Result of the Wednesday September 12th, 2007 game between the Men's teams of Canada and Costa Rica played at BMO Field in Toronto at 7:00pm. This was an International Friendly match.

Canada (all red, white numbers and trim, black trim)

..........................1 Lars Hirschfeld
7 Paul Stalteri (cpt)...4 Adrian Serioux...5 Andre Hainault...11 Jim Brennan
8 Patrice Bernier...6 Julian De Guzman...13 Atiba Hutchinson...14 Dwayne De Rosario
.................9 Tomasz Radzinski...10 Ali Gerba

Subs:...22 Kenny Stamatopoulos (gk)...2 Daniel Imhof (def)...16 Rob Friend (fwd).....12 Issey Nakajima-Farran (mid)...15 Olivier Occean (fwd)...17 Iain Hume (mid/fwd)...18 Chris Pozniak (def/mid)
team officials:...head coach Dale Mitchell...assistant coaches Nick Dasovic and Stephen Hart

Costa Rica (all white, blue numbers, red trim)

.........................18 Jose Francisco Porras (cpt)
17 Gabriel Badilla...14 Randal Azofeifa...3 Victor Cordero...20 Gonzalo Segares...15 Junior Diaz
......................12 Roy Myrie...10 Walter Centeno...22 Bryan Ruiz
..................................8 Oscar Rojas...21 Victor Nunez

Subs:...1 Wardy Alfaro (gk)...4 Willy Eras (mid)...5 Marvin Angulo (mid)...6 Danny Fonseca (fwd)...7 Allan Aleman (fwd)...11 Ronald Gomez (fwd)...16 Pablo Herrera (def)...19 Alvaro Saborio (fwd)
team officials:...head coach Hernan Medford Bryan...assistant coach Oscar Ramirez

Game officials:...referee Jair Marrufo...referee's assistants Corey Rockwell and Kermit Quisenberry...fourth official Steve Depiero

1st Half:...game starts 7:09pm...Canada defends north end on this mild, overcast evening.
2 min...CR Centeno 30 yard freekick up middle has retreating Can Stalteri head ball behind line for cornerkick.
2 min...CR Centeno cornerkick from left is headed away.
3 min...CR Ruiz 40 yard cross from left is caught by goalie.
4 min...Can Hutchinson on rush overruns ball just as he's getting ready to run into box.
6 min...Can DeRosario cross from 20 yards on left has Can Gerba twist header over bar from 12 yards.
9 min...CR Rojas can't draw freekick at Can 30 yards on rusn and Can players start counterattack.
9 min...Can Gerba drags ball over diving goalie and initially it looked like cornerkick was awarded. Goalie then tosses ball which had deflected off end board back to him and falls injured.
11 min...Play finally resumes with defender taking goal kick for injured goalie.
12 min...CR goalie dives wide right to stop defender's headed backpass.
13 min...Can DeGuzman steadies and blasts 25 yard shot over net.
14 min...Can Gerba has pass to him blocked by defender on edge of CR box to prevent him from getting ball in open.
15 min...Can Stalteri muscled off ball by CR Rojas on left crosses who but Can defenders prevent shot at 22 yards.
16 min...Can Hutchinson pass is blocked in CR box.
16 min...Can Bernier cornerkick from left is blocked and cleared by closest defender.
17 min...Can DeGuzman 30 yard shot up middle is blasted over players and over net.
19 min...Can Radzinski cross low from right through legs of Can Bernier deliberately and second Can DeRosario has shot blocked at CR 22 yards.
20 min...CR YELLOW card...Badilla for trip on Can DeRosario at CR 22 yards.
21 min...Can DeRosario 25 yard freekick is blasted over net.
23 min...Can goalie charges to 30 yards to clear through ball.
25 min...Can Radzinski rolls ball to Can Gerba on edge of CR box from right but defender blocks before pass gets to him..
28 min...Can DeGuzman pushes ball too far ahead and over end line wide left when he gets short pass from left.
30 min...CR Centeno injured near center line by getting short clearing kick in stomach.
31 min...CR Diaz heads ball back to goalie to prevent Can Radzinski getting break in alone.
32 min...CR YELLOW card...Azofeifa for trip on Can Hutchinson running at CR 50 yards.
34 min...Can DeRosario cross from 15 yards on left end line caught by goalie.
35 min...CR Diaz cross from 30 yards on left has defender on right edge of box head away.
37 min...CR Ruiz 25 yard freekick from right is headed across box from left but ruled already over end line.
38 min...Can DeRosario cross from 20 yards on left has goalie fly and punch ball out of box forward.
39 min...CR Nunez injured at Can 40 yards in collision with Can Serioux.
41 min...Can Hainault steps in to break up pass play with kick back to goalie who clears.
43 min...Can DeRosario whistled down for leaping off CR Badilla to get header on left edge of box.
44 min...CR player steps to edge of box to stop bouncing through ball.
46 min...Can Radzinski on right rolls pass to Can Hutchinson whose 15 yard shot from right has diving goalie catch. Can Hutchinson limps and leans on goalpost after play.
47 min...half ends 7:56pm.

Halftime entertainment. The Freestylers show off some soccer dribbling stunts. Reserve Can player Chris Pozniak hugs some of the players afterward as they're mostly fellow Toronto area guys.

2nd Half:...starts 8:12pm.
halftime sub:...Can Imhof replaces Can Hutchinson.
45 min...Can Gerba rush up middle when he intercepts defender's pass and his low blast from 18 yards has goalie palm ball over net.
46 min...Can Brennan has cornerkick from right headed away by nearest player CR Ruiz and eventually Can Imhof gives shot pass to Can Brennan whose 18 yard shot from right is stopped by diving goalie.
47 min...Costa Rico Victor Nunez GOAL...CR player on left at center line chips pass downfield over defenders for charging Nunez who takes low shot on break from 15 yards from left is to low right of net beyond sprawling goalie Lars Hirschfeld.
49 min...Costa Rica RED card...Randal Azofeifa picked up his second Yellow card of the game for trip on Can Radzinski at center line and is ejected by referee Jair Marrufo.
51 min...CR Centeno blasts low 25 yard shot wide left after CR Segares pushed him pass as he tripped up.
53 min...Canada Dwayne DeRosario GOAL...Can Julian DeGuzman crossed pass from 40 yards from right over a defender and DeRosario on left inside box chests down and lets fly 15 yard blast into short top left corner of net beyond reach of goalie Jose Francisco Porras.
56 min...Can Hainault heads ball back to charging goalie which is almost broken up by CR Ruiz.
56 min...Can sub...Hume replaces Radzinski.
...............CR sub...Gomez replaces Rojas.
...............CR sub...Fonseca replaces Badilla.
57 min...Can Stalteri rush on right has cross deflected for cornerkick.
58 min...Can Brennan cornerkick from right has goalie charge, leap and punch out clearance.
60 min...Can sub...Friend replaces Gerba.
62 min...CR Centeno 30 yard freekick from right side line has whistle blown in box.
64 min...Can Hume gets ball rush down middle but he pushed ball too far ahead and a defender broke up play.
66 min...CR Centeno breaks up pass in CR box while upfield, CR Nunez is injured while still at Can 30 yard line. He had to reenter the game after restart.
69 min...CR Ruiz 25 yard shot deflects for cornerkick but ruled a goalkick. A Can defender's pass got the CR team a 2 on 1 break at Can 30 yard line.
71 min...Can Brennan 40 yard freekick from right has Can players not able to get away shot on edge of box.
71 min...Can Serioux slides to check CR Nunez on break on left wing.
72 min...CR Centeno cornerkick from left is caught by goalie in crowd of players.
73 min...Can sub...Occean replaces Hainault.
73 min...CR Diaz charges on rush on left and 30 yard shot is sailed well over net.
75 min...Can Friend rush to left on edge of box and cuts roller wide right under diving goalie.
77 min...Can Brennan chips pass to Can DeRosario at left cornerflag and he crosses and has Can Friend pop 10 yard header onto top of net.
80 min...Can Hume floored but can't draw freekick.
81 min...Can YELLOW card...Serioux for knocking down CR Nunez away from play 'injurying' him.
83 min...CR sub...Aleman replaces Ruiz.
...............CR sub...Saborio replaces Nunez.
84 min...CR Gomez 35 yard freekick is low and into two man wall.
85 min...Can Friend low 7 yard shot is poked by defender wide right.
86 min...Can cornerkick has closest defender kick away.
86 min...CR Myrie low throw-in from right has defender head ball away.
87 min...CR Segares steps in front of Can Occean conceding cornerkick from preventing direct shot.
88 min...Can Bernier cornerkick from left is cleared.
89 min...Can DeGuzman shanks 20 yard shot on short pass from left.
91 min...CR Gomez receives long pass down right and he crosses over players in box.
91 min...Can Bernier cornerkick from left is cleared right for throw-in.
92 min...CR sub...Eras repalces Centeno.
92 min...Can Serioux long throw-in from right 35 yard sideline has CR player head away.
93 min...Can Stalteri in crowd chips from right from 18 yards over players wide left.
94 min...Can Friend pushed over at CR 30 yards. A freekick is given up the middle. A pushing incident ensures.
96 min...The referee calls the game before the freekick was taken.
96 min...game ends 9:03pm.

Final Score:................Canada............1..................Costa Rica..................1...................

Attendance was announced as 9325 on this mild, overcast evening. The stadium was less than half full. The hard core supporters filled the endzone but Costa Rican fans sat in the more expensive seats at near the center line. It has been seven long years since Toronto hosted a National Men's team match. A crowd like this should take away an argument that Toronto deserves these international games. We have visiting fans buy many of the good seats and support their team. Just like the old Varsity Stadium days when Canada's men's team was outcheered by whoever was visiting. In our city's defence, tickets were not available until last month despite digging from some of the message board members who kept being stalled for answers about when tickets would be for sale. Message boards had encouraged Canadian fans to wear black to protest the CSA bureaucracy but at least wanted people to go to the game.

I watched the game from the press box even through I had a 6th row ticket. The box is much further away so the action is smaller than I'm used to but I got a chance to attend the post game press conference with comments by each coach which I'll post in a separate post/page.

Canada dominated the first half outshooting Costa Rica 7-0. The first visitor's shot on net was their goal near the start of the second half. Without having time to digest what to do next, Costa Rica were reduced to ten men for a second yellow card to Randal Azofeifa. Soon the Canadian's had tied the game. After that though the Canadians couldn't get the winner. The visitors were guilty of time wasting for faking injuries and taking their time leaving the field when substituted. The last play took almost three minutes to not happen as they stalled a freekick long enough for the referee to end the game. This would certainly be an understandable strategy to leave the country with a result when forced to play shorthanded. Costa Rica are ranked 52nd in the world by FIFA and Canada is 53rd. Costa Rica has made the last two World Cups and Canada had a good showing at the recent Gold Cup, including beating Costa Rica, to move up from just below 100th.

It is likely that these two teams will meet somewhere along the way in qualifying for the World Cup in 2010. Canada must ensure that they win their home games. They cannot rely on getting such unbiased officiating once the real games start. Based on the poor performance of Canada's Under 20 team, this squad for now is as good as Canada is going to get for the near future.

Man of the Match for Costa Rica was announced as Junior Diaz and for Canada it was Dwayne DeRosario. Before the game DeRosario was given a trophy for being the CSA player of the year. Julian DeGuzman was also given a pregame trophy for being the MVP of the 2007 Gold Cup.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca

Canada's starters

Costa Rican starters

Dwayne DeRosario is presented with a trophy for being the Canadian Player of the Year.

Captains Paul Stalteri and Jose Francsco Porras before the game deciding who gets their choice of ends.

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