Jason Hills
FC Edmonton Communications

HAMILTON — When FC Edmonton travelled to Hamilton to face Forge FC earlier this season, they suffered their worst loss of the season.
But they’re confident they won’t get outworked and out battled like they did the last time they faced Forge FC on the road.
That 3-0 loss back on Apr.23 almost feels like a lifetime ago.
The Eddies have taken several big steps forward in their development, and are currently playing some of their best soccer of the season, wining two of their last four matches.

“We’ve learned a lot of lessons on the road this year, and we’re not the same team like we were earlier this year,” said FC Edmonton midfielder Wesley Timoteo.
“We’ve built a lot of chemistry, and we’re ready to fight for each other on the road.”

Over the last several weeks, many of the Eddies players have made their mark to helping FC Edmonton secure points in the standings.
Midfielder Gabriel Bitar has scored in three straight games and has continued to show his ability to be a complete player.
Timoteo is showing he can be one of the league’s top set-up guys. He is currently tied for the league lead in assists with five with Valour FC’s Sean Rea and Pacific FC’s Marco Bustos.
Forward Mamadi Camara has caught fire since moving up from the midfield position, scoring goals in back-to-back games and leads the team with four.
The Eddies are getting contributions all throughout their lineup and are ready for the big test ahead. The will look for some redemption, after dropping their first two matches against Forge FC, including a 4-3 loss on May 31 at home, which saw the Eddies lose a 2-1 lead at halftime.

“These are the types of moments that you have to show your true character,” said Eddies midfielder Masta Kacher.
“We have to remember why we’re there. Every game is an opportunity to show what they can do, and it’s an opportunity for us to get points. It’s not a holiday trip or vacation. We have to get results on the road.”

Now, the Eddies biggest focus is earning that first win on the road.
They will have plenty of opportunities as FC Edmonton will spend almost the entire summer on the road, playing six straight games away from Clarke Stadium.
After tonight’s match in Hamilton, they will travel to Halifax to take on the the HFX Wanderers FC on Saturday.
The Eddies will continue life on the road with games in Calgary, Ottawa, York and Winnipeg, before their next home game on Aug.28.
It’s a lot of travel within a short time period.

“We’re going into the game against Forge with no pressure on us,” said Koch.
“Over the history of this league, they have been the most successful club, so they are expected to win this game. But we want to go and we want to put in a good performance and hopefully a good performance means we get something out of this game.
“The group has been working very hard this week for that game, and we know it’s going to be a tough challenge, but we’re excited for that challenge.”

Road trips bring up many different challenges, but during this six-game stretch, the Eddies’ focus off the pitch will be just as important as it would be on the pitch.
“We had a meeting (Friday) morning with our coaching staff, with our head athletic therapist, our operations manager and we discussed that we have to make sure we do everything that we can within the resources we have to help prepare and help the players recover from all of these games,” said Koch. “
This is going to be very difficult. I don’t know if there is another team in the world that has travelled this much ever in the history of football, in this short amount of time.
“Some things we want to get into the record books, but there are some things we don’t and this will be a very unique challenge. So we’re going to work very closely with our medical staff and operations staff. Whatever we can do from a travel perspective, whatever we can do from a nutrition perspective and trying to make sure players get adequate sleep in different places will be critical.”