OTTAWA – When Azake Luboyera first arrived to train with Ottawa Fury FC earlier this year, the road to a contract with the club was still well off in the distance.

After scoring his first goal for the club in his debut on Saturday, it was clear the work the Uganda U20 international had put in to earn his place in the squad had paid off handsomely both for the player, and the club.

“You love it when you see a story like that,” said Fury FC Head Coach Paul Dalglish. “This is a kid that’s come over from Uganda, he’s been training with us for a long, long time, and he’s just kept getting better, and better, and better. He made it impossible for us to not offer him a contract. The performance tonight is the accumulation of a lot of hard work, and that kid deserves that goal tonight, and he should enjoy it because it’s the first of many in my opinion.”

Luboyera’s goal opened the scoring in Fury FC’s 2-0 victory against Toronto FC II, and marked the first for Ottawa against its Battle of Ontario rivals in front of a strong crowd of 6,763 at TD Place. Drifting in unmarked at the back post to take advantage of a corner kick by Gerardo Bruna in the 24th minute, the tally provided a storybook start to the 19-year-old’s career with Fury FC.

“It means a lot to me, my family, everyone at home,” said Luboyera. “Patience is a key. Always, you have to be patient. I knew one day it would come, and this is the perfect day.”

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As Luboyera took the early plaudits, Sito Seoane provided the exclamation points with an outstanding finish that put the game away with 14 minutes to go. Seeing TFC II goalkeeper Mark Pais off his line as the ball bounced to him 40 yards from goal, Seoane’s stunning first-time lob to the left corner of the net brought the crowd to its feet.

“It maybe happens once every two or three years, so I’m happy that it helped the team,” said Seoane.

It was a goal that also brought back memories for Dalglish.

“He did it when he played in the PDL for the Austin Aztex,” said Dalglish. “He did it against Ocean City Nor’easters in a really tight game [in the 2013 PDL Semifinals]. It was 0-0, and the ball was just bouncing and he turned and hit it. It was from the other side of the field, but it was very similar.”

Fury FC could have won by a wider margin as it took its first win against Toronto FC II of the season, evening the season series at 1-1-1. What was most important was earning the win, though, as the side moved into a tie with the eighth-place New York Red Bulls II with three games in hand as it pursues a place in the USL Cup Playoffs.

With back-to-back key home games coming next against Bethlehem Steel FC and the Charlotte Independence on the next two Saturdays, Seoane knows what’s required to ensure a postseason berth.

“Right now is the time when you need to pick up wins, especially playing at home,” said Seoane. “We were ready for this game, and we’re ready for the games coming up.”