Hadji Barry had a successful career at UCF and staying in his virtual home with Orlando City to continue his playing career was something of a dream.
The Lions spent their SuperDraft improving their midfield and surprisingly getting younger in an area that has a tremendous amount of youth and some depth already. If the Lions can hit on both their draft picks, that will make them a much deeper and talented team.
Both Barry and rookie Richie Laryea played well in Orlando City’s 4-0 win over East Florida with Barry scoring two goals to lead the way.
The two rookies’ performances were so impressive it had Sean Rollins of The Mane Land writing this:
It may sound simple, but Orlando City’s (second) first-round draft pick, striker Hadji Barry, plays with a tremendous amount of confidence. On Sunday, albeit against a lesser opponent, Barry was more than willing to take on defenders and create his own shot. The fact that he wasn’t passive and looking for his more professionally experienced teammates is a positive sign for the young striker.
All week, while the Lions were in Melbourne, we heard Adrian Heath praise Richie Laryea as the next Kevin Molino. Based on his performance Sunday afternoon, Heath was right. Like Barry, Laryea played with a lot of confidence against the NSCAA national runners-up. Laryea’s speed and skill with the ball were impressive but what was most notable was the 21-year-old Toronto native’s control in tight situations. With an aging Kakà, have we found the superstar’s eventual replacement?
These are all good signs and good to see the team play so well in its first preseason friendly. But, of course, it is also relatively meaningless.
Eastern Florida State College is not a big university and probably not replete with talent. This was just a warmup game and a courtesy to the hosts. Adrian Heath put in an entirely new team after half time. The Lions just needed to look completely in control (which they did) to come out of this a success. No injuries was nice too.
The results are meaningless. It would be worse to see players look bad rather than look good. No one seemed to do that.
Orlando City though got on the field and scored a win. They got their rookies some playing time and some experience and that is valuable in and of itself.
The competition steps up next weekend with a trip to Jacksonville to face the Armada. That is an actual professional team.
