PLAYER OF THE WEEK | San Francisco Deltas Forward Tommy Heinemann
San Francisco Deltas forward Tommy Heinemann has been named NASL Player of the Week after scoring twice in his club’s 2-0 win over Puerto Rico FC at Kezar Stadium on Sunday night.
The St. Louis native found the back of the net once in each half to propel the Deltas to victory and pull them within four points of league-leading Miami FC going into the final two weeks of the Spring Season.
Needing three points to stay squarely in the hunt for the Spring Season Championship, the Deltas didn’t waste any time getting on the scoreboard on Sunday night. Heinemann jumped high to meet midfielder Danny Cruz’s cross in the 24th minute, beating a helpless Trevor Spangenberg for the game’s opening goal.
On the other side of halftime, Heinemann used some individual skill to notch his second goal. The 30-year-old forward ran onto a long ball from midfielder Tyler Gibson before taking a touch and curling a beautiful effort over Spangenberg to double San Francisco’s advantage.
Heinemann’s brace was all the Deltas needed to grab the three points, and the result, combined with Miami FC’s loss to North Carolina FC, shrunk the gap between first and second place to just four points. Fittingly, San Francisco and Miami are about to play each other on back-to-back weekends to determine who will get the silverware.
In his first season with San Francisco, Heinemann has lived up to his reputation as a reliable frontman. An imposing figure at 6-foot-4, Heinemann has scored six goals in all competitions this year, including a pair of two-goal games that both won him Player of the Week honors.
Since coming over from Major League Soccer (MLS) in 2014, Heinemann has scored a combined 26 league goals for three different NASL clubs. He made his professional debut in 2009 with the Charleston Battery and went on to play for two different MLS clubs – Columbus Crew and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
The Deltas need a win over Miami on Saturday night to stay in contention for the Spring Season Championship. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET at Riccardo Silva Stadium, and the clash will be featured on beIN SPORTS USA as the league’s national TV game.
