Photo by Ottawa Fury FC

By AARON CRANFORD

Ottawa Fury FC continues its blazing run to start the NASL Fall Season.

The Canadian club now has four wins in five games after defeating the Carolina RailHawks, 2-1, Sunday. The win gives Fury FC 13 points in the Fall Season table, enough to see them sit atop the field and enough to see them leapfrog the New York Cosmos in the NASL Combined Standings.

While Ottawa doesn’t look to be slowing down and is five points ahead of second-place FC Edmonton, only six points separate the Eddies from the last-place New York Cosmos, who failed to win their first match of the Fall Season, tying Indy Eleven, 1-1.

Meanwhile, Freddy Adu made his first appearance for the Tampa Bay Rowdies Saturday, and while the U.S. international helped with an assist, he couldn’t lead the Rowdies to a comeback against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.

Here’s a closer look at the results from Week 4 in the Fall Season:

MINNESOTA UNITED OVERPOWERS SCORPIONS IN SEVEN-GOAL AFFAIR

Five first-half goals were scored between Minnesota United FC and the San Antonio Scorpions, but more were to come before the Loons walked away with the 4-3 victory.

The two battled it out from the beginning, as Christian Ramirez tallied for the Loons in the 12th minute at Toyota Field, but Adrian Cann was there for the Scorpions answer five minutes later.

Justin Davis gave Minnesota the advantage once again in the 22nd minute, but 12 minutes later, Rafael Castillo equalized for San Antonio. Ibson would give the visitors the 3-2 lead heading into the break, and Kalif Alhassan, who already had two assists Saturday, gave the Loons the two-goal lead.

The Scorpions would make things interesting late, as Castillo bagged his brace in the 86th minute, but the Loons held on and won their second game in a row, giving them seven points after four games.

STRIKERS CRUISE PAST FLORIDA RIVALS ROWDIES

After an impressive Spring Season, the Tampa Bay Rowdies have had anything but a smooth Fall Season, as the Fort Lauderdale Strikers handed its Florida rivals a 3-1 loss at Al Lang Stadium.

Freddy Adu made his debut for the Rowdies and even assisted Maicon Santos’ late goal, but in the end, Victor “PC” Giro’s 16th-minute tally and Bruno Nunes’ goal in the 79th minute would be enough for the Strikers on the day.

Stefano Pinho would add a goal after Santos in stoppage-time to see the game out and give the Strikers six points after four games.

Adu came on in the 75th minute for head coach Thomas Rongen’s side and looked lively in his first cameo, but the loss now puts the club in ninth place on the Fall Season table with three points in four games.

INDY ELEVEN, COSMOS BATTLE TO SIXTH-STRAIGHT DRAW

Two minutes held all of the action in Indy Eleven’s 1-1 draw with the New York Cosmos at Michael A. Carroll Stadium.

Walter Restrepo netted first for the Cosmos after being fed by Spanish star Raul in the 45th minute, but seconds later, Dragan Stojkov found Dylan Mares, who fired a left-footed shot into the goal, leveling the score before the break.

In the 65th minute, Indy Eleven captain Erick Norales and Cosmos substitute Sebastian Guenzatti got into a scuffle and were both shown red cards, leaving both sides with 10 men for less than 30 minutes of play.

Neither team could find the go-ahead goal and the two settled for a draw, the sixth-consecutive one between the two. The Cosmos are still winless in the Fall Season, and although they have two games in hand, the New York side is not first in the Combined Standings for the first time in 2015.

FURY FC TAKES DOWN 10-MAN RAILHAWKS WITH LATE GOAL

For the first time in club history, Ottawa Fury FC sits atop the NASL Combined Standings, and it can thank Carl Haworth for his stoppage-time, game-winning goal vs. the Carolina RailHawks.

Aly Alberto Hassan gave the home side the lead in the 20th minute with a header after Paulo Junior sent in the cross. And everything seemed to be going its way, when in the 56th minute, Wells Thompson was shown a red card, leaving the RailHawks with 10 men.

However, Nacho Novo, who has been a threat for the RailHawks in both the Spring and Fall Season, found the unlikely equalizer in the 80th minute, giving his side hope of a result away from home.

Those hopes would be dashed, though, when Fury FC defender Ryan Richter sent in a cross that found Haworth in the box, where he headed it home and extended the club’s unbeaten streak to 10 games.

VISITING SILVERBACKS UPSET FC EDMONTON

A second-half brace and solid defending were enough to see the Atlanta Silverbacks take down a dangerous FC Edmonton Sunday at Clarke Field.

Jamie Chavez was the Silverbacks hero on the day, scoring his first and second goal 17 minutes apart from one another. The two goals were enough to see Atlanta upend the Eddies, but when Tomi Ameobi beat Silverbacks goalkeeper Steward Ceus in the 85th minute and made feelings nervy for the visitors, it was Shaka Bangura who sealed the deal and all three points with a goal three minutes after Ameobi’s tally.

The win sends the Silverbacks up the clustered Fall Season table into fifth place, while FC Edmonton remains in second even after receiving its first loss of the fall campaign.