Ottawa Fury will come home to Lansdowne Park this Saturday as they host Canadian foes Toronto FC II. The sights and sounds of the home crowd will be a fantastic environment for the Fury squad after they spent the last three weeks on the road, and they’ll be bringing home the confidence of finding their first USL win last weekend in Virginia.

Long Range Effort

It was Steevan Dos Santo’s long range goal that secured Ottawa Fury’s first USL victory last weekend in a 1-0 win over the Richmond Kickers. There were some fantastic goals scored in Ottawa Fury’s pre-season, and fans had hoped to see that replicated in the USL, and they weren’t disappointed when Dos Santos was able to take advantage of Kickers keeper Turner being off his line. In what has been somewhat of a rough start for Fury, losing their first two matches on the road, this was perhaps the type of goal needed to get Fury on their winning ways, skill, luck and timing. They will no doubt be hoping they can build on that this weekend in front of a home crowd.

Hometown Boys

One aspiration for many professional athletes is to represent their home town or club and that is no different for Jamar Dixon and Eddie Edward, both of whom are Ottawa natives playing for their hometown club. While Fury weren’t a professional club when both players were developing, they are hoping they can inspire young players who now have Fury to look up to. Eddie Edward released a letter to the Fury supporters this week urging them to come out to the home opener, and hopes that the 12th man will help spur them on.

Going Big

Ottawa Fury aren’t afraid to admit they are in the USL to win the Championship this year. The rhetoric from the club has been one of confidence and determination. If you read Eddie Edward’s letter to the supporters you’ll see the club and players want to bring the Championship home to Ottawa as part of celebrating Canada’s 150th anniversary. While their ambitions may be large, this weekend will be a real test for Fury to see if they can put the first two losses behind them, build on the win Saturday and most importantly, put forth a dominating performance that is strong and consistent for 90 minutes.

Voyageurs Cup On The Horizon

While Ottawa are still learning the ropes of the USL, they will soon be switching their focus to face old NASL foes FC Edmonton in the Voyageurs Cup. Fury will travel to Charleston following their home opener on Saturday, but will host FC Edmonton in the first leg of the Voyageurs Cup on Wednesday May 3rd. FC Edmonton were able to advance past Ottawa in 2014/15, but Fury were able to advance past the Alberta club last year and bring the Vancouver Whitecaps right to the final whistle in the semi-finals. Stay tuned to Northern Starting XI for full coverage of Ottawa Fury in the 2017 Voyageurs Cup and make sure to grab your tickets to tomorrows home opener!

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Stuart Mactaggart Stuart has covered Ottawa soccer for six years, most recently covering Atletico Ottawa.

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