‘Mingo Funday: The End of 2020

This past week was the final week of the season for Forward Madison. An Omaha win the week before ended their playoff hopes, but that didn’t mean the ‘Mingos were going to go down without a fight. With two games left, both at their home away from home in Wauwatosa, Forward Madison had the chance to go out big.

The first of the two games on the week saw Forward Madison host the defending league Champions, North Texas SC at Hart Park. This was the makeup date for the match originally scheduled for August 30th but postponed due to the Jacob Blake shooting. And for most of the match between the two sides, it had a nil-nil scoreline. However this late foul, that was called inside the box resulted in a penalty kick for North Texas.

After the foul and the penalty was called, North Texas’ Arturo Rodriguez would go to the spot for the pk. And in the 90+9’ he sent a shot into the high left hand side of the net past Madison goalkeeper Chris Brady for the win.

You can view the full highlights of Madison vs North Texas below.

However the season was not over just yet as the Flamingos had one more home clash left. This time on Saturday night against New England Revolution II. The match did not necessarily start in the way Madison or it’s fans were hoping however. Damian Rivera would send a through ball to Justin Rennicks who was able to break out all on his own and slip it past Chris Brady, who ended up having no defensive support.

This is not the way it would end though for the Flamingos. Noah Fuson got the ball inside the box after a series of passes and easily put it past Revs II goalkeeper Keegan Meyer for his first ever professional goal.

This was all at a time where the match looked to be coming to a close with under 10 minutes plus stoppage to play. And three minutes later the Flamingos would sign, seal, and deliver another victory at Hart Park. Jiro Barriga Toyama would send a belter of a shot, that actually would clip the goalkeepers hands before going in, from 25 yards out to score the game winning goal.

A 2-1 win over Revs II capped off Madison’s 2020 season, but possibly not their time at a home away from home.

You can view the full highlights of Madison vs Revolution II below.

Forward Madison FC would finish the 2020 USL League One season with a 5-5-6 record and 21 points, which was good for 7th place in the shortened 16 match season. Orlando City B finished bottom of the table in 11th with a 1-11-3 record and 6 points across 15 matches, OCB and Chattanooga’s 10/10 match was not made up due to fixture congestion.

On the other end of the spectrum Greenville Triumph finished top of the table in the regular season with 35 points on an 11-3-2 record. In second place was expansion side Union Omaha who finished 8-3-5 with 29 points. The Triumph will host the Owls this Friday night at 7PM CT in the 2020 USL League One Final. That match will take place from Greenville’s Legacy Early College Stadium in Greenville, SC. The final will air on ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes as well as radio coverage on SiriusXM FC and can be watched on YouTube by international fans.

Another pretty massive change happened yesterday as well for Forward Madison. The club announced that itself and Technical Director/Head Coach Daryl Shore had mutually parted ways after the expiration of his two year contract.

The full statement released by Forward Madison FC and Coach Shore is below.

Forward Madison FC announced today that the Club has mutually agreed to part ways with Technical Director and Head Coach Daryl Shore. Shore’s contract ran through the end of the 2020 season. FMFC has started an international search and is seeking a diverse candidate pool to find the next leader of their technical staff.

“We would like to thank Daryl for his help in launching Forward Madison,” Forward Madison Chief Operating Officer/ Owner Conor Caloia said. “We will be forever grateful for his time and effort in getting this Club off the ground. Daryl is a true professional and we wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors.”

“Our ownership and our fans have high expectations for this Club,” Caloia said. “We are committed to bringing a USL League One championship to our great fans in Madison and beyond.”

After making the USL League One playoffs in 2019, Forward Madison finished the 2020 campaign in seventh place in the table with a 5-5-6 mark. In two seasons, Shore was 17-14-13 with the Madison side.

“I am grateful to the ownership group for giving me the opportunity to be the first head coach and technical director of Forward Madison FC,” Shore said. “I would like to thank my staff, the players, the front office, and the fans for all of their support during my time with the club. I am proud of the groundwork we laid during these first two seasons to establish a culture and high standards, and I feel good about the direction the club is heading. Lastly, I wish everyone involved the best of luck for many many years to come.”

This will mark Madison’s first ever coaching change as they prepare to enter their third year in existence as a club in 2021. However where they will play and train is unfortunately still up in the air due to COVID-19 restrictions that are in place in Dane County, WI.