June 13, 2008 CSL Toronto Croatia vs Trois-Rivieres Attak (by Rocket Robin)

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Result of the Friday June 13, 2008 CSL game between Toronto Croatia and Trois-Rivieres Attak played at The Hershey Centre in Mississauga at 8:00pm.

Toronto Croatia (blue socks, white shorts and numbers, red shirts)

.........................1 Roy Blanche
23 Marko Bendinikovic...30 Tom Granic...14 Sven Arapovic...6 Mario Kulis
19 Zane O'Brien...5 Jonatan Bustamante...11 Mario Pupic...8 Hayden Fitzwilliam
.................9 Hugo Herrera...10 Tihomir Maletic

Subs:...12 Mark Culjak (gk)...2 Kevein Correa...3 Ante Brkic...15 Mario Beljo...16 Halburto Harris...17 Nikica Pavic...22 Daniel Grbac
team officials:...head coach Miroslav Buljan...manager Tom Granic...trainer/physio Ivan Kulis and Pino Jazbec

Trois-Rivieres Attak (navy socks, skyblue shorts, navy & skyblue checkered shirts, white names and numbers and sleeves)

..........................1 Andrew Olivieri (cpt)
16 Olivier Brett...4 Michel Vitulano...23 Elkana Mayard...5 Francois Boivin
8 Jean Louis Besse...21 Davy Uwimana...10 Hector Contreras...6 Jean Philippe Etienne
..................19 Alpha Bah...12 Nicolas Moussavou

Subs:...13 Gildas Toufilana (gk)...3 Rodrigo Arce (def)...9 Mohammed Sylla (mid)...11 Kirk Hearn (def)...18 Gonzalo Paredes (mid)
team officials:...head coach marc Dos Santos...assistant coach Youssef Dahha...trainer/physio Marta Dos Santos

Game officials:...referee Vito Curalli...referee's assistants Emanok Ghergher and Matt Arduini...fourth official Jae Myun Lee...(yellow shirts, black shorts and numbers)

1st Half:...game starts 8:12pm...TC defend south end on this warm, humid and overcast evening. As there is no scoreboard, all times are converted from my wristwatch.
2 min...TRA Contreras 30 yard freekick down middle has TRA player on left post hit defender and goalie picks up ball.
3 min...TRA Besse injured in TC box and helped off field past end line.
9 min...TRA Uwimana gets cross from right and blasts kick well high and wide right of net from 20 yards.
12 min...TRA players work out cornerkick from right but TC defender prevent cross into box.
15 min...TFA Contreras pushes ball ahead up middle from 30 yards and TRA Moussavou kicks 15 yarder that flying goalie stops at 8 yards and then covers rebound.
16 min...TRA Moussavou scissor kick from 15 yards is saved by goalie.
18 min...TRA Moussavou finishes pressure with flying 12 yard header pushed wide by diving goalie on right post.
19 min...TC Bendinikovic cross from right end line (which is TC team's first pressure of the game) has TC Bustamante chip 18 yarder that goalie catches on left post.
20 min...TRA Bah cross from left has defender head ball away in box.
21 min...TRA Brett 30yard freekick from right has defender head ball over fence.
22 min...TRA player's cornerkick from right has defender ball away.
23 min...TC Fitzwilliam cross on rush down left bounces through TRA box unplayed.
25 min...TC Granic conceds cornerkick on cross from right.
26 min...TRA Contreras recross of cornerkick from right is over players in box.
27 min...TRA Uwimana up middle curls in 25 yard shot into outside left webbing of net.
28 min...TC Pupic 30 yard freekick from left hits left goalpost over diving goalie and ball is cleared.
30 min...TRA player's 40 yard freekick from right sideline has leaping TRA Etienne heads ball well over bar from 12 yards.
32 min...TRA Contreras cornerkick from left has TRA Etienne head ball over net from 15 yards.
35 min...TRA Uwimana 40 yard blast up middle is well over net.
37 min...TRA Moussavou rush to pass on left and 12 yard shot is blocked on left post and goalie picks up ball.
41 min...TRA Besse injured at TC 40 yards and wins freekick.
42 min...TRA Etienne 30 yard blast down center is well over net.
43 min...TC ogalie punches out ball before TRA Moussavou can head ball from 10 yards.
44 min...TRA Besse rush through middle and his 20 yard shot is over net.
46 min...half ends 8:58pm.

2nd Half:...starts 9:16pm...there is lightning in the west and dark clouds there.
halftime sub:...TC Harris replaces Bendinikovic.
46 min...TRA Bah 20 yard kick from left is rolled wide left of net.
47 min...TC Fitzwilliam run on left has low cross blocked by defender who concedes cornerkick.
48 min...TC Pupic cornerkick from left has goalie punch ball forward.
51 min...TRA Moussavou 12 yard shot has goalie stop.
52 min...TC Herrera eludes defenders to blast 10 yard shot that goalie stops point blank. The rebound deflects off TC Maletic's foot and over net.
57 min...TC Harris makes check and his quick 25 yard shot is wide right.
59 min...TC Granic gets in poke check on TRA Besse on edge of box.
61 min...TRA YELLOW card...someone gets this for the tackle on TC Maletic which injures him.
62 min...TRA sub...Sylla replaces Bah.
There is now a few drops of rain.
63 min...TC Herrera bends 22 yard freekick over player wall and goalie sprawls to block and pick up rebound.
65 min...TC player's 20yard shot from right is well over net.
66 min...TC sub...Brkic replaces Granic.
Now a harder rain falls.
68 min...TRA Besse rush on rush on left rolls cross through box just a step ahead of TRA Moussavou charing in.
70 min...Lightning overhead causes the referee to stop the game at 9:41pm because of fear for the people in the aluminum stands.

Final Score:……Toronto Croatia……0……..Trois-Rivieres Attak……..0……… (game called at 70 minutes)

Attendance was about 100 on this mild, humid, overcast evening.

Referee Vito Curalli suspended the game at 70 minutes because of lightning closing in upon the area. It had started to rain very hard just a few minutes early but lightning was enough to call the game as the portable stands are made out of aluminum. After 20 minutes with players and fans hiding in the dressing room, hallways and bathrooms, the game was called off. Curalli told me it’s up to the league to decide how they’ll treat this game (replay, tie in the standings, etc).

The rain and lightning continued after the game was called and the field was flooded even though it was a field turf. The storm followed me as I drove home but I found on television that the USL Vancouver at Rochester game was rain delayed before it began and never was played.

Roy Blanche was the goalie for Toronto Croatia and had by far the more spectacular saves to keep a shutout. The Attak stormed out fast and kept most of the action in the Croatia end 18 minutes. At 15 minutes, Attak’s Hector Contreras pushed a ball ahead up the middle from 30 yards and Nicholas Moussavou kicked a 15 yarder shot that Blanche flew over and stopped at 8 yards and covered to prevent a rebound. A minute later Blanche stopped Moussavou’s 15 yard scissor kick. Two minutes later after great Attak pressure, Moussavou’s diving header was pushed wide of the net by a diving Blanche on the right post.

Andrew Olivieri earned the shutout for the Attak. He wasn’t tested until the 19th minute when Marko Bendinikovic crossed from the right end line and Jonatan Bustamante chipped a shot from 18 yards that the goalie caught on the left post.

More chances for both teams occurred at 27 minutes when Attak’s Davy Uwimana from up the middle curled a 25 yard shot into the outside left webbing of the net. Croatia’s Mario Pupic had the closest chance of the game when his 30 yard freekick from the left hit the left goalpost over the diving goalie and the ball was cleared. Two minutes later an Attak 40 yard freekick from the right sideline had a leaping Jean Philippe Etienne head the ball well over the bar from 12 yards. He followed that up two minutes later when he headed Hector Contreras’s cornerkick over the net from 15 yards.

The second half started with lightning getting closer, Croatia looked a lot better. At 52 minutes, Hugo Herrera eluded defenders to blast a 10 yard shot that the goalie stopped point blank and the rebound deflected off TC Tihomir Maletic’s foot and over the net. At 63 minutes, Herrera bends a 22 yard freekick over the player wall and the goalie sprawled to block the shot and pick up the rebound. Last chance and in the rain, Attak’s Jean Louis Besse rushed along the left and rolled a cross through the TC box just steps ahead of a charging Nicolas Moussavou.

At least the rain and lightning drove the mosquitoes away from the swamp not far away. A hard rain makes taking notes about impossible.

There was no tribute to Brian Budd who died the day before. His obit photo showed him playing with Toronto Metros-Croatia back in May 1978. I don’t think there was anyone there who goes back to the team that far. I wore a Toronto Blizzard t-shirt but even that was vintage 1993 APSL days. He was an early encourager of my web page when I met him in a pub some years ago. Although my pages are falling behind as I argue with my service provider about replacing my broken modem, I know I’ll pull it around.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca

Attak starters

Toronto Croatia starters

Attak goalie Andrew Olivieri looks upfield before making clearance.

Attak players ready to cross center line.

Attak's #19 Alpha Bah races for this pass.

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