June 28, 2014 League 1 Ontario--Windsor Stars vs Durham United FC (from League 1 Ontario website)
Windsor Stars 2 - Durham United FC 0 . Mon Jun 30 Written By: Ibrahim, Ali After a hard fought contest, Windsor Stars finally trumped Durham United FC 2-nil, featuring goals from Eric Cirovski and Ciprian Codea, a clean sheet by veteran keeper Anthony Santilli, and ensuring the Stars; unbeaten streak would extend to five games. The opening frame of the game provided a great display of hunger, with both teams pressing the ball well. Alex Mendoca, in particular, was able to threaten the goal after a strong spell of pressure from the Stars. In the thirteenth minute the ref issued a mandatory water break after Durham FC net-minder Benjamin Cowman went down, having been struck awkwardly by a hard shot from Stars' striker Gino Berardi. Shortly after the break, Stars' defender Pat Lapera found himself in a foot race with an attacking Durham defender, Le Shaun Young. A lobbed pass managed to make its way into the penalty box before the inevitable jostle between the two racing defenders ended with the Durham defender poking the ball just wide of target. In the twenty-fourth minute, after the Windsor Stars had been awarded a freekick from a dangerous position, Michael Pio stepped up with confidence, having already scored a free kick goal the week before. Pio's effort proved tame, however, and never threatened to hit the net. Five minutes later and play was going the other way, this time with a great chance again presented to Le Rohne Young. Young was in on net, opening up his body to indicate an attempt to curl the shot around the keeper, but the ensuing bend sailed over the bar. Stars' Pio was presented with a wonderful opportunity to take the lead only minutes later, after splitting the defence and breaking in with only keeper to beat. The low attempt was stopped well by the Durham keeper Cowman, while the striker entered the referees’ book shortly after; perhaps Pio's overenthusiastic tackle was an attempt to make up for his earlier gaff. The Windsor Stars had some injury concerns on the night, with coach Steve Vagnini forced to make two changes in quick succession. Striker Gabriel Pulino, for one, left the game struggling with dizziness. Vagnini looked to right-back Derrick Amankwa to play up top as a make shift forward and, if the night wasn’t already demanding enough on the substitutes, another striker was substituted off as Brett Holmberg pulled up with hamstring strain shortly after making a galloping run down the wing. Eric Cirovski stepped up to replace Holmberg. Almost immediately, Cirovski whipped in behind the defence on run off a throw-in, and displayed impressive composure to poke the ball past a charging keeper. The Stars were ahead, and the half-time whistle sealed the first forty-five minutes. Durham returned from the break with clear determination, with Shaquille Agard's pace proving to be an early problem for the back-peddling Stars' defence. Within minutes of the restart, Durham nearly drew level, but for a shot that lacked the necessary quality to beat Stars last man, keeper Anthony Santilli. Within ten minutes the Durham coach was pacing the edge of his technical area, clearly sensing a shift in momentum after a great spell of early pressure by his team. After several calls went in the Stars favor, and a strong sweeping challenge took out Agard, tempers flared on the bench and forced the official to have a quick word about the importance of technical areas and conduct within them. As the match built into a tense final quarter hour, Stars' makeshift attacker Amankwa had a chance to reward his coach's belief, collecting a wonderful lobbed pass as the net gaped open behind the charging Durham keeper. Amankwa's attempt was rather wasted though, with the player trying to curl it in with the outside of his foot, which caused the ball to stray wide of the post. Durham's Joseph Roccasalva stepped up to whip in a pacy cross off a thirty yard free kick, forcing Stars' defender Chris Suta into an awkward effort on the ball that deflected toward goal. But Santilli would again prove reliable, getting a strong hand on the ball and keeping his clean sheet intact. With only ten minutes remaining, match went into fever pitch, with chances desperately snatched and players on both sides pushing the disciplinary line. Windsor's Cirovski entered the referees’ black book in the eighty-sixth after a brief exchange of words with the head official. In dramatic fashion, the breakthrough came in extra time as Windsor's Ciprian Codea came off the bench as a late substitute, bringing in substantial defensive experience to the wing. He also brought composure in the finish, when veteran stayed calm on the ball in good position, playing a bend with his favored left foot that soared over the outstretched arms of the Cowman and into the left corner. Deep into stoppage time, Durham's Tristan Grant was cautioned for a late challenge on Gino Berardi, which would prove to be the last action of the game; a final whistle in this evenly-matched contest meant Windsor Stars had defeated Durham United FC.
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