Forest City London has qualified for the playoffs and has finalized their schedule. Finishing in 3rd place in the Great Lakes Division of the PDL (Premiere Development (soccer) League) earns them a game against Chicago Fire this Thursday July 23rd, 8:00 EST in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The winner of that game heads to Kalamazoo, Michigan for a game against the league winning Kalamazoo Outrage 8:00 this Saturday July 25th. The winner of that game then competes with 7 other divisions across North America for the North American PDL title over the coming weeks.
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FC LONDON finishes their season ranked 17th out of 67 teams in North America. Going along with their 11 game unbeaten streak (a record for first year teams), Forest City London finished the season with 8 wins, 5 ties and only 3 loses, finished in the Top 10 for Goals Against, and in the top 20 for Goals For. The team from London are one of only 3 Canadian teams to qualify for the playoff round which will decide the overall winner across North America.
This Thursday, they’ll take on the Chicago Fire in a single-game elimination in Fort Wayne, Indiana, kickoff at 8:00 EST. Forest City London tied Chicago in London at the Portuguese Club on a last minute penalty kick by Alan McGreal earlier in the season. Only a few weeks ago in Chicago, London had Chicago tied until the 89th minute of the game when Chicago pulled off a similar surprise at the end of the game to come away with a win. Finishing second in the league with a record of 10-1-5, the Chicago squad brings a wealth of experience to the field as the junior team to the MLS team of the same name.
Of specific concern to London will be Chicago Fire goaltender James Maurer who has a Goals Against average of only 0.692 over 13 games and boast 6 of those games as shutouts, 3 best I North America. James will be a worth opponent for London’s Kevin Zimmerman and Alan McGreal who finish the season with 8 and 7 goals respectively.
Quotable
The game will be played on a grass field which coach Martin Painter prefers; “playing Chicago on grass should work well for our game as the bounces are a little more reliable” says Painter. “our close passing style will give us solid ball position in midfield, and as long as our forwards to their job, we should come through with a positive result and start to focus on Saturday’s game against Kalamazoo.”
The team will leave on Wednesday on a coach (sponsored by Badder Bus) and plan to hold a light practice in Fort Wayne on Wednesday night before making final preparations for the game on Thursday. Fans wishing to travel to the game can get game location and accommodation information on the at www.FCLONDON.ca or at the FC LONDON store across from the Grand Theatre or by calling 519-902-7120.
