Lion Links
Lion Links: 5/7/16
Welcome again to the Saturday edition of Lion Links. Once again I'll be your host, Logan Oliver, and we'll get you up to speed with what's going on in Orlando soccer news this weekend. We'll dive right into it, you've got links to click
Orlando City Draws with New York Red Bulls
Cards abound again in an Orlando City match and this time Cristian Higuita was the one sent off. Aurelien Collin’s return saw no victors in the newly-christened Camping World Stadium.
- Michael Citro's match recap can be found right here.
- Austin David's player grades and Man of the Match.
- And if you want to read up on what they thought in New York, Once a Metro has that for you.
As always, we'll have our Five Takeaways up later on today plus our photo gallery from the game.
McDonald's Offers Free Breakfast
McDonald's and Orlando City have combined to offer fans free breakfast on home match days. The only qualifiers are that you have to download the McDonald's app and wear City gear and they'll throw a complimentary sausage burrito your way. Luckily, the sausage burrito is a part of their All Day Breakfast menu so you can still sleep in on weekends and grab some free breakfast. Luckily for my mother, the match was yesterday and not tomorrow; otherwise, Mother's Day brunch might have been under the golden arches.
Servando Carrasco Celebrates a Special Mother's Day
Speaking of Mother's Day tomorrow, Orlando's Servando Carrasco has a lot to celebrate. His mother, Gloria, whose birthday is today, has won two separate battles with cancer. The whole family is in Orlando this weekend to catch both the City and Pride games, as well as some time at the theme parks. Take a look at Simon Veness' in-depth look at Gloria's story for a feel-good start to your Mother's Day weekend.
Bendik Wins Again
Joe Bendik took home another Save of the Week title this week as he overwhelmingly won the Week 9 competition for his acrobatic stop to salvage a point at New England. This is Bendik’s second Save of the Week title, the first being his penalty save against Portland. Bendik’s heroics have earned him fans in Orlando but has it earned him a nickname? Tally Hall was affectionately known as Tally Wall. Perhaps big Joe deserves a similar treatment. Let me know what your thoughts are and if you have any suggestions in the comments.
Two Sides of Expansion Stadiums
As Atlanta United and Minnesota United have sewn up stadium plans and look locked in for 2017 start dates, the other two clubs on the docket have been working on plans of their own. But while Los Angeles FC got the go-ahead for groundbreaking this fall, Orlando’s potential Sunshine State rivals in Miami were less fortunate. David Beckham and officials for Miami-Dade are again at odds over a potential Overtown stadium site. With yet another snag in development in Miami, their start date looks murky. There’s little doubt that Don Garber will have his Beckham-led Miami franchise, but when is the key piece to this story.
That's all for today's Lion Links. Hope you all have a pleasant Mother's Day and that y'all can convince your mothers that the Pride game should be a part of the festivities. Oh, and drive safely out to Melbourne for Orlando City B vs. Bethlehem Steel FC tonight.