Heading into what is the team's biggest game of the NASL season so far, FC Edmonton’s practice was as notable for who was sitting out with injuries as who was actually on the field working out.

FC Edmonton narrowed the gap to four points between itself and the Carolina Railhawks for the final NASL playoffs spot with a 1-0 home win Sunday over an undermanned and overmatched Puerto Rico Islanders side.

In front of a full house at Clarke Stadium, Yashir Pinto scored the goal that allowed FC Edmonton to draw level with the San Antonio Scorpions. Nearly three hours later, in front of just a handful of fans, he missed the sitter that would have given the Eddies the win.

Antoniuk, who scored the first-ever winning goal in FC Edmonton’s NASL history but was released by the team at the end of the 2011 season, got the only tally as the Tampa Bay Rowdies edged the Eddies by a 1-0 score.

In an NASL campaign which has seen FCE flirt with the bottom of the table, an against-all-odds win might be the thing the team needed to help it bond — the kind of win that could turn around a season.

But thanks to some inspired goalkeeping from Lance Parker — which included a penalty save — and a lovely second-half combination play that led to Michael Cox’s goal, the Eddies broke a two-game home winless streak with a gritty 1-0 decision over the Fort Lauderdale Strikers Sunday.

But, over the last two weeks, Rago has reclaimed his starting spot. Before Rago came in as a started, Edmonton was winless in four league games. Since he came back, the team has won its two NASL matches by an aggregate 5-0 count and showed very well in an Amway Canadian Championship semifinal loss to Vancouver at BC Place — in which Rago set up Yashir Pinto’s goal for the Eddies.

For 75 minutes of Wednesday’s second leg of the club’s Amway Canadian Championship final against the Vancouver Whitecaps, things looked good for FC Edmonton to be Cinderella at the BC Place ball.

FC Edmonton was a man up for more than 50 minutes of soccer, but never asserted its numerical superiority and fell 1-0 on the road to the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in their NASL season opener.

Canadian striker Randy Edwini-Bonsu had to do some wheeling and dealing with his German club in order to get clearance to play for Canada’s U-23 team in the upcoming Olympic qualifiers, which begin Thursday in Nashville.