Armada FC U-23 Continue Their Reign Over The Gulf Coast Conference

Last night the Jacksonville Armada FC U-23 hosted the New Orleans Jesters at Jangro Stadium. This was the fifth all-time meeting between the two clubs, and the Armada’s tenth match of the 2022 NPSL season.

As soon as the center referee blew the first whistle, Jacksonville was on the attack trying to break through the Jesters’ defense.

It did not take long for the Armada to secure their first goal of the game. In the 7th minute forward, Cao Chaves, would strike the ball from outside the box and bury his chance into the back of the net giving Jacksonville a 1-0 lead.

Just three minutes after the goal was scored, a ball was played over the top of New Orleans’ defense to Cao Chaves who squared a pass across the box to an incoming Keegan Ancelin. Ancelin would seize the opportunity and convert the shot to score his first goal of the season.

The first half of the match would conclude with the Jacksonville Armada ahead two goals to nil over the New Orleans Jesters.

New Orleans did not let the Armada’s early chances get to them as they continued to look for a goal in the second half, rattling a shot off the crossbar in the process.

In the 56th minute, a Jesters’ attacker found himself through on goal, and would convert his chance to make the game 2-1.

Coach Tommy Krizanovic made several substitutions in the second half to ensure the Armada would continue to keep up with the pace of play.

In the 75th minute a New Orleans Jesters’ forward would be fouled inside the box and awarded a penalty kick. The Jesters’ number 10 stepped up to the spot but was denied by goalkeeper Dominic Dominuez, who made an acrobatic save.

After three minutes of injury time was played, the referee called the match in favor of Jacksonville, with the final score being 2-1.

Head Coach Tommy Krizanovic had nothing but praise for his squad’s display of teamwork, “Proud of the boys to work through adversity this past game. The games have been tough and last night New Orleans really put everything they had on us. Very pleased with the players performances and work output and most of all with individual players stepping up when we needed them the most. This group is looking more and more like a complete group. It will be up to us in the next few weeks to connect it all and put it together before going into playoffs.”

With Wednesday night’s win, the Jacksonville Armada FC U-23 remain in first place and undefeated in the Gulf Coast Conference. The Armada will clinch the regular season title if they win Saturday night’s home match against AFC Mobile. Jacksonville continues to be in first place in the NPSL's overall standings out of 95 teams across the country.

Jacksonville Armada’s regular season title clinching match will be played this Saturday, July 2 at 7pm versus AFC Mobile. Do not miss the opportunity to watch your Jacksonville Armada at Jangro Stadium lift the Conference Shield. Tickets are FREE and available for reservation on Eventbrite.