EAMON ZAYED ONLY joined Indy Eleven in December of last year but he’s enjoyed a superb start to his career in the United States.
The club competes in the North American Soccer League (NASL), where the season is split in two: the Spring championship and the Fall championship.
The former is a shorter, 10-game version but the winner is confirmed a place in the play-offs that take place in November, regardless of how they fare in the longer, more intense Fall campaign that gets underway next month.
Last night, Zayed’s side – captained by Corkman Colin Falvey, had certain requirements for their clash with the Carolina Railhawks.
To take control of the table, they had to score four times and win by three.
And they followed the script to perfection in front of a 9,000-strong crowd – largely thanks to Zayed.
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He grabbed the opener right on the 15-minute mark, expertly sending a diving header to the far corner.
And despite the Railhawks (managed by legendary former Northern Ireland striker Colin Clarke) equalising close to the half-hour, Indy regained the lead in first-half injury time courtesy of Justin Braun.
Zayed grabbed a second midway through the second period with another excellent header.
With time ticking away and his side needing another, Zayed slid in at the far post to claim his hat-trick and give Indy the crucial 4-1 victory.
It was Zayed’s sixth of the campaign – a tally that sees him top the NASL scoring charts.
He’s also the first Indy Eleven player to score a hat-trick in league play though the side only debuted in the NASL two years ago.
It’s been an impressive season for the franchise so far – going unbeaten in their 10 games.
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