September 6, 2014 MLS--Toronto FC vs Philadelphia Union (by Rocket Robin)

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Result of the Saturday September 6, 2014, MLS game between Toronto FC and Philadelphia Union played at BMO Field in Toronto at 2:00pm.

Toronto FC (all red, white names and numbers)

.......................12 Joseph Bendik
17 Nick Hagglund...16 Bradley Orr...15 Doneil Henry...28 Mark Bloom
..........26 Collen Warner...4 Michael Bradley (cpt)...23 Dominic Oduro
.........14 Dwayne De Rosario...9 Gilberto...27 Luke Moore

Subs:...1 Chris Konopka (gk)...3 Warren Creavalle (def)...8 Kyle Bekker (mid)...11 Jackson (mid)...32 Andrew Wiedeman (fwd)
...33 Ryan Richter (def)...35 Daniel Lovitz (mid)
team officials:...head coach Greg Vanney

Philadelphia Union (all navy, yellow names and numbers, bronze chest stripe)

.......................18 Zac MacMath
25 Sheanon Williams...15 Ethan White...21 Maurice Edu (cpt)...28 Raymon Gaddis
........11 Sebastien Le Toux...14 Amobi Okugo...5 Vincent Nogueira
.........6 Conor Casey...10 Cristian Maidana...9 Andrew Wenger

Subs:...1 Andre Blake (gk)...7 Brian Carroll (mid)...8 Fred (mid)...17 Brian Brown (fwd)...30 Pedro Ribeiro (mid)
...33 Fabinho (def)...44 Danny Cruz (mid)
team officials:...head coach Jim Curtin

Game officials:...referee Alan Kelly...referee's assistants Jeff Muschik and Gianni Facchini...fourth official Mark Kadlecik ...(yellow shirts, black shorts and socks)

Before the game TFC Justin Morrow was awarded the Community Ambassador for August for his charitable work (often it's injured guys like this who win because they have a lot of time on their hands). A moment of silence is held before the national anthems for the memory of Los Angeles Galaxy's A J De La Garza's infant son who died earlier this week at the age of one week of a heart ailment.

1st Half:...game starts 2:09pm...TFC defends south end on this mild and still overcast afternoon after last night's rain.
1 min...TFC Moore overhead backwards chip at 10 yards near end line is cleared in 6 yard box.
5 min...TFC Bradley rush down middle and slips but gets away 30 yard low shot that goalie catches on left side of net.
5 min...PU Wenger cross from 20 yards on left deflected by defender for cornerkick on left.
5 min...PU Le Toux cornerkick from left has PU Casey jabs foot in and 8 yard stab of shot is into outside left webbing of net.
7 min...PU Conor Casey GOAL...PU Sheanon Williams chips cross from 22 yards on right has Casey leap between two defenders and head 8 yarder into left side of net. TFC players had two chances to end pressure earlier in play but made only partial clearances.
9 min...TFC Hagglund rush down right and cross from 25 yards has PU White clear at 10 yards.
10 min...PU Maidana cornerkick from right has ball stopped and cleared at 10 yards in middle and TFC De Rosario makes fast break out but is stopped at center line.
11 min...PU goalie beats TFC Gilberto to grab through ball at 10 yards sent into box by TFC Moore at 25 yards.
13 min...TFC Moore wins cornerkick when he gets by PU Edu on right end line and Edu then slides to poke ball out of play.
13 min...TFC Warner cornerkick from right has PU Okugo pop up header at 7 yards and TFC Oduro blasts 25 yarder mid air shot down middle well over net.
15 min...TFC De Rosario 30 yard cross from right has goalie catch on left post.
16 min...PU Casey heads PU goal kick from 30 yards that TFC goalie catches on bounce.
19 min...TFC Gilberto 28 yard freekick from left even with post deflects off PU Casey's head jumping in player wall and ball flies just left of post.
19 min...TFC Warner cornerkick from left has PU Casey head ball away on left at 5 yards.
19 min...TFC Hagglund cross from 30 yards on right drifts behind net.
20 min...TFC Bloom cross from 30 yards on left has PU Edu head away from 6 yards.
21 min...PU players threaten but can't get clear shot in box.
22 min...TFC Bradley chips ball forward from 25 yards and PU White heads away at 10 yards in middle.
23 min...TFC Bradley 28 yard freekick chip from left has goalie catch even with right post at 5 yards in front of TFC players.
24 min...TFC Bloom cross from 35 yards on left has PU Edu head ball away from box at 15 yards up middle.
26 min...PU Nogueira long rush on left and rolled pass to PU Casey who rolls ball from 22 yards through defenders but too far so goalie picks up.
27 min...TFC YELLOW card...Henry earns it for sliding tackle from behind on PU Casey at TFC 45 yard line.
28 min...PU Maidana 50 yard freekick from right has TFC Henry pop header over net from 15 yards.
29 min...PU Maidana cornerkick from right drops and bounces through center of box and wide left unplayed for goalkick.
30 min...TFC De Rosario cross from 30 yards on right has PU player charge forward to edge of box and head ball away.
30 min...TFC Orr 65 yard chip from right is caught by goalie at 14 yards.
32 min...PU Le Toux finishes long play with 20 yard shot from right that goalie palms over bar.
33 min...PU Maidana cornerkick from right is cleared by TFC Bloom heading ball over box from right at 10 yards.
33 min...PU Nogueira low 30 yard shot from left is through defenders and bounces to goalie.
34 min...PU Maidana 40 yard freekick from right has TFC Bradley kick away at 15 yards in center of box.
35 min...PU Le Toux charging for long freekick ball chipped forward gets head to ball at 16 yards and goalie swats ball forward at 10 yards. PU Maidana blasts rebound from 25 yards on right that TFC Henry heads away from 5 yards.
35 min...TFC Williams cross from 40 yards on right has defenders clear at 8 yards.
36 min...TFC Bloom 30 yard cross from left has PU goalie punch ball away in crowd of players. PU Edu is injured on play with goalie clipping his heel as he fell while leaning into ball.
38 min...TFC Hagglund low cross from 20 yards on right has defender partially clear from 10 yards and TFC Gilberto rolls 19 yarder into box and defender at 14 yards kicks ball away.
39 min...TFC Bloom after run up left crosses from 22 yards along left end line has TFC Moore chest ball down at 6 yards but defender kicks ball away with Moore and TFC Gilberto waiting to take shot.
41 min...TFC Bloom chips 65 yard shot from left has PU goalie catch ball at 15 yards on left in front of TFC De Rosario.
41 min...PU Wenger wins cornerkick after rush on left and low cross from 15 yards deflects off TFC Hagglund.
42 min...PU Le Toux low cornerkick from left has PU Casey deflect ball across box and defender clears . PU Nogueira blasts partial clearance up middle from 35 yards that defender clears at 15 yards. PU Le Toux chips from 35 yards on left that deflects high and wide right of net.
43 min...PU Andrew Wenger GOAL...PU Sebastien Le Toux low cornerkick from left is blocked by TFC Henry at 8 yards on left and ball deflects back to Le Toux. He crosses from 25 yards on right sideline and TFC Bloom pops up header at 7 yards on left. PU Williams nods header from 12 yards on right and Wenger heads ball from 7 yards on left into right side of net.
43 min...TFC sub...Bekker replaces Warner.
44 min...PU Maidana 40 yard freekick from right is bounced through box wide left for goalkick.
45 min...TFC De Rosario cross from 25 yards on right is into box and defender heads ball away from 12 yards in center of box.
46 min...half ends 2:55pm.

Halftime Entertainment: there was the usual pizza giveaway, Scott's Lawn Lounge seat upgrade, and Drumsticks ice cream giveaway. Also a Mark's gift card giveaway for those who most likely need a new pair of jeans. There was an 8 on 8 mini game in the center circle between boys and girls from the North Toronto Soccer Club with adults in goal. There was no positioning with all kids running after the ball while the tune 'Love Generation' was played for the three minute game.

2nd Half:...starts 3:11pm.
46 min...PU Wenger long run on left but cross attempt from 10 yards near end line is blocked by TFC Hagglund.
46 min...TFC Oduro cross from 20 yards on right is over PU box.
47 min...PU Williams checks ball off TFC De Rosario as he runs into box at 15 yards.
48 min...TFC Orr back in time to break up PU Wenger on edge of box leading rush on left.
50 min...PU Williams is touched back pass and cross into box is whistled down as PU Casey pushed over defender at 7 yards.
52 min...PU Maidana cross from 20 yards on right after run has PU Casey shoot wide right on bouncing shot from 8 yards down middle.
53 min...TFC De Rosario rolls pass for TFC Bloom to blast low 22 yarder that goalie gets hand to on dive at 5 yards and ball hits outside of right post and wins cornerkick.
53 min...TFC Gilberto low cornerkick from right has PU Casey as nearest defender clear ball away with kick at 10 yards on right.
56 min...PU Gaddis is injured at TFC 40 yard line on check from TFC Gilberto after Gaddis had already passed away ball.
57 min...PU Maidana 45 yard freekick from left has goalie push ball forward at 4 yards in crowd of players and TFC Bloom clears.
58 min...PU Williams is injured at PU 40 yard line on left by TFC Gilberto.
60 min...TFC Bloom chips pass from 35 yards on left sideline that charging TFC De Rosario can't get in left side of box at 15 yards.
61 min...TFC Bradley 35 yard freekick from right is tapped across to center for TFC Bekker and his chip from 30 yards has TFC Hagglund only partially connect on bicycle kick from 10 yards and ball flies wide left of post.
63 min...TFC De Rosario run down middle pushes ball to TFC Gilberto who pushes ball too far forward on left at 15 yards and diving goalie smothers ball.
64 min...TFC Bradley pushes ball too far forward to left for TFC De Rosario to slide and cross in on end line.
65 min...TFC Bradley wins ball and blasts 30 yarder from right that goalie flies to push wide left of net for cornerkick.
66 min...TFC De Rosario cornerkick from left has TFC Bradley head over net from 7 yards on left.
66 min...TFC De Rosario rolls centering cross from left along 10 yard line in box but defenders stop and clear.
67 min...TFC Orr long chip from 60 yards on right has TFC player flick header forward from 18 yards in middle but TFC De Rosario can't save ball on right endline.
68 min...PU sub...Ribeiro replaces Casey.
69 min...TFC sub...Jackson replaces De Rosario.
70 min...TFC Jackson runs along 30 yard line from left to center and cuts 30 yard roller wide left of net.
71 min...PU Ribeiro low shot from 12 yards on right has ball deflect wide left off TFC Bloom for cornerkick.
71 min...PU Le Toux cornerkick from left has TFC Hagglund head ball out right side of box for throw-in.
72 min...PU Williams long throw-in from right has PU Okugo head just high and left of net.
73 min...TFC goalie catches PU goalie's 70 yard freekick that bounces to the right but wide of net.
74 min...PU Wenger low cross from 25 yards on left is cleared on right side of box.
74 min...TFC Gilberto 22 yard shot from left after run deflects off defender at 18 yards for cornerkick.
74 min...TFC Bradley low cornerkick from left is into box and defender clears. TFC Bloom receives short pass and chips 35 yard shot over players on edge of box and ball bounces to goalie on right post.
76 min...TFC Bloom chip from 18 yards on left has TFC Jackson head 10 yarder off bar and goalie beat TFC Moore to catch ball on right post.
77 min...TFC sub...Creavalle replaces Hagglund.
78 min...TFC Bradley 50 yard freekick from right has popped up header on edge of box and defender clears.
79 min...TFC Oduro crosses from right over head of TFC Jackson waiting alone at 10 yards and ball bounces for throw-in.
80 min...PU sub...Cruz replaces Le Toux.
81 min...PU Wenger cross from 25 yards on left has ball cleared chested down by PU player at 10 yards in middle but defender clears ball..
81 min...PU Nogueira tap back for PU Edu to blast 22 yarder up middle that goalie bats down on left post then smothers.
83 min...TFC Oduro cross from 28 yards on right has defender head away in center of box.
85 min...PU defender clearance off TFC Bekker at 20 yards and ball deflects back to PU goalie.
85 min...PU Wenger rolls cross from 18 yards on left that TFC defender clears at 12 yards in box starting TFC Bradley on fast break.
85 min...PU Cruz taps centering pass along edge of box from right and PU Rebeiro steps clear of defender to blast 20 yarder that goalie bats away at 2 yards.
86 min...PU Maidana cornerkick from right short to PU Cruz and passed back to him and cross into box is cleared by TFC Creavalle at 5 yards in front of PU Wenger.
87 min...TFC Moore wins freekick on tackle by PU White knocking him over at PU 20 yard line.
88 min...PU sub...Carroll replaces Maidana.
88 min...TFC Bradley freekick from 22 yards slightly to left is into wall of players and then he blasts 20 yard rebound off top of left post.
89 min...TFC Bekker 40 yard freekick from right has TFC Henry pop header over net from 15 yards down middle.
90 min...TFC Bloom cross from 40 yards is just over head of TFC Gilberto on right side of box and ball bounces for goalkick.
92 min...TFC Gilberto and TFC Moore in box but can't get away clear shot and defenders clear.
94 min...game ends 4:00pm.

Final Score:.....Toronto FC.......0..........Philadelphia Union...........2........

Attendance was announced as 22591 which was a sellout but that part wasn't mentioned. I'd say quite a few of the seats never filled in. More boos rang out at the end of the first half then the end of the game probably because the stadium was down to 1/3 occupied by the finish.

The Canadian National Exhibition is over but there were still fencing and roadblocks around. There was trouble getting here because for the second time in the last three weeks the subway wasn't running down part of the Yonge Street line. This time I didn't know beforehand but I made it to the stadium on time.

This was the first home game with new head coach Greg Vanney. His first game in charge was a 1-0 loss to the Union in Philadelphia on Wednesday. The only goal in that game was scored by Conor Casey.

Man of the Match (who is always a TFC player) was announced as midfielder Michael Bradley. This would have been a hard one to choose as none of the players looked good. A big cheer rang out when he was announced as winning but I heard some woman in my section yell out "For what?". I thought Bradley often ended plays by turning around and running or passing the ball back upfield.

This was a fair result. TFC could have had three goals at the end with shots off the bar and post but the Union could have scored that many except for the brilliant saves of Joe Bendik and a missed sitter by Conor Casey so a 4-2 score would also be a reasonable result.

I felt TFC helped 'burn out' the TFC players on the Canadian National team which is scheduled to play here on Tuesday night. 'Old' Dwayne De Rosario who is usually put into the game for the last few minutes if at all was a starter and played 68 minutes and looked exhausted near the end of his time in the game. Kyle Bekker had a more reasonable run coming in near the end of the first half. Doneil Henry played the entire game and would also end up playing the 90 minutes against Jamaica. Only defender Ashton Morgan wouldn't be worn out because he was serving a suspension by being Red carded in the first Philadelphia game. Midfielder Jonathan Osorio was not selected for the team from what I hear was TFC insistance that he was needed for league play (it turned out he was injured anyway). Union had four players absent for International duty but none had started more than four games this season.

Union had far better passing with backheels and taps working for them. TFC's timing was often off and threatening plays just rolled out bounds and shots were blocked and passes given away.

Like the Chicago game, an ex-TFC player scored. Conor Casey scored what turned out to be the winning goal so early in the game. He has sported the shaved head look long before Michael Bradley. He played for part of TFC's 2007 inaugural season. Gol TV said that four of the last five goals scored against TFC were scored by ex-TFC players.

Both of the Union goals were scored on leaping headers in the TFC box. Media from other sources have criticized the team for poor defending on set pieces.

Warren Creavalle was back from injury but was only used as a defensive sub for the last 13 minutes.

TFC let New England Revolution tie them in the standings by losing to them right here in last week's game then be passed when the Revs played a mid-week game. Now they've let Philadelphia first time them and now pass them with their two games against them this week. Other games over the weekend have dropped TFC to 7th place down from 3rd just two weeks ago.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca

stats from MLSsoccer.com
Match Information
MLS Regular Season at BMO Field
Attendance 22591
Weather Partly Cloudy 
 
Goals and Assists 
 8'  Conor Casey       Assisted By: Sheanon Williams 
44'  Andrew Wenger     Assisted By: Sheanon Williams 

Disciplinary
28'  Doneil Henry      Yellow   Reason: Foul 

Records:
Toronto FC:               9-11-6  33pts.
Philadelphia Union:       9-9-9   36pts.     

Lineups

Toronto FC – Joe Bendik; 
Nick Hagglund (Warren Creavalle 78’), Bradley Orr, Doneil Henry, Mark Bloom; 
Dwayne De Rosario (Jackson 70’), Collen Warner (Kyle Bekker 44’), Michael Bradley ©, Dominic Oduro; 
Gilberto, Luke Moore  

Substitutes Not Used: Chris Konopka, Ryan Richter, Daniel Lovitz, Andrew Wiedeman 

Philadelphia Union – Zac MacMath; 
Sheanon Williams, Maurice Edu ©, Ethan White, Raymon Gaddis; 
Sebastien Le Toux (Danny Cruz 81’), Cristian Maidana (Brian Carroll 89’), Vincent Nogueira, Amobi Okugo, Andrew Wenger; 
Conor Casey (Pedro Ribeiro 69’)

Substitutes Not Used: Fred, Fabinho, Andre Blake, Brian Brown   

Stats:

Team Statistics

TOR                           PHI
 16     Shots                  12 
  3     Shots on Target         7 
  7     Shots off Target        2 
  6     Blocked Shots           3 
  5     Corners                 8 
 24     Crosses                18 
  1     Offsides                0 
  8     Fouls                  14 
  1     Yellow Cards            0 
  0     Red Cards               0 
452     Total Passes          335 
 77 %   Passing Accuracy       71 % 
 57.5 % Possession             42.5 % 
 45     Duels Won              36 
 10     Tackles Won            13 
  5     Saves                   3 
 13     Clearances             42 

Officials
Referee  Alan Kelly 
Assistant Referee  Jeff Muschik 
Assistant Referee  Gianni Facchini 
Fourth Official  Mark Kadlecik

Toronto FC starters