Chris Brady is making the most of his time at Forward Madison

When Chicago Fire Homegrown goalkeeper Chris Brady first got to Forward Madison on loan back in July, he wasn’t seeing the field. Like all ‘keepers, he knew he’d have to bide his time, and wait for his chance to play for the USL League One side. And when Brady finally got his shot, he made the most of it, taking over as the team’s starter.

Brady, 16, made his seventh start for the ‘Mingos Wednesday night, keeping a clean sheet until the 95th minute, when North Texas was awarded a controversial penalty in the final seconds of the match. Brady couldn’t come up with a stop, and Forward Madison lost the match 1-0.

“Overall, I think it was how hard we fought, and for something like that to happen, just sucks,” Brady said after the match. “We really wanted to get three points today and hopefully three points Saturday (in the season finale), but it just sucks ‘cause we put everything forward, and for it to end like that is unfortunate.”

Forward Madison FC

After seven starts, Brady has clearly earned the trust of Forward head coach (and former Fire assistant) Daryl Shore, who praised his teenage ‘keeper after the match.

“Defensively we were solid,” Shore said. “Chris made a good save in the second half, on a ball that got through.”

The late penalty cost Brady what would have been his fourth clean sheet of the season. Heading into the match, he had tallied 12 saves in his first six starts, and last night was yet another solid performance.

“Throughout the whole game the main goal defensively was communication, keeping the boys in front of me, compact, organized, making sure they’re in the right spots to make good plays, and I think we did that,” Brady said. “(In the) Second half yeah, they put us under more pressure, but we dealt with it well. It just comes back to that it’s just unfortunate (to lose late).”

Fellow Fire loanees Alex Monis and Allan Rodriguez didn’t play in the match. Monis has played six times for Forward Madison, including one start, but hasn’t played lately after picking up an ankle injury in training. As for Rodriguez, he has one start in his lone appearance for the club this season.

Forward Madison has already been eliminated from playoff contention. The ‘Mingos host their season finale on Saturday at 7 p.m. against New England Revolution II at Hart Park in Wauwatosa, WI.