So the question remains, how will TD Place look when the Fury hosts NASL games later in the season? The one danger of playing in large multipurpose stadiums is that even if you get a crowd of 7,000 or 8,000 — which is excellent by modern NASL standards — the stadium looks and feels kinda empty.

Watson, who was one of two Eddies on the MVP ballot (the now-departed Chris Nurse was the other) got enough votes from the league’s eight head coaches, who select the season-ending all-star team.

“Corey’s been here for three days, I’ve been here for a week, and for us to click like that, it’s great,” said Adur, a former Maccabi Haifa youth player who has also had pro stints in Singapore and Thailand. “I think the two of us are going to become a special story in this league as the season progresses.”

“I’m devastated,” said FCE coach Colin Miller. “I couldn’t have asked any more from the guys. When we drove here, it was 100 degrees (F)... How do we prepare for this? We train like buggers all week long."

The Scorpions had several clear-cut scoring chances in the second half, but couldn’t convert any of them — allowing Shaun Saiko’s late first-half penalty-kick marker to stand as the deciding goal.