“But we’ve created a monster here, in terms of players getting call-ups to their national teams. It’s a situation we’ve never had to deal with before this season, but it’s also an honour for the club.”

Tesho Akindele started for FC Dallas and scored on a penalty kick. Cyle Larin set the MLS rookie scoring record when the Orlando City striker notched his 12th goal of the season.

But, as more and more North American Soccer League players get the calls to play for their countries, that league should also be subject to the same scheduling scrutiny. In fact, you could argue that NASL teams are less equipped than the MLS teams are when it comes to dealing with games on international dates.

With 10 minutes left Saturday’s match between Atlanta and FC Edmonton, Silverback Junior Burgos came up with that moment of magic. He hammered a free kick from distance just inside the post to give Atlanta the 1-0 win.

So, in fairness, it needs to be noted that a milestone was hit this week. The Impact is no longer the weakest of the five Canadian first- or-second-division sides when it comes to Canadians first-team minutes. On average, the Vancouver Whitecaps now give Canadians the lowest minutes-per-game of any of the five north-of-the-border MLS or NASL sides.

The Eddies produced more turnovers than you’d find in a bakery. And, they really only created one scoring chance of note — and that came in the second half with the Eddies already down a goal. And, in true comedy-of-errors style, sub Hanson Boakai and winger Lance Laing got in each other’s way when the ball sat in the Fort Lauderdale penalty area and keeper Josh Ford down and out on the turf.

And, in the fall? The Eddies are the only team in NASL to allow an average of less than a goal per game; FCE has conceded just eight times in nine matches. And the defensive turnaround has put the Eddies in second place in the fall table, and just two points out of fourth in the combined standings. That fourth spot would likely represent the final post-season spot.

Quietly, Atlanta Silverback Kyle Porter has taken over as the Canadian who has seen the most minutes in 2015, either in NASL or MLS.

Without the stellar play of the Carolina keeper, the RailHawks would have lost to FC Edmonton by a more lopsided scoreline than Sunday’s 3-0 result at Clarke Field. Make no mistake; a 3-0 loss was a scoreline that flattered the visitors, who have become all too used to hidings on the Clarke turf.

In the NASL combined standings, only six points separates the last-place San Antonio Scorpions and fourth-place Minnesota United.