Sunday’s home opener brought further appreciation of the local fan support in Central Florida to the eyes of Orlando City President Phil Rawlins, Head Coach Adrian Heath and his players.

In Orlando’s 3-1 win over the visiting Rochester Rhinos, the game was delayed nearly two hours due to lightning around the area. A dedicated group of fans stayed to watch the Lions (2-1-0, 6 points) capture their second win of the young regular season after all of the delays ended, catching the eye of many involved with the organization both on and off the pitch.

On Monday, Rawlins announced that fans who weathered the storm Sunday will receive free entry to the match on Tuesday, April 30th, against expansion club VSI Tampa Bay with their ticket stub.

While this won’t happen after every game when bad weather occurs, Rawlins said that rewarding fans for their allegiance is important as the club heads into its third year of USL PRO play and toward Major League Soccer (MLS).

“We certainly won’t be able to do this every time we get a rain delay but I spoke with my fellow owners and some of our front office and we felt it was appropriate as a one-off gesture for our fans,” said Rawlins. “We always knew that we were building something very special here and that we had exceptional support in Orlando, Sunday night was simply a further demonstration of that point, I thought the fans were unbelievable, how they stuck with the team.“

Orlando City Defender and Team Captain Rob Valentino commented on the fan support Sunday, saying he and the rest of the team was appreciative of everyone who came.

“It was awesome to see that many people stayed around, but we understand to those who left the game for the safety of their family and a lot of students had FCAT’s next morning,” Valentino said. “People have to take care of their family first and we love their support. We appreciate that they came in the first place.”

Sporting KC loanee and Midfielder Christian Duke also spoke to Orlandocitysoccer.com about the support, saying, “ It was an awesome atmosphere and even with the rain, City fans are amazing. It was my first time debuting at (Fifth Third Bank Field at the) Citrus Bowl, so it was nice to see a lot of people come out and see us despite the rain.”

Coach Heath wrapped up the team’s thoughts, giving thanks to the fans during his after-practice thoughts on Tuesday at the Seminole Soccer Complex in Sanford, Fla.

“We really appreciate the fact that they (the fans) stayed around,” Heath added. “We’re so thankful, and the only way we repaid them is by winning the game and that’s what we did.”

Photo courtesy: Orlando Sentinel/Jacob Langston