A beautiful strike from Dagoberto secured a home victory and a berth in the NASL playoffs for the Deltas on Wednesday night at Kezar Stadium. The win also moves SF into a tie with Miami FC for first place in the Fall Season standings.

Indy Eleven struck seven minutes in when Craig Henderson collected a pass well outside the box and screamed a shot past the stunned home side for the lead.

“The first 8 minutes we were a little bit sleepy. Their goal woke us up. We had to chase, and we did it in a good way,” said SF Deltas head coach Marc Dos Santos.

The Deltas responded in the 12th minute when a Kyle Bekker corner kick was headed by Kenny Teijsse off Indy defender Colin Falvey and into the back of the net.

Both sides had several chances to take the lead, but the game remained tied until Dagoberto provided a bit of magic with his goal in the 81st minute.

The Brazilian dribbled into the upper right corner of the penalty box and unleashed a curling shot that hit off the far post and into the goal.

Here are three things we learned from the game:

1) Dagoberto picks the perfect time to shine





After joining the San Francisco Deltas for the fall season, the Brazillian legend hasn’t had the impact some hoped when he signed with the team. Although Dagoberto has shown flashes of his talent on the field, the 34-year-old has also taken time to once again obtain game fitness and figure out his best role on the team.

The Deltas have been successful even without him on the field. It almost makes it appear that Dagoberto is nothing more than a luxury player.

But on Wednesday night Dagoberto showed his worth. Late in the match, a Tommy Heinemann cross fell being Deltas striker Devon Sandoval. Fortunately, the ball ended up at the feet of the Brazilian, and he struck an absolute beauty of a goal.

Dagoberto’s shot kisses the inside of the far post and goes into the back of the net for the potential game-winner for @sfdeltas. #SFDvIND pic.twitter.com/QuOOCj9w1F — NASL (@naslofficial) October 12, 2017

“That is why we brought him in,” explained Dos Santos on why the Deltas added Dagoberto. “We knew that in moments like that he has the spark, and he showed that spark with the goal that won the game.”

2) It’s a fantastic accomplishment for San Francisco to make the postseason

The expansion side Deltas had one primary goal for their first season: Qualify for the NASL playoffs. Dos Santos stressed it over and over again during interviews, and his team responded brilliantly. To qualify for the playoffs, with four games remaining, is an incredible result.

“It was our objective since day one,” Dos Santos told Deltas announcer Stephen Davies after the game. He credited all of the team’s technical staff, office, and most importantly the players in achieving their goal. “Now, we’ll try to do a little bit more now,” he added.

Now the goal for San Francisco is to secure a home playoff game for the semifinal match. They can do that by either winning the Fall Season (they are currently tied with Miami FC) or if Miami wins the Fall Season and the Deltas finish in second place in the combined standings.

3) The Deltas success on the field is based on their passion.





Davies also asked Dos Santos what makes his team so special on the field and able to win games or their ability to pull out incredible results.

“Passion,” Dos Santos explained. “Passion brings you to your limit, and that’s what they have. They go all the way every time.”

All season long that passion has helped San Francisco achieve their goal.

After conceding a late goal to North Carolina FC in May, they immediately scored a goal to obtain 3 points. A week later they a last-second goal against Edmonton in May.

In June the Deltas battled back from a two-goal deficit to tie Indy Eleven at home. In the first game of the fall season, San Francisco weathered a determined attack by the Jacksonville Armada to pull out a draw away.

Down to 10 men against the Cosmos in September, they scored two goals within five minutes to achieve an incredible draw. A few weeks later San Francisco scored an unlikely goal against a stiff gale wind to defeat FC Edmonton away.

Hopefully, their passion never lets up until the final game of the season.

NOTES:

– The Deltas return to action this Saturday October 14th at Kezar Stadium against Puerto Rico FC. Gametime is 5 p.m. The team announced all proceeds from single-game tickets to the Deltas home game will be donated to Carmello Anthony’s Puerto Rico Hurricane Relief Fund.

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Douglas Zimmerman is SFGate’s soccer beat writer covering the the San Francisco Deltas and the “beautiful game” around the world. He also is working on a photo essay photographing the fans of the World Cup that he started in 2002.