The goals have dried up, which is presenting a major problem for FC Edmonton.



On Saturday, FC Edmonton were shut out for the fourth consecutive game, losing 1-0 on the road to the Carolina RailHawks.



Austin Da Luz scored in the 35th minute for the RailHawks, who were able to pull themselves back into playoff contention with the win.



“I thought we were very poor in the first half,” said FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller. “We actually gave the ball away directly from the kickoff, and I thought we could be in for a rude awakening, and it turned out to be that way.”



The loss was Edmonton’s third of the North American Soccer League fall season. It dropped Edmonton to third in the Fall Season standings behind the New York Cosmos and the Indy Eleven.



Edmonton is still comfortably in a playoff position, but the fall title may be slipping away.



“Carolina was very good, take nothing away from the opposition,” Miller said. “But we weren’t tight enough all over the park, we kept giving the ball away far too easy and we got what we deserved. We were on the receiving end of a football lesson, at times, particularly in the first half.”



Da Luz’s goal came after Carolina midfielder Matt Watson lofted a ball into the penalty area guarded by plenty of FC Edmonton defenders.



The ball was knocked down by RailHawks striker Omar Bravo into the path of Da Luz as FC Edmonton defenders Karsten Smith and Shawn Nicklaw seemed to get in each other’s way. Da Luz was able to muscle a shot past goalkeeper Matt VanOekel.



“That summed it up in the first half, we didn’t defend well at all throughout as a team,” Miller said. “It was almost a comedy of errors where we had bodies in place, but nobody was tight enough, and people were running into each other. It was a shocking goal to give up at this level of football. That was really, really disappointing.”



In the second half, Miller made some adjustments and brought on midfielder Shamit Shome. Taking a more offensive approach to the game, the Eddies created more chances but were still unable to score.



FC Edmonton’s best chance of the game came late as Tomi Ameobi was played into the penalty area with a give-and-go combination at the top of the penalty area. Ameobi’s shot, however, was deflected away with a lunging defensive challenge by Watson, who ran miles for Carolina in the victory.



FC Edmonton have not scored since a 2-2 draw at the Ottawa Fury on Sept. 2. Edmonton concludes their two-game road trip against the Jacksonville Armada FC on Wednesday.



“I’m as frustrated as everyone,” Miller said. Every game we’ve played where we have scored, we’ve had at least two or three very good chances. We haven’t hit the target in a lot of cases and we have hit the woodwork quite a bit.



“We got into some great areas (Saturday), had some great chances and couldn’t score. The guys are aware of it, they know that Wednesday becomes a major, major game for us away from home.”



Dvandiest@postmedia.com



On Twitter: @DerekVanDiest



Game Review



Carolina 1 – FC Edmonton 0



Man of the match: Austin Da Luz, Carolina

The midfielder created constant problems for Edmonton down the left side and scored the eventual winner with 10 minutes left in the first half.



Game Grades

Offence D

Defence B

Goalkeeping B

Toughness B

Effort C



Why FC Edmonton won: They ran into a determined Carolina RailHawks team looking to claw their way back into the playoff race. Edmonton had difficulty creating offensive opportunities and gave up a goal with some lax defensive play toward the end of the first half. Edmonton pressed in the second half but had trouble breaking down a very organized back four for Carolina.



Play of the game: The RailHawks loft a ball into a well-guarded FC Edmonton penalty area where striker Omar Bravo is able to get to it and knock it down into the path of midfielder Austin Da Luz. He collects the ball in front of the net and is able to muscle it past Edmonton goalkeeper Matt VanOekel inside the near post for the only goal of the game.



Save of the game: Late in the game, FC Edmonton striker Tomi Ameobi appears to have been sent through with a give-and-go at the top of the penalty area. Just as Ameobi goes to take a shot on goal, RailHawks midfielder Matt Watson is able to get a toe on the ball to deflect it wide.



Up Next: FC Edmonton at Jacksonville Armada FC, Wednesday (5 p.m.) Community First Park.