June 9, 2018 League 1 Ontario--Sigma FC vs Sanjaxx Lions (by Rocket Robin)

........................

Result and details of the Saturday June 9, 2018 League 1 Ontario game between Sigma FC and Sanjaxx Lions
played at Hershey Fields in Mississauga at 4:00pm.

Sigma FC (blue socks and shirts, black shorts, white numbers)

.......................1 Triston Henry
2 Malcolm Duncan...4 Reggie Laryea...3 Dominic Samuel...5 Kyle Walton
.........8 Giuliano Frano (cpt)...22 Simon Triantafillou...10 Hilli Goldhar
........17 Tajon Buchanan...11 Marcel Zajac...20 Mansoor Alfazy

Subs:...31 Baj Maan (gk)...6 Faisal Ghaffur...7 Darren Gordon...12 Dionysis Stergiotis
...15 Duran Lee...16 Josip Granic...21 Justin Stoddart
team officials:...team head coaches Bobby Smymiotis and John Zervos...assistant coach David Igbreja
...manager Perry Chadijiloannou...equipment manager Joseph Hanley...therapist Kiran Persad

Sanjaxx Lions (yellow socks and shirts, navy shorts and numbers)

.......................1 Tayjon Campbell
2 Saul Campos...11 Nathaniel Rodney-Scarlett...22 Aaron Reeves...16 Martin Goralski
12 Stefan Nikolic...17 Kemar Rowe (cpt)...18 Joel Anderson...9 Andrew Gordon
..............10 Timoty Cordova...23 Morgan Copeland

Subs:...21 Rodolfo Aguiar (gk)...3 Thomas Ang...4 Rohan Mowatt...5 Evan Sarginson
...14 Daniel Abreu...15 Tajani Fairclough...19 James Perot
team officials:...team head coach Laza Lowe...assistant coaches Devon Porter, Ramon McIntosh, and Remberto Luna
...manager Nicoletta Bonafede

Game officials:...referee Vladimir Makarov...referee's assistants Jason Olinski and Joshua Smith
...fourth official Matthew Perri...(watermelon shirts, black shorts and socks)

1st Half:...starts 4:00pm...Sigma defends north end on this humid and partiall overcast evening.
2 min...Sigma Zajac pulls up lame away from play and needs trainer.
5 min...Sigma sub...Stoddart replaces injured Zajac.
6 min...Sigma Alfazy 25 yard freekick from wide right has goalie punch ball away and bump over a player.
8 min...Lions Campos cross from 30 yards on right is whistled down in collision on edge of box.
10 min...Sigma Frano intercepts shorts pass at Lions 30 yards and pokes pass forward to Sigma Goldhar
who can only deflect 20 yard shot to goalie.
12 min...Sigma Alfazy cornerkick from left has Sigma Stoddart on short post jab 6 yarder wide left as defender
is pushing on him.
13 min...Sigma Duncan chips through ball between players and charging Sigma Stoddart behind them and takes 15 yard
shot wide right.
15 min...Sigma Duncan run to right end line and cross through 6 yard box is unplayed from 15 yards.
17 min...Sigma Buchanan is called offside stepping behind defenders for pass at 22 yards on right.
18 min...Lions Anderson 25 yard shot from right is well wide left.
20 min...Sigma Triantafillou run to left end line and 8 yard shot has goalie deflect wide left for cornerkick.
20 min...Lions Anderson on left post heads away cornerkick from left.
22 min...Sigma Triantafillou recovers partial clearance on wide left and blasts 25 yarder wide right of goal.
23 min...Sigma Frano boots 20 yard freekick down middle over bar.
25 min...Sigma Duncan run down right and low cross into box has Sigma player then Sigma Goldhar have low shots
saved on 10 yards shots in box.
27 min...Sigma Buchanan at 25 yards in middle sends through ball pass too far forward for Sigma Stoddart at 15 yards.
29 min...Lions Nikolic rush into right side of box and low cross is cleared.
32 min...Sigma Alfazy 25 yard freekick from just outside box on left is lobbed in and headed down but cleared at 15 yards.
33 min...Sigma Goldhar is injured on cross to 10 yards as Lions goalie ran forward to leap to catch and they collide.
Goldhar needs the trainer.
35 min...Lions Gordon on run on left eludes defender to get 20 yard shot bent high and wide.
35 min...Sigma Walton low 25 yard shot deflects off defender and rolls to goalie.
36 min...Lions Rowe pokes ball from Sigma Buchanan at 8 yards giving up cornerkick.
36 min...Sigma Alfazy cornerkick on right wins another cornerkick.
37 min...Sigma Alfazy cornerkick from left is cleared from box.
38 min...Sigma Buchanan rolls 20 yarder from right hits left post.
39 min...Sigma Buchanan low cross from 20 yards on far right has goalie smother ahead
of Sigma Stoddard on left post.
39 min...Sigma Buchanan hits bar on 20 yard blast up middle.
40 min...Lions Reeves returns to game after being injured a few minutes earlier.
40 min...Sigma Alfazy cross from 25 yards along right end line is caught by goalie.
41 min...Sigma sub...Gordon replaces injured Goldhar.
41 min...Lions Nikolic cross from right into box has defender clear. Lions Rowe blasts 25 yarder
up middle through crowd of players and well over net.
43 min...Sigma Alfazy is squeezed between two defenders and rolls 18 yarder from left to goalie.
45 min...Sigma Alfazy 28 yard freekick from right has Sigma Frano charge and take 8 yard shot that
has the sprawling goalie deflect over the net.
46 min...Sigma Alfazy cornerkick from right has nearest defender on right head ball away.
47 min...Sigma Laryea run to Lions 30 yard line and lofts ball that goalie catches at 5 yards under
no pressure.
47 min...Sigma Duncan pass upright for Sigma Buchanan and 15 yard shot near end line has goalie palm
ball through left side of box.
48 min...half ends 4:48pm.

Second Half:...starts 5:05pm.
45 min...Lions Nikolic is passed centering ball and low 20 yarder up middle is caught by goalie.
47 min...Lions Nikolic in middle passes to Lions Gordon on left and his cross into box is cleared
as no Lions are there to receive pass.
49 min...Sigma Buchanan and Triantafillou on give and go play finds Buchanan in at 20 yards and he keeps
dribbling and has goalie poke ball away at 10 yards for cornerkick.
49 min...Sigma Alfazy cornerkick from right is headed away by defender.
50 min...Sigma Buchanan checks Lions Alfazy off ball at 10 yards on left.
51 min...Sigma Thiantafillou taps pass to Sigma Stoddart who blasts 18 yarder from right that goalie stops.
Lions Rowe clears for cornerkick.
51 min...Lions sub...Abreu replaces Anderson.
57 min...Sigma Alfazy 20 yard freekick is low and into player wall and so is his rebound from same distance.
58 min...Sigma Walton 30 yard freekick from slight right is low and into player wall. Sigma players work ball
up right but is pushed over end line for goalkick.
60 min...Lions Gordon cornerkick from left has leaping Lions Reeves not able to turn header.
60 min...Sigma Buchanan run on lefet and lobs 25 yard shot from left that goalie easily catches.
62 min...Lions Rowe 45 yard freekick down middle has Lions Gordon at 18 yards on far left makes one-touch overhead
kick high and wide left of net.
63 min...Sigma sub...Ghaffur replaces Triantafillou.
.........Sigma sub...Lee replaces Alfazy.
65 min...Sigma Walton 28 yard freekick from left has goalie charge out to right and take ball off head of charging
Sigma Samuel in crowd of players.
67 min...Sigma ends up 2 on 1 rush from 35 yards but Lions Rodney-Scarlett gets foot in at 12 yards on right to break
up play.
.........Sigma YELLOW card...Gordon earns it for injurying Lions Rodney-Scarlett on last play with his slide.
69 min...Lions Reeves is injured at Sigma 35 yard line and needs trainer.
70 min...Sigma cornerkick from right has Lions Cordova head ball away.
72 min...Lions sub...Fairclough replaces Reeves.
72 min...Lions Gordon rush to near left end line and cross has Lions Corova dive while even with left post at 12 yards
and heads ball high and wide left.
73 min...Lions Goralski Goralski 35 yard shot from left is well wide right.
74 min...Sigma Stoddart taps pass and Sigma