The Mane Land Monthly Awards: October 2018

October has come and gone ladies and gentlemen, and while the month did see Orlando City pick up its first win after being unable to do so 14 times prior, the team still struggled overall. But, the season is now over which means we can all rest our weary souls and try to prepare ourselves for next season. Before we do that though, let’s recap the final month of the season and pick out the bright performer, goal, and save from October.

Goal of the Month: Dom Dwyer vs. Seattle Sounders
While Yoshi’s panenka penalty against the Columbus Crew was also in the mix for this one, Dom’s goal against Seattle has the edge. For starters it was simply a very well worked goal. The passes in the buildup to it are delightful. Chris Mueller split two defenders to find Scott Sutter, who in turn one-timed a whipped cross in to Dwyer to finish. While it wasn’t the most difficult chance that Dom’s ever converted, it was the buildup that made the goal so sweet. Plus it made the score 2-1 and got Orlando back into the game. While the Lions weren’t able to go on and get a result, they came close to leveling the score on several occasions. All in all, it was a very deserving goal of the month.

Save of the Month: Adam Grinwis vs. New York Red Bulls
This one was unanimous. In the 15th minute of last Sunday’s game against the New York Red Bulls, the opposition was awarded a penalty kick with Derrick Etienne stepping up to take it. Grinwis dove away low to his right while Etienne put the ball right down the middle. It didn’t cost him though, because he stretched out his legs to kick the shot away. The save was made even more impressive because not only did he keep the ball out of the net, but he actually sent it all the way out of the 18-yard box and well away from danger. The save even started a break the other way, and while it didn’t end up coming to anything, it really was a spectacular save.

Player of the Month: Adam Grinwis
Orlando’s new ginger hero cleans up on the awards circuit this month. Once again, it was a unanimous decision to give Adam this award. Even though Orlando’s record doesn’t necessarily reflect it, Grinwis had a great October. He started in four of the team’s five games and while he gave up six goals, he was largely helpless on many of them. More importantly he looked calm and assured with the ball at his feet, smart with his positioning, and often did well in knowing when to come off his line and when to stay put. For the most part, he looked confident and assured, and was the team’s most consistent performer across the month. Well done, Adam.

That’ll do it for this year’s monthly awards. We’ll be back with the first of next season’s monthly editions before you know it though, so keep an eye out. Have a great day y’all!