May 18, 2013 MLS--Toronto FC vs Columbus Crew (by Rocket Robin)

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Result of the Saturday May 18th, 2013 MLS game between Toronto FC and Columbus Crew played at BMO Field in Toronto at 2:00pm.

Toronto FC (all red, white names and numbers)

............................12 Joseph Bendik
33 Ryan Richter...13 Steven Caldwell...4 Doneil Henry...48 Darren O'Dea (cpt)
11 Luis Silva...25 Jeremy Hall...20 Matias Laba...19 Reggie Lambe
............17 Justin Braun...10 Robert Earnshaw

Subs:...24 Stefan Frei (gk)...3 Danny Califf (def)...5 Ashtone Morgan (def)...7 John Bostock (mid)...15 Bobby Convey (mid)
...21 Jonathan Osorio (mid)...22 Jeremy Brockie (fwd)
head coach Ryan Nelsen

Columbus Crew (all yellow, black names and numbers)

..................30 Andy Gruenebaum
3 Josh Williams...16 Eric Gehrig...4 Glauber...2 Tyson Wahl
6 Tony Tchani...8 Matias Sanchez...12 Eddie Gaven...9 Justin Meram
.............11 Dominic Oduro...33 Federico Higuain (cpt)

Subs:...28 Matt Lampson (gk)...13 Ethan Finlay (fwd)...18 Aaron Schoenfeld (fwd)...19 Konrad Warzycha (mid)...20 Wil Trapp (mid)
...21 Chad Barson (def)...26 Ryan Finley (fwd)
head coach Robert Warzycha

Game officials:...referee Jose Carlos Rivero...referee's assistants Chris Strickland and Marco Arruda...fourth official Hilario Grajeda ...(sky blue shirts, black shorts and socks)

