Flying coach: Cancellation forces FC Edmonton to ad lib travel plans to Tampa By Steven Sandor Posted on October 3, 2014 1 0 704 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter FC Edmonton’s staff and players are over the moon about teenage midfielder Hanson Boakai’s first call-up to the senior Canadian national side. But, soaring to Florida is turning out to be an issue. The Eddies were all scheduled to leave Friday morning for Chicago and then get a connecting flight to Florida. The Eddies are set to face the Tampa Bay Rowdies Saturday night at Al Lang Stadium. But, it didn’t go so well. The Eddies found out late Thursday night that the Edmonton-Chicago flight was going to be cancelled. That’s because the incoming flight from Houston on Thursday night, which was supposed to be turned around and used for the Chicago trip the next day, was cancelled because of inclement weather. So, the Eddies’ staff scrambled late last night to try and find alternate flying arrangements for the team. Most of the team were able to get on one common connecting flight out. Other players are on another route. And the coaches were still in Edmonton late Friday morning, as they will be the last ones to get out. Ah, the joys of flying coach. Flight issues aren’t rare in NASL; we have seen road teams come into Edmonton after ridiculous layovers or who have had to deal with severe delays and/or flight cancellations. Last year, the Eddies didn’t get to North Carolina until 3 a.m. on a game day because a connecting flight in Toronto was stuck on the tarmac and was eventually hauled back to the terminal. Because NASL players tend to be used to travel hardships, the Eddies’ flight issues won’t be a good excuse for a poor performance on Saturday.
