Playoff Opponent Preview - Ontario Fury

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE        
Paul Donaghy
469-393-0162
paul@dallassidekicks.org

(ALLEN, TEXAS: March 23, 2021) – The Dallas Sidekicks will face the Ontario Fury in the first round of the 2021 Ron Newman Cup Playoffs in a home-and-home series. Dallas will travel to Ontario California for the first-round game on Wednesday, March 24th before returning to the Allen Event Center on Sunday, March 28th for round two with a 3:00pm local kickoff. The home playoff game will be presented by the North Texas State Soccer Association (NTSSA).

Dallas has not played Ontario this year, the only team participating in the MASL this season that the Sidekicks have not faced. As such, we will do a bit of a deep dive into the Fury to get you ready for the playoffs.

DID YOU KNOW?

• The Fury represent Ontario, not the Province in Canada but a city in southwestern San Bernardino County about 35 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
• The Fury finished with the second-best record in the MASL this season at 7-3. Only Ontario and Florida finished with a winning percentage of 70% or better.
• The Fury only played three true home games this season, the final three of the season, at the Toyota Arena with their other "home" games being played in Florida due to COVID restrictions in California.
• The Fury, other than this COVID-shortened season, have finished with double digits every season since joining the MASL in 2014.
• The Fury first season was in the PASL in 2013-14 and their first game was against the Dallas Sidekicks.
• The Fury have a 1-3 record in the playoffs and this will be their first playoff game since the 2016-17 season.

The Sidekicks last played the Fury in March of 2020 in which Dallas infamously had their gear stolen before the game in Ontario.

The fury are lead by Franck Tayou who in his second season with the Fury (in 2019-20) and was the league's Most Valuable Player, Clutch Player of the Year and Top Star during his first season with the club. In fact, the only MASL awards he didn't win for the 2019-20 season were the three awards he wasn't eligible for in the Goalkeeper of the Year, Defender of the Year and Rookie of the Year. That shows just how dominant he was. Since 2015, Tayou has played for Sonora and Monterrey both based in Mexico along with Ontario this year appearing in 101 regular season game amassing 251 goals and 67 assists. In the playoffs he has 14 goals in 13 games. This season Tayou has 20 points in nine games with 14 goals to go along with six assists and his physical play has him tied for the MASL lead in penalties.

One player Sidekicks fans will be quite familiar with is Nester Hernandez who played two seasons with Dallas. In 2016-17 he had ten points on seven goals and three assists. He returned to the Sidekicks in the 2018-19 season and had 17 points in 21 goals (both tied for career highs) with a career high 11 goals to go along with six assists. He has played the last two seasons with the Fury playing in 31 games with 16 goals and ten goals.

Ontario has the league's top two players in points-per game in Juan Carlos Gonzalez with 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) and Maicon De Abreu with 24 points (14 goals, 10 assists). Goalie Claysson De Lima is stingy between the pipes allowing only 5.17 goals-per-game.

For the away game in Ontario, fans who purchased the MASL Season Pass will have the playoffs included in their package, fans without that package can view every playoff game live and archived with the MASL Playoff Pass. For only $39.99 it lowers the price per game to just $3.33 opposed to the $7.99 single game pricing. You can get the Playoff Pass here – https://www.facebook.com/MASLsoccer/events.

Playoff tickets for March 28th can be reserved on the Sidekicks Ticket Page or by calling the Dallas Sidekicks front office at 469-393-0160.

ABOUT THE DALLAS SIDEKICKS
The Dallas Sidekicks is an American professional indoor soccer team of the Major Arena Soccer League. The organization was established in 1983, is headquartered in Allen, Texas, and plays all home games at the Allen Event Center. Follow the Sidekicks at www.dallassidekicks.com and on their social media.
Facebook: @gosidekicksofficial Twitter: @gosidekicks Instagram: @gosidekicksofficial

ABOUT THE MAJOR ARENA SOCCER LEAGUE
The Major Arena Soccer League represents the highest level of professional arena soccer in the world. The MASL features teams across North America, with teams playing coast-to-coast in the United States and Mexico. The MASL is currently incorporated as a 501(c)6 not for profit corporation formed to promote the business and sport of arena soccer.