It was Wednesday night, the middle of the week, and a thunderstorm was moving in. Another team might have expected less supporters, less enthusiasm from the crowd. But not Orlando City.
When it was announced that the game would be delayed, many Orlando City fans probably had flashbacks to the 2015 match against the Chicago Fire, which was delayed late into the night due a nasty thunderstorm. Thankfully, the game kicked off only about an hour later than expected. The rain was still coming down, but the fans stuck around.
After what Head Coach Jason Kreis admitted was a sloppy first half due to the slippery field and blurred vision from the rain, the two teams remained scoreless. But the fans didn’t give up hope, and either did the players. In the 66th minute Cyle Larin bounced the ball off his head and into the back of net to give the Lions a 1-0 lead.
The crowd erupted in cheers.
Just a few minutes later, D.C intercepted a backwards pass. Goalkeeper Joe Bendik came out to block the shot, but D.C maintained possession. D.C took their shot and Jonathan Spector an initial save. The ball bounced into the air, and Bendik ran back, batting it out of the net before a D.C player could head it in. The play was nothing short of incredible, but the roar from the crowd helped lift the Lions to new heights.
“We have a terrific crowd. And we believe that the crowd can lift us to special things,” Kreis said. “In that moment, thankful to Joe and Jon for their efforts to stop that goal, but I think the crowd’s reaction to it was exactly what we needed. A little burst of energy and enthusiasm.”
Orlando City fans stuck with their team for the entire 90 minutes as they battled to get their 2-0 win at home. They will do it again when the Lions host the Chicago Fire this Sunday, June 4th. Kickoff is set for 7:30pm.
