But, as good as the Eddies were going forward, it needs to be said that the Scorpions created zero scoring chances in the second half. Hassli, outside of the penalty, was shut down by FCE central defender Albert Watson, who passed a late fitness test before deemed being ready to play. Watson wrenched his neck in training on Saturday.

“It’s exciting times to get to play in front of the fans I played in front of for four years, almost. It’s fun to see them and play in front of them,” said Saiko.

“I couldn’t care less about Shaun Saiko anymore. We don’t pay his wages anymore. He left our club and it’s history. I have no interest in San Antonio or Shaun Saiko. I’m interested in the guys that are here. This is how I feel. These are our players, the club has moved on, the club is evolving and we’re in a good place. Unfortunately, we’re where we are in the league, but progress is being made.”

Mallan Roberts is a man of two nations, but he only officially belongs to one of them.

It wasn’t FC Edmonton’s prettiest match of the season, but it might have been the club’s best effort of the season.

>The 11 asked Saiko if he wanted to talk about the prospect of his new team playing his old club, and he wouldn’t go there. He said "what's done is done." All he wanted to discuss was how important this game was to his new team, the Scorpions.

Now, whether you love or hate the NASL’s decision to create a spring season in which each of the 10 teams plays a nine-game schedule — with one of the top two playoff, er, “Championship” seeds going to the league champ — there’s no doubt it brought a sense of immediacy to the opening weekend.

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.

Now that Yallop is back in the realm of the employed, he join San Jose coach Mark Watson (and Yallop’s former assistant) as Canadian coaches in MLS. Now add to that the fact there are three Canadian coaches currently employed in NASL: FC Edmonton’s Colin Miller, San Antonio Scorpions interim boss Alen Marcina and Ottawa Fury head man Marc Dos Santos. Yes, we include Dos Santos because, even though the Fury won’t begin NASL play till 2014, Dos Santos is already working to identify players and hire his staff.

And, after a lightning delay it was Alen Marcina, the San Antonio Scorpions’ interim boss, who could claim the win over FC Edmonton’s Colin Miller.