Cox scores, then gets sent off as 10-man FCE settles for 1-1 draw with UBC

Michael Cox scored, then got sent off — and FC Edmonton had to weather more than 60 minutes of soccer with just 10 men on the pitch. With less than 15 minutes left to go in the match, Paul Clerc scored off a corner kick, allowing the University of British Columbia to come away with a 1-1 draw with the Eddies, as FCE continues its week-long training-camp series of matches in Vancouver.

Cox scored 10 minutes into the match, putting in his own rebound to give the Eddies the lead over the CIS champs, who had FCE trialist Gagandeep Dosanjh back in the T-Birds’ jersey for the match. (Dosanjh, who played a preseason game for the Eddies earlier this week, will return to the FCE fold Saturday and remain with the club for the weekend, then head back to school. The Eddies will decide whether or not to sign Dosanjh later this spring).

But Cox didn’t last much longer. He was sent off in the 26th minute, a straight red after his foot made contact with a UBC defender in the T-Birds’ penalty area.

Cox attempted a bicycle kick and made contact with a high boot. And even though FCE coach Colin Miller felt the play was purely accidental, he isn’t the one holding the cards.

“He made very slight contact with the other player’s chest,” said Miller. “The UBC player went down but he got right back up. The lad didn’t make a meal of it. To me, it wasn’t a sending off.”

But, even though Miller was disappointed that UBC got the equalizer off a blown coverage on a corner kick — something which haunted the Eddies throughout the 2012 season in which they finished dead last in NASL — he was happy with how the team handled the adversity of playing most of the game down a man.

“I was pleased with the players’ attitude for 70 minutes,” Miller said. “We didn’t allow UBC very many chances, and this is a team that has been scoring goals for fun this last little while. Carlyle Mitchell (the Whitecaps’ centre-back loanee just back in camp after representing Trinidad and Tobago) cruised through 45 minutes.”

UBC won the Keg Spring Cup with 4-0 wins over the University of Victoria and Trinity Western University.

Northern Irish striker Daryl Fordyce, who is the safe bet to partner Cox on opening night, missed the UBC match with shin splints. And defender Wes Knight missed out with a toe problem. The Eddies now have a win over the Abbotsford Selects, a loss the Whitecaps Reserves and the draw with UBC to show for the week’s effort. A game against Spokane’s Gonzaga University on Sunday will wrap the preseason slate of matches.

The team buses back to Edmonton right after Sunday’s match, and should be back in the Alberta Capital on Monday morning. On Thursday, the team will leave for south Florida, as it sets up for Saturday’s opening night against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.

While FCE is already taking a serious look at Dosanjh, the games in Vancouver also gave Miller a chance to assess what kind of collegiate talent is available in the city. Before the match, Miller chatted with Simon Fraser University coach Alan Koch.

“There’s an excellent network of coaches out here,” he said.