Daryl Fordyce PHOTO: FC EDMONTON/TONY LEWIS

FC Edmonton finished the NASL spring season with a league-low 11 goals for in 16 games played. So, getting the team’s all-time leading goalscorer back into the fold is welcome news.

The team has re-signed Daryl Fordyce. The move was made official Tuesday, but the rumours have been out there since Fordyce and USL side FC Cincinnati parted ways earlier this month. Fordyce didn’t see a lot of playing time under FC Cincinnati head coach Alan Koch.

Fordyce was with the Eddies from 2013-2016, scoring 28 times in 95 games. He arrived in Edmonton a little more than four years ago alongside Northern Irish countryman Albert Watson; both have recently become Canadian permanent residents. So, with Fordyce now having his Canadian PR card, he will not count as an international on the FCE roster. That means the team still has three international spots open.

“When Colin gave me the phone call I said ‘Let’s make it work,’ and thankfully [FC Edmonton co-owner] Tom Fath, Colin and my agent made it work quickly,” Fordyce said. “Thank you to everyone at [FC Cincinnati] and head coach Alan Koch and general manager Jeff Berding for their understanding and help with the transition.”

With the departure of Dean Shiels, who signed with Scottish side Dunfermline on Monday, the Eddies are in need of a player who can create chances for the strikers — and fill in as an out and out forward. Fordyce fits those bills and, as he is familiar with coach Colin Miller’s system, should be able to slide back into the club without too much of an issue.

Fordyce said he came to realization fairly quickly that the USL wasn’t for him. Even though the USL is now officially equal to the NASL in having second-division status, Fordyce feels there is a big gap in quality between the leagues.

“After every game, I just wasn’t happy,” said Fordyce. “I have nothing but good things to say about the FC Cincinnati. I can’t say enough about the club. They treated Tina and me really well, and they gave us whatever we asked for. But there is a big difference in terms of quality, and I am, the kind of player who wants to play against better opposition. There are times where the USL felt like an under-18 league. You are playing against a lot of reserve teams, and to me it kind of felt like I was back in England playing on a reserve team.”

There was one moment that brought his discontent into focus.

“There was a game where I tackled a 16-year-old kid. The kid went down and I think he was crying a bit. And then I thought, ‘what am I doing here.’ I am tackling a kid.”

Fordyce also struggled with injuries that kept him out of the team, but he credited Koch for understanding that he wanted to leave — and making the release happen. Fordyce had wanted out for weeks, but the release had to wait until July. He said that the club offered him chances to play after he got back from his injury, but he didn’t feel right about that, knowing that he was looking to be released.

He also has his paperwork in place to travel in and out of the United States, which can be tricky when someone becomes a Canadian Permanent Resident but doesn’t have his or her card yet.

Fordyce and his wife landed back in Edmonton two days ago. “It felt like home. I had a smile on my face,” he said.

“I know everything about the club. I just arrived in Edmonton, and it feels like I’ve never left.”

He spoke with Miller last Wednesday about a return, and it didn’t take much convincing on the FCE’s coach’s part. Fordyce wanted to return. And he knows the tough part is about to begin — helping this team score goals.

“Pressure is pressure,” he said. “It’s a part of football. I like the pressure. I can’t wait to get back at it and see the guys again.”