On-loan Devon Sandoval, playing for Carolina Railhawks, scored his first and second goals of the season in a 5-4 win Railhawks win over New York Cosmos on Saturday.
The first goal came in the second half after his first touch at the top of the box gave New York a chance to regain possession, but a quick recovery by Sandoval and a smart shot corrected that quickly. The goalkeeper had no chance on the shot.
His second goal came when he made a smart run around a defender then rounded the goalkeeper with a smart touch to the outside before sending a lofted shot into the net.
The goals came in his second and final match on the loan spell, and he'll be returning to the club shortly.
Sandoval created more chances than just the two goals, nearly sliding the ball past an onrushing goalkeeper in the first half, and nearly beating the keeper with a shot that rebounded to former Real Salt Lake player Enzo Martinez, who finished with a smooth tap-in.
It's refreshing to see Devon Sandoval not just scoring, but playing positively and leading the line. He's found minutes hard to come by this season, playing only 60 minutes since the start of August.
Minutes won't be any easier for him to come by now, with Alvaro Saborio returning from injury, Sebastian Jaime arriving from Chile, Joao Plata being essentially unstoppable, and Robbie Findley and Olmes Garcia both battling for minutes, too.
Still, positive performances like this one — especially with that second goal — provide a boost to his long-term hopes with RSL.
Former RSL man Kwame Watson-Siriboe played in the match and scored a pretty spectacular own-goal. Whoops.