1st Half:...game starts 5:09pm...TFC defends south end on this mild day with a bright sun in the west.
1 min...TFC Silva cornerkick from left is over to right and Crew Williams heads ball behind end line.
1 min...TFC Silva cornerkick from right is over players in box. TFC Lambe gets by fallen defender trying to hold up ball in his legs and short low cross has defender clear at 6 yards.
4 min...TFC Silva 50 yard freekick from left has defender head ball away before from 12 yards.
7 min...Crew Meram 28 yard blast up middle is blocked by TFC Henry just inside edge of box.
8 min...TFC Richter long throw-in from right is headed down by leaping defender at 10 yards and cleared from box.
10 min...Crew Higuain 40 yard freekick up middle bounces through players for goalie to catch on bounce.
12 min...TFC O'Dea 40 yard freekick from left is chipped in and goalie catches at 8 yards behind crowd of players.
13 min...TFC Lambe after short run on left rolls cross from 22 yards on left while even with 6 yard box but defender clears.
14 min...TFC O'Dea cross from 20 yards on left has defender head ball out right side of box.
14 min...TFC Earnshaw gets away quick shot from 12 yards after recovering clearance from Crew Gehrig and while pressured by two other defenders, rolls shot to goalie.
15 min...TFC goalie rushes out to clear through ball at 20 yards.
15 min...Crew goalie rushes forward to 15 yards to smother through ball ahead of TFC Earnshaw.
16 min...Crew Gaven chests ball back from 22 yards for Crew Higuain to blast 25 yard shot up middle is well high and wide right over net.
16 min...TFC Earnshaw is bumped off ball and rolls shot forward from 18 yards that goalie picks up.
17 min...Crew Higuain 30 yard blast hits the bar on shot down middle.
18 min...TFC goalie leaps to catch Crew Tchani cross from 35 yards on right and his quick punt downfield has TFC Earnshaw 30 yard header roll wide left of net.
19 min...Crew Oduro 20 yard shot from left is blocked by defender TFC Caldwell.
20 min...TFC O'Dea 60 yard freekick is caught by goalie at 8 yards behind crowd of players.
21 min...TFC Earnshaw dekes Crew Williams at 19 yards on left and while cutting around another defender rolls weak 8 yarder from left that goalie smothers near left post.
22 min...TFC Silva shoots 18 yarder wide left on getting Crew defender's headed pop up from 22 yards.
24 min...Crew Wahl 40 yard freekick down middle has defender TFC Henry leap and head away at 15 yards in crowd of players.
26 min...TFC Silva cornerkick from left has goalie catch in crowd of players at 6 yards.
27 min...Crew Higuain rolls soft pass forward from 28 yards but ball is picked up by goalie at 8 yards.
30 min...Crew Gaven cross from 15 yards on right deflects off TFC O'Dea for cornerkick.
31 min...Crew Higuain cornerkick from right is messed up with Crew Sanchez who returns short tap out back to him but rolls ball out of bounds.
31 min...Crew Oduro on left centers ball and Crew Higuain's low 20 yard shot hits left post and rolls to right where TFC O'Dea runs ball out of trouble.
35 min...TFC Lambe rush on left and low 18 yard cross is cleared by sliding Crew Glauber.
35 min...TFC goalie rushes out to 22 yards on right to beat Crew Meram to clear through ball on defenders mix up.
36 min...Crew Wahl cross from 22 yards on left end line has TFC O'Dea head ball out right side of box.
36 min...Crew Williams cross from 30 yards on right has TFC Richter head out of box from 10 yards in middle.
37 min...TFC Earnshaw cross from 30 yards on left has TFC Silva head centering pass from 12 yards on right and TFC Braun all alone shoots wide left from 9 yards.
39 min...TFC O'Dea 45 yard freekick down middle has TFC Caldwell head from 15 yards on right a centering pass but defender clears on header.
39 min...TFC Silva chips pass forward from 28 yards to TFC Earnshaw who misses ball at 10 yards and ball bounces to goalie.
41 min...Crew Dominic Oduro GOAL...TFC Justin Braun goes down on bump from Crew Wahl at Crew 50 yards and play waved on by referee. Crew Glauber rolls pass forward to Crew Federico Higuain at TFC 50 yards and he sends through ball up middle that is between TFC Steven Caldwell and TFC Doneil Henry and charging Oduro kicks on first touch from 12 yards into net over sliding goalie Joe Bendik at 6 yards.
42 min...TFC Richter run down right wing and cross from 22 yards near end line has sliding Crew Glauber conceded cornerkick.
42 min...TFC Silva cornerkick from right has TFC O'Dea pop up header at 12 yards and TFC Earnshaw bicycle kick from 8 yards is wide left.
44 min...TFC Richter cross from 30 yards near right sideline has goalie catch stepping forward at 6 yards.
45 min...TFC Richter long throw-in from right has Crew player pop header up from right. TFC Silva gets ball to bounce to him at 10 yards and after two defenders run by him as he tips up ball to get it on his right foot has retreating third defender take away ball at 8 yards before he can get away shot at 8 yards in crowd of players.
46 min...half ends 5:55pm.

Halftime Entertainment:...The games sponsor today was Scott's Turfbuilder (lawn care products). There was a contest between three kilt wearers who had to recite the company jingle in their best Scotish accents. Winner by audience applause was a man over another man and a woman.

2nd Half:...half starts 6:11pm. The weather is unchanged.
halftime sub:...TFC Convey replaces Bruan.
48 min...Crew Higuain rolls cross from 35 yards on left sideline. Crew Tchani 30 yard shot down middle rolls wide left of net.
49 min...TFC Convey 35 yard freekick from right is headed away by defender on edge of box starting fast break out.
51 min...TFC Lambe rolls ball up left side from 40 yard but goalie beats TFC Earnshaw to pick up.
55 min...Crew Higuain 40 yard freekick from near right sideline has leaping Crew Glauber head ball wide left from 9 yards in crowd of players.
56 min...TFC sub...Osorio replaces Hall.
58 min...Crew Gaven cuts in 28 yard shot from right that goalie catches.
58 min...Crew goalie charges out of box to 20 yards to clear ball ahead of TFC Silva.
59 min...Crew YELLOW card...Wahl earns it for delaying TFC throw-in by TFC Richter at Crew 40 yards.
62 min...TFC Earnshaw threaded pass on left by TFC Osorio and 8 yard shot on left is blocked by defender.
63 min...Crew Oduro threaded pass on right by Crew Higuain from 45 yards up middle and shoots low and wide left from 18 yards.
63 min...TFC sub...Brockie replaces Lambe.
64 min...TFC goalie at 8 yards clears dangerous backpass by TFC Henry.
65 min...Crew Higuain is rolled pass forward from Crew Gaven at 30 yards and shoots 20 yarder just wide right of post.
67 min...Crew Sanchez is injured at Crew 40 yards away from play as TFC Brockie is called for handball knocking ball down pass on left wing at Crew 30 yard line.
70 min...TFC O'Dea lobs 50 yard freekick that TFC Caldwell crosses back into box from right twice but TFC can't get a shot away and ball eventually cleared.
71 min...TFC Richter long throw-in has Crew Tchani head ball away from inside box.
71 min...Crew Oduro cross from 15 yards on left is caught by goalie.
72 min...TFC O'Dea cross from 30 yards on left has Crew Gehrig at 10 yards head ball wide right of net on pop up for cornerkick.
73 min...TFC Convey cornerkick from right has Crew Glauber jump higher than TFC Henry to head ball out left side of box from 15 yards.
74 min...TFC Earnshaw 23 yard freekick down middle has goalie bat down then pick up ball on left side of net.
75 min...Crew Sanchez receives short throw-in and chips 28 yarder from right and TFC Caldwell heads ball away at 12 yards.
75 min...Crew Sanchez chips 35 yarder from right over crowd of players and goalie catches.
76 min...Crew Higuain cornerkick from right is tap to Crew Sanchez and he taps ball back and Higuain chip ball that's caught by goalie at 3 yards behind crowd of players.
77 min...Crew YELLOW card...Glauber earns it for pulling down TFC Silva at Crew 28 yards.
77 min...TFC Convey 25 yard freekick from right is just over heads of leaping players on left post.
78 min...Crew sub...Ethan Finlay replaces Meram.
79 min...Crew Oduro loses footing on right TFC end line and TFC Caldwell checks him off ball.
81 min...Crew Wahl is injured on sliding tackle as both he and TFC Richter slide for ball on the sideline at Crew 30 yard line.
82 min...Crew sub...Barson replaces still injured Wahl.
82 min...TFC Richter long throw-in from right has Crew Gehrig head ball out of box to right.
83 min...TFC Richter long throw-in from right has Crew Tchani leap to head ball away.
83 min...Crew goalie races out to clear through ball at 20 yards before TFC Brockie can get to it.
84 min...Crew sub...Schoenfeld replaces Oduro.
85 min...Crew YELLOW card...Schoenfeld earns it for knocking over TFC Richter as Richter goes for header at TFC 45 yards.
88 min...Crew Ethan Finlay cross from 15 yards near left end line pops up off defender and TFC goalie catches stepping forward.
89 min...TFC Silva cornerkick from right has Crew Gehrig head ball away from box at 14 yards.
90 min...TFC O'Dea chips 15 yard cross that flying TFC Brockie heads wide right from 8 yards.
91 min...TFC YELLOW card...Laba earns it for knocking player going for header at TFC 30 yards.
92 min...Crew Tchani freekick from 40 yards on left is over player in box and wide right for goalkick.
93 min...Crew Higuain and Crew Tchani run over to cornerflag near right to help run out the clock.
93 min...TFC Richter long throw-in has Crew Sanchez head out from edge of box for another throw-in.
94 min...TFC Richter long throw-in from left has TFC player at 8 yards on left in crowd of players head behind end line for goalkick.
94:47 min...game ends 7:00pm.

Final Score:.....Toronto FC......0..........Columbus Crew...........1........

Attendance was announced as 18278. This was the best weather of any of their home games this year. Now it will be some winning by TFC to bring back sell out crowds. This is the first home game where TFC has been shut out so that's not going to help.

Man of the Match (who is always a TFC player) was announced as midfielder Matias Laba making his home debut for the team.

TFC management keep saying they are close in every game which by the scorelines is technically true but they are often outplayed for much more of the match (not just the last 15 minutes) than they are admitting.

Lots of new players were making their home debut for TFC and the game program can't keep up. Steven Caldwell on defence is on loan from Birmingham City (English League). Bobby Convey was just added to the roster this week in a trade with Sporting Kansas City and was a halftime sub at midfield and took some of their freekicks. #15 in the game program still has the profile for hometown player Matt Stinson. New Designated player Matias Laba from Argentina has already played on the road. Forward Jeremy Brockie (Wellington Phoenix, Australian League) came on in the second half and had a chance for a tieing goal at 90 minutes.

TFC Justin Braun missed a sitter at 37 minutes drawing groans at the time and even bigger groans as the replay played on the scoreboard. He was replaced at halftime by Bobby Convey.

TFC management is always saying they are close in every game and only lose because of one mistake at the end of the game which on the scoreboard is true (ignoring the 6-0 blowout in Montreal). The Crew's Federico Higuain had his shot hit the bar at 17 minutes and hit the post at 31 yards. Scoring would have put this game out of reach early.

Andy Gruenebaum earned the shutout for the Crew on a few key saves. He has played every minute of their 11 games this year.

TFC have still never beaten the Crew at BMO Field since entering the league in 2007. Their 2013 league record is now 1 win in 11 games. The early season ties are now forgotten in the media with the team now on a losing streak.

With their early exit from the Amway Canadian Championship, TFC couldn't say they were tired from playing in the first leg of the finals on Wednesday. (Management will credit my credit card the price of the ticket as a refund). All hands available for the Reserves League game starting 40 minutes after this game ended.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca

stats from MLSsoccer.co Major Events Goals and Assists CLB 42' Dominic Oduro (Federico Higuaín) Match Info Referee: Jose Carlos Rivero Attendance: 18278 Disciplinary CLB 60' Tyson Wahl Time wasting YELLOW CLB 78' Gláuber Foul YELLOW CLB 87' Aaron Schoenfeld Not visible YELLOW TOR 92' Matías Laba Foul YELLOW Match Stats Toronto FC Columbus Crew 8 Attempts on Goal 12 3 Shots on Target 3 4 Shots off Target 7 1 Blocked Shots 2 6 Corner Kicks 3 16 Fouls 18 15 Open Play Crosses 11 3 Offsides 3 1 First Yellow Cards 3 0 Second Yellow Cards 0 0 Red Cards 0 70 Duels Won 50 58% Duels Won % 42% 365 Total Pass 297 64% Passing Accuracy % 63% 55.8% Possession 44.2%

TORONTO FC RECORD: 1-6-4 7 POINTS

COLUMBUS CREW RECORD: 4-4-3 15 POINTS

Lineups Toronto FC – Joe Bendik; Ryan Richter, Steven Caldwell, Doneil Henry, Darren O’Dea ©; Reggie Lambe (Jeremy Brockie 64’), Jeremy Hall (Jonathan Osorio 57’), Matias Laba, Luis Silva; Justin Braun (Bobby Convey 45’), Robert Earnshaw

Substitutes not used: Stefan Frei, Danny Califf, Ashtone Morgan, John Bostock

Columbus Crew – Andy Gruenebaum; Tyson Wahl (Chad Barson 83’), Eric Gehrig, Josh Williams, Glauber; Dominic Oduro (Aaron Schoenfeld 85’), Tony Tchani, Justin Meram (Ethan Finlay 79’), Matias Sanchez, Eddie Gaven; Federico Higuain

Substitutes Not Used: Konrad Warzycha, Ryan Finley, Will Trapp, Matt Lampson

TFC starters