2nd Half:...half starts 9:20pm.
Halftime subs:...HT Simpson replaces Cardenas...HT O'Connor replaces DeSerpa...HT Curic replaces Crnic.
................Lions Clark replaces Fitzwilliams.
48 min...HT Simpson pushes past two defenders but sliding goalie grabs loose ball.
49 min...Lions Dorneval 30 yard from middle is well over net.
52 min...Lions Janjkek 30 yard shot saved by goalie on left post.
53 min...Lions Gomez low 20 yard shot smothered by goalie.
54 min...HT Markovic sliding tackle on Lions Janjkek on sideline injurying him.
57 min...HT Simpson gets forward pass and 15 yard shot is over net.
57 min...Lions goalie beats HT Simpson to through ball.
61 min...HT goalie catches 40 yard shot into box.
62 min...Lions Gomez 25 yard shot from right is over net.
64 min...HT Simpson kicks away ball after whistle but referee makes no call.
64 min...Lions goalie slides out into crowd to grab loose ball ahead of HT Simpson.
65 min...Lions Vignjevic slides through ball up middle and defender boots ball behind end line for cornerkick.
67 min...Lions players cornerkick is stopped and HT O'Connor is sent on fast break on right. Lions goalie palms cross across box and HT Simpson boots 10 yard shot off crossbar.
68 min...HT Simpson eludes defender but 15 yard roller from right smothered by goalie.
71 min...HT DeLuca gets ball tapped back to him and 25 yard shot is blasted well over net.
72 min...Lions Vignjevic cornerkick from left is blocked in crowd of players.
73 min...Lions Salustius freekick from 22 yards is lofted over net.
76 min...HT sub...Busic replaces DeLuca...DeLuca then ran around the field uprooting cornerflag and runs towards crowd where he's restrained by HT fans.
78 min...HT Busic rushes into Lions box and is pulled down but no call is made.
80 min...Lions YELLOW card...Mason for crashing into HT O'Connor injuring both players just outside Lions box.
82 min...HT Curic 27 yard shot from right is blasted into Lions three man wall.
83 min...HT Mova concedes cornerkick on pass into HT box.
84 min...Lions player's cornerkick from right is headed down by defender. Lions (same) player takes cross from right that leaping goalie palms over goalmouth.
86 min...Lions goalie flies to push ball to defender on right to start breakout.
88 min...HT Curic 12 yard shot knocked down by goalie, HT Simpson kicks ball into sliding goalie then boots shot from 5 yards into outside left webbing of net.
88 min...HT sub...Marquez replaces Velastegui.
91 min...Lions goalie catches cross from left line.
92 min...HT YELLOW card...Markovic for challenge in HT end.
93 min...HT sub...Leggett replaces Simpson.
94 min...game ends 10:09pm.
Final Score:.............Metro Lions..............0.............Hamilton Thunder..............1..........
Attendance was about 40 on this cool night with the temperature falling. I didn't regret wearing my parka. Most of the fans were travelling Thunder supporters. There was some kind of disturbance in the stands in the second half and when five minutes later Thunder player Sergio DeLuca was subbed at the 76 minute mark he ran around the field, uprooting a corner flag and made his way around the running track and looked like he was going to chase up into the stands but was held back by a Thunder supporter.
Thunder goalie Roberto Ferrari earned the shutout again without having much to do. He was called for catching the ball outside the box; his feet were in but his arms were over the line resulting in a freekick (I didn't know about that rule).The four defenders kept the Lions mostly outside the box. I could hear him plead for another man in the wall for a freekick. I guess five wasn't enough! However that's now the fourth game I've seen Thunder play and Ferrari's got a shutout each time.
The Lions only had two subs tonight. It seems to be hard for the teams not fighting for a post season spot to get a full roster together. I watched a game with Durham Flames, then London City like that on the weekend. You know some of the players are going to get tired near the end of the game but they just have to soldier on. Toronto Lynx player Nikki Vignjevic often would play only half the game this season in the A-League but here he was threading passes to Lions players for the full game. He, goalie Gregory Drakes, and midfielder Marko Janjkek looked the best for the Lions.
Thunder player Kevin DeSerpa played only the first half but looked good putting cornerkicks and crosses into the box. Dave Simpson played the second half and although having great speed he was frequently called offside and needs to practice shooting against a smaller barn door.
Referee Yakov Keimakh and the close scoreline kept this rough tackling game from getting out of hand.
Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
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