May 28, 2014 Amway Canadian Championship--Toronto FC vs Montreal Impact (by Rocket Robin)

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Result of the Wednesday May 28, 2014, Leg 1 Final of the Amway Canadian Championship between Toronto FC and Montreal Impact played at BMO Field in Toronto at 7:30pm.

Toronto FC (all red, white names and numbers)

...................12 Joseph Bendik
17 Nick Hagglund...13 Steven Caldwell (cpt)...15 Doneil Henry...5 Ashtone Morgan
23 Alvaro Rey...25 Jeremy Hall...16 Bradley Orr...35 Daniel Lovitz
..............14 Dwaayne De Rosario...9 Gilberto

Subs:...1 Chris Konopka (gk)...2 Justin Morrow (def)...8 Kyle Bekker (mid)...18 Jermain Defoe (fwd)...28 Mark Bloom (def)
...32 Andrew Wiedeman (fwd)...33 Ryan Richter (def)
team official:...head coach Ryan Nelsen

Montreal Impact (blue socks, black shorts, blue & black striped shirts, white names and numbers)

......................30 Evan Bush
6 Hassoun Camara...2 Nelson Rivas...44 Heath Pearce...34 Karl Ouimette
.............23 Hernan Bernardello...8 Patrice Bernier (cpt)
..........21 Justin Mapp...7 Felipe Martins...15 Andres Romero
.......................9 Marco Di Vaio

Subs:...1 Troy Perkins (gk)...16 Calum Mallace (mid)...26 Adrian Lopez (def)...29 Santiago Gonzalez (fwd)...55 Wandrille Lefevre (mid)
...Jack Mcnerney (fwd)
team official:...head coach Frank Klopas

Game officials:...referee Silviu Petrescu...referee's assistants Gianni Facchini and Lyes Arfa...fourth official Yusri Rudolph
...(yellow shirts, black shorts and socks). An all Canadian crew.

1st Half:...game starts 7:45pm...TFC defends south end on this mild, overcast evening with the wind from the east. It looked like it would rain all day and night but there was none forecast and we didn't get any.
2 min...Imp sub...Lefevre replaces injured Rivas who was not injured by contact but a simple clearance with him kicking the ball away from the edge of the box.
4 min...TFC player's cross from 25 yards on right has Imp Pearce clear with kick at 15 yards on right.
6 min...Imp Camara cross from right has TFC Henry duck and head clearance from 10 yards on right.
8 min...TFC Orr cross from 18 yards on right has defender head and clear.
9 min...TFC Lovitz run on left and low cross from 22 yards sent into box is called offside.
11 min...TFC Lovitz 25 yard freekick from right is caught by goalie at 3 yards on right post behind players waiting at 7 yards.
16 min...TFC Lovitz 35 yard freekick from middle has TFC Gilberto falling backwards flick header from 18 yards over players and caught by goalie on bounce near left post.
19 min...TFC Gilberto low 22 yard shot deflects off Imp Pearce at 15 yards and tips high wide right for cornerkick.
19 min...TFC Doniel Henry GOAL...TFC Daniel Lovitz cornerkick from right has Henry leap forward and head 7 yarder down middle just under bar in center of net as goalie Evan Bush gets a hand to it but pushes it further up into net.
21 min...TFC Hall checks Imp Felipe on right end line into end boards.
22 min...Imp Mapp 20 yard freekick from right near end line has TFC Henry charge forward in middle and head ball away at 7 yards.
26 min...Imp Lefevre is injured at Imp 45 yards with foot to head collision with TFC Lovitz as both go for ball.
27 min...Imp Mapp cornerkick from right is short tap over to Imp Bernardello and offside is called.
32 min...Imp Felipe shot from 20 yards down middle hits arm of TFC Caldwell at 17 yards and deflects out of box.
33 min...TFC Rey can't win Penalty kick on left side of box when pushed softly from behind by Imp Camara.
33 min...TFC YELLOW card...Rey earns it for soft push on chest on Imp Camara at Imp 25 yards before play resumed.
36 min...TFC Morgan rush on left and cross from 25 yards has Imp Lefevre head away from 7 yards. TFC Lovitz blasts 18 yard rebound down middle well over net.
38 min...Imp Ouimette cross from 25 yards on left has TFC Henry head ball away in middle at 12 yards.
40 min...TFC De Rosario from 22 yards on extreme right crosses through 6 yard box unplayed.
44 min...Imp Felipe is injured at Imp 40 yards on his slide into TFC Lovitzr.
46 min...Imp player's Bernardello low 25 yard shot up middle through crowd of players is wide left.
46 min...half ends 8:31pm.

Halftime Entertainment:...This game was sponsored by one company (Amway) and there was a relay race between two teams of two fans in the crowd. It was a relay race that involved ball dribbling and jumping jacks. The second guy on the team in the lead by a good 30 yards fell on his face twice and the other team won.

2nd Half:...half starts 8:48pm.
halftime sub:...Imp McInerney replaces Felipe.
45 min...Imp Romero rush on left and low cross from 20 yards along end line has TFC Henry kick away at 4 yards on left post.
46 min...Imp Bernardello chips 30 yarder from left that TFC Henry heads away at 15 yards on left inside box.
46 min...Imp Bernardello cross from 15 yards on left hits top of bar on right and bounces along left end line.
46 min...Imp McInerney quick short throw-in from near right cornerflag has charging Imp Mapp get ball at 25 yards on right and rushes to kick low 10 yarder that deflects off sliding TFC Caldwell at 5 yards and over end line.
46 min...Imp Mapp cornerkick from right has TFC player head away at 10 yards on right.
47 min...Imp Bernardello cornerkick from left is low and cleared by TFC player. Imp regain possession and Imp Mapp crosses from 22 yards on left has TFC Henry head ball away at 10 yards starting TFC fast break.
53 min...TFC De Rosario can't draw Penalty kick on push over when he collides with Imp Lefevre on run into center of box..
55 min...Imp Romero rush from left into box splitting TFC Hall and TFC Hagglund and wins cornerkick when TFC Hall gets back to poke ball away at 7 yards.
56 min...Imp Bernardello cornerkick from left has goalie punch ball away at 5 yards in crowd of players behind net on left.
56 min...Imp Bernardello cornerkick from left has TFC Henry head ball away from 5 yards in crowd of players that starts quick break. TFC Gilberto rush on left and from 20 yards rolls cross that defender clears at 10 yards on left.
57 min...Gilberto at 15 yards in middle taps ball back for TFC De Rosario who blasts 18 yard shot that flying goalie palms up and ball hits bar near right post and deflects back off hand of goalie and deflects wide left for cornerkick.
58 min...TFC Lovitz cornerkick from right has defenders clear in crowd on left side of box.
59 min...TFC Lovitz 28 yard freekick from right has play whistled down with three players sprawled on the ground inside box.
61 min...TFC Lovitz wins cornerkick as he ran into box from right and had deflection off sliding Imp Ouimette.
61 min...TFC Lovitz cornerkick from right has goalie punch ball away at 4 yards in crowd of players.
61 min...TFC Orr chips in 22 yard cross from right that TFC Gilberto even with right post pops header from 15 yards wide right of net.
63 min...Imp Mapp chip from 55 yards on right finds Imp Di Vaio but he pushes ball over left end line on deflection off his foot from 15 yards.
64 min...Imp Camara pushes ball over TFC end line on right charging to receive tap back pass from Imp Mapp.
66 min...Imp Mapp at 15 yards on right inside TFC box and taps ball back to Imp McInerney who can't win hand ball call on shot from 15 yards down middle that hits hand of TFC Caldwell at 9 yards.
67 min...TFC De Rosario low cross from 25 yards on right has Imp Pearce at 4 yards near right post concede cornerkick.
67 min...TFC Lovitz cornerkick from right has leaping goalie jump over TFC Gilberto to grab ball at 6 yards.
68 min...Imp Bernier taps pass over from left and Imp McInerney blasts 28 yarder down middle but over net.
69 min...TFC Hagglund cross from 30 yards on right is high and Imp Lefevre gets head to ball at 12 yards as goalie also comes out for it. TFC De Rosario chips shot from 22 yards on left that hits top of bar on right and pops back into play and TFC Gilberto gets away partial bicycle kick from 8 yards on right that goalie catches at 1 yards near right post.
72 min...Imp Justin Mapp GOAL...Imp Patrice Bernier on right is covered by TFC player so rolls ball forward from 50 yards on right. Imp Mapp charges forward on right to receive ball at 40 yards and rushes forward cutting towards goal. Mapp then cuts towards center along 20 yard line and takes 20 yard blast down middle around TFC Steven Caldwell that bends from right into right side of net.
74 min...Imp Camara dekes TFC Lovitz at 30 yards on right and cross from 25 yards has TFC defender head ball across box from 15 yards from right that's unplayed.
75 min...TFC sub...Bekker replaces Hall.
78 min...TFC Morrow replaces Rey.
80 min...Imp sub...Mallace replaces Bernier.
81 min...TFC Lovitz 28 yard freekick from left bounces into box and bounces out right side of box where it's cleared.
82 min...Imp YELLOW card...Lefevre earns it for pushing TFC Gilberto at 22 yards in middle as both charge for ball.
83 min...TFC De Rosario freekick from 22 yards bends over net after TFC Bekker faked kick.
86 min...TFC Lovitz chips cross from 30 yards on right over to TFC Gilberto who leaps at 12 yards even with left post and twists 12 yard header wide right as he bumps with defender.
87 min...TFC Orr chips 22 yarder down middle that goalie catches.
88 min...TFC Hagglund checks Imp Romero off ball at 8 yards near left end line on dangerous play.
90 min...Imp Romero cross from 35 yards on left has Imp Di Vaio head ball wide left from 8 yards running even with left post.
92 min...TFC Morrow long throw in left at 30 yards line to 15 yards left of goal has ball headed has goalie sprawl to knock away from 2 yards with TFC player threatening him at 4 yards but flag was up for offside.
93 min...game ends 9:36pm.

Final Score:.....Toronto FC......1..........Montreal Impact...........1........

Attendance was announced as 18269 which was the first game this season they've not said there's been a sellout of 22591 (that includes the semi-final game against Vancouver three weeks ago. While it looked like it would rain all day and they did try to build this game up as the intense Toronto vs Montreal rivalry the cities have in this and other sports, fans stayed away. The Impact are the worst team in MLS right now with only one win in eleven league games so far. I don't think even 18269 fans were here. There were about 30 to 40 Impact fans for this midweek game and the Impact players came over to applaud them in Section 104 after the game which was better than TFC players who I didn't notice come over to the South end to salute their hardcore fans after tonight's game.

There was no Man of the Match announced tonight. My choice would been TFC defender Doneil Henry who not only scored their goal but made at least four good defensive plays. It was a great game for boosting his confidence after a set of May games where he's had Penalty kicks called against him for his play and the threat of being benched.

TFC controlled the first half allowing the Impact no shots on net. The Impact picked up the pace from the start of the second half with the halftime sub of Jack McInerney. TFC finished the game with a sub that was listed as a sixth defender to hang onto the lead. They had a few chances to put the game away before the Impacts tieing goal with Dwayne De Rosario being the closest to scoring.

TFC looked like they were more interested in protecting their lead by keeping players back in the defensive zone rather than pressing for more goals. TFC narrowly lost in possession too but not as much as the 66-33 they usually have in MLS games.

Designated player Gilberto was given another start and was generally not dangerous. He headed a ball wide and couldn't draw a Penalty kick for which he went down too easily for the referee. Forward Jermain Defoe stayed on the bench this game. The third designated player, Michael Bradley is away training with the USA team for the World Cup.

Neither midfielders TFC's Collen Warner nor the Impact's Issey Nakajima-Farran can play in this series after their trade two weeks ago as they are both cup tied.

Impact had the perfect strategy in the time they scored the tieing goal with less than 20 minutes to go. If they'd scored earlier Defoe may have been subbed in rather than Bekker and Morrow.

TFC are not quite good enough to play their second stringers and expect to win against a sub-par Impact team of starters. Now they should have a tough match in the return game next Wednesday in Montreal. Impact had a tough time beating NASL FC Edmonton in the semi-finals and were almost eliminated by the away-goal rule except for drawing a late penalty call. Impact will probably start with their first stringers and TFC better do the same if they want to win this game and play in the CONCACAF Championship League later this summer. I did not hear until after the game that the draw has made earlier today and the winner of this series will be grouped with New York Red Bulls of the USA and FAS of El Salvador.

The game let out at the same time as the Toronto Marlies hockey playoff game at the Ricoh Coliseum just three football fields in distance away from BMO Field so we were both bumping each other to get on the buses and streetcars to get out of here. Both the Marlies and TFC are owned by Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment and during the game we were offered a special discount to get into tomorrow night's hockey game.

TFC's next home game is this Saturday for an MLS game against Columbus Crew with a 5:00pm start (an hour later than their last few games). I'll need that time to get here after learning only today that a portion of the Yonge Street subway will be closed.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca

stats from MLSsoccer.com

Match Summary

Goals and Assists
20'  Doneil Henry   Assisted By: Daniel Lovitz 
73'  Justin Mapp    Assisted By: Patrice Bernier 

Disciplinary
35'  Álvaro Rey         Reason: Argument 
83'  Wandrille Lefevre  Reason: Foul 

Alinements

MTL – G-Evan Bush; 
D-Karl W. Ouimette, Heath Pearce, Nelson Rivas (Wandrille Lefèvre 3’), Hassoun Camara; 
M-Patrice Bernier (Calum Mallace 81’), Hernan Bernardello, Andrés Romero, Felipe (Jack McInerney 45’), Justin Mapp; 
A-Marco Di Vaio

Substitutes not used: G-Troy Perkins; D-Adrian Lopez; A-Santiago Gonzalez

TOR – G-Joe Bendik; 
D-Nick Hagglund, Steven Caldwell, Doneil Henry, Ashtone Morgan; 
M-Alvaro Rey (Justin Morrow 79’), Bradley Orr, Jeremy Hall (Kyle Bekker 76’), Daniel Lovitz; 
A-Dwayne De Rosario, Gilberto

Substitutes not used: G-Chris Konopka; D-Mark Bloom; M-Ryan Richter; A-Jermain Defoe, Andrew Wiedeman

Team Statistics

TFC                          MTL
 11    Shots                   8 
  5    Shots on Target         1 
  5    Shots off Target        3 
  1    Blocked Shots           4 
  4    Corners                 5 
 18    Crosses                17 
  5    Offsides                1 
 14    Fouls                  17 
  1    Yellow Cards            1 
  0    Red Cards               0 
343    Total Passes          386 
 67 %  Passing Accuracy       67 % 
 47.1% Possession             52.9 % 
 66    Duels Won              49 
 16    Tackles Won            11 
  0    Saves                   4 
 26    Clearances             13 

Attendance: 18269

OFFICIALS

Referee Silviu Petrescu    
Assistant Referee Gianni Facchini     
Assistant Referee Lyes Arfa     
Fourth Official Yusri Rudolph

Toronto FC starters