Chianese, who played Uncle Junior on The Sopranos and sang the American national anthem Sunday.

Twitter: @chrishofley