Powered By Blogger

Search This Blog

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

2014 ONTARIO LEAGUE 1: Vaughan Azzurri 3 - Toronto FC Academy 4


 


It was an exciting back-and-forth contest that kept approx 300 fans that braved the rainy weather engaged from start to finish
From the opening kick-off, TFCA looked to build from the back and attack, while Vaughan appeared content to play a counter game. In the initial going it proved to be an effective strategy for the Azzurri.
After TFCA had enjoyed almost all the ball for the first eight minutes a seemingly harmless play down the right flank was pounced on by Andrea Lombardo.
The big forward used his size advantage to perfection, overwhelming the TFCA fullback and sending a perfect cross into former TFCA product Jonathan Lao. He would make no mistake against his former club, hammering the ball into the waiting net for a 1-0 Vaughan lead in the ninth minute.
Eleven minutes later Lombardo was at it again. Another soft pass was pounced on for the turnover. Sending a looping cross towards the left side if the eighteen, Lombardo picked out a streaking Dena Iezady who finished off a single touch.
With only two real chances, Vaughan had charged ahead 2-0 in twenty minutes and TFCA's undefeated 6-3-0 record was in jeopardy.
However, head coach Michael Stefano stressed that his young players never panicked.
"These are young professionals," he said following the game. "Sometimes you have a slow start and you have to know how to react in a positive way.
"We never got away from our game plan... we play the way we know how to play."
The way TFCA knows to play is by playing from the back and utilizing the skill of the central midfielders to create space, and send crisp passes to space.
That's exactly what happened in the thirty-third minute. Marco Rodriquez perfectly weighted a pass to Marcos Anthony Nunes, who made a perfect run behind the left full back. From there Nunes held composure to force the keeper to ground and finished in the open net.
It was 2-1 and the comeback was on.
Three minutes later it was complete. This time it was Mark Anthony Kaye that worked the midfield magic, looping a skilled thirty-yard pass to the feet of a charging Nunes. In alone, he made no mistake and the game was tied.
It would be one of the goals of the year that would give TFCA the lead. With both teams seemingly looking to get to the break on even terms, Dylan Sacramento looped a ball towards the Vaughan back line. It appeared to be an easy clearance for the defender, but suddenly league leading scorer Molham Babouli found another gear. With a burst of speed no-one in the stadium could anticipate, he managed to he get his head to the ball and perfectly lob the helpless goalkeeper.
Even the Vaughan fans had to applaud this fantastic piece of skill that put TFCA up 3-2 heading into the break.
Just four minutes into the re-start TFCA got the insurance goal. Sacramento went on a thirty-yard run to the touch line, and was able to direct an unopposed pass to Nunes, who fired home for his hat-trick. It was a great finish, but once again it was the midfield that was the driving force for the Young Reds.
From there the game became cagey with TFCA happy to use possession to kill the clock. A breakdown in the seventy-fourth minute gave Vaughan a free kick on the edge of the box. Lao would convert on the ensuing scramble to make it 4-3, but that was as close as it would get.
The game's last fifteen minutes were a chippy affair, with several cards flashed. Included in that discipline count was Vaughan head coach Carmine Isacco, who was shown red for arguing with the referee.


Durham United FC 4 - Windsor Stars 2

Tue Jul 22
Written By: Kelly, Tim
Le Rohne Young struck for three goals in eleven minutes to pace Durham United to a 4-2 home-field victory over Windsor Stars in League1 play on Sunday afternoon.
Young, who had half-a-dozen chances to score got going early in the second half after the teams played to a largely uneventful and scoreless first half at Kinsmen Park in Pickering.
But the goals came early and often after half time.
The tall, lanky striker, hit the net in the forty-eighth minute behind Windsor keeper Anthony Santilli. Ciprian Codea came back with a header to get one past Ben Cowman in Durham's goal just four minutes later.
The goal that would keep Durham in front for good was scored by Young off a sweet volley that kissed the post as it found the twine in the fifty-fourth minute.
And Young capped his afternoon and a blazing hot streak by slotting home an easy pass from teammate Colin Francis in the fifty-ninth minute to make 3-1 giving him a hat-trick in just eleven minutes.
After the game, Young admitted his teammates had given him some stick in the dressing room at the half over having missed a few chances in the opening half, but said he was determined to make up for it in the second forty-five minutes.
"I think I started off slow, but when I got my head in the game, I got a couple and it feels great. My teammates gave me a little criticism but also said keep your head and go hard and that's exactly what I did. With a little perseverance and determination, we came out with the win," Young said.
Windsor were actually granted a pair of penalty kicks by the ref on two yellow cards to Durham players, Nicholas Goddard and Le-Shaun Young, and went one for two from twelve yards. Cristian Dragoi of the Stars shot over the bar in the thirteenth minute, while Gino Berardi converted in the sixty-fifth minute to make the score 3-2.
Also yellow carded for Durham were Hameez Farell (thirty-eigth) and Tristan Grant (forty-sixth).
In added time in the second half, and with Windsor desperately pressing for the equalizer, Jordan Hargrave blasted a long ball from the halfway line into an empty goal to make the final 4-2.
A very disappointed Windsor coach, Stefano Vagnini, didn't hide his feelings after the game, as his team fell to four wins, two draws and two losses for fourteen points.
"When you're flat it's really hard to get out of. It's a shame, it's an absolute embarrassment the way we walked on to this field and off this field and the score proves it.
"I think we got what we deserved, we were arguing, it was just an all-around let down. Since I've been with the Stars, this is probably the worst showing since I've seen these guys come on the field," he said.
For Durham coach Tony La Ferrara, who saw his club win its second game of the season to go with three draws and three defeats for nine points, the result was "fantastic."
"We play well all the time, we don't play bad games. We were saying to the boys, there is only one game that we were totally out of it. We're coming along slowly, we had some injuries but now we're getting everybody back."
Durham's next match is at Kinsmen Park vs. Kingston Clippers on Friday at 8:30 p.m. Windsor head to the Hershey Centre for a clash with Sigma FC on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Tue Jul 22
Written By: Rollins, Duane

No comments: