“We’ll get a lot of confidence from this”, said Coach Adrian Heath at the presser following Orlando City’s (2-4-3 9 pts) 2-2 tie against the New England Revolution (5-2-3 18 pts). The Lions offense exploded in the waning minutes, scoring both goals in the final 15 minutes of play.

 

The first half was largely controlled by New England, who played the majority of the period on Orlando City’s side of the pitch. The Revolution’s aggressive style, combined with strong play by their forwards seemed to overwhelm the Lions early. New England limited Orlando City to four shots in the first half, while attempting seven of their own.

In the 19^th minute, one such shot from forward Charlie Davies sailed through the irons to give the away side an early lead. Despite an uninspired first half, the solid back line of Orlando City held it’s ground and allowed the club to regroup in the second.

 

Just as The Revolution set the pace of the first, the Lions controlled the second – though the scoreboard wouldn’t reflect it until late. Displaying what coach Heath called “mental toughness”, Orlando City held the edge in nearly every major statistical category. The once-quiet offense began to move the ball more effectively, winning 66% of the possession of the period. The once-maligned midfield disrupted passes and counterattacked more fluidly to hold the Revolution to only a single shot in the second half.

The only things missing were the goals. When New England’s second goal of the night hit the back of the net, only the most rabid purple supporters saw the game as anything but a loss – little did they know that the show was just beginning.

 

Only four minutes after the Citrus Bowl-deflating shot, it was Cyle Larin that answered. The stadium erupted with hope as Larin sent a pass from Rafael Ramos just under the crossbar to cut the deficit to one.

The Lions now attacked at a fever pitch. New England’s back line, headed by US World Cup star Jermaine Jones, held back wave after wave of purple advances.

 

As stoppage time was called, Kaka rallied his troops, directing traffic and yelling commands for the final run. What ensued was a frantic, scrambling goal by Aurelien Collin, off of an assist by fellow defender Luke Boden. The Supporter clubs went insane as Orlando City capped off its comeback. The same defensemen that held steady during the first half would flip the field and become attackers ­– accounting for ¾ of the players scoring and assisting for Orlando City.

 

The Lions travel to D.C. on Wednesday (5/13) before returning home to the Citrus Bowl on Sunday (5/17).

WILL OGBURN photo gallery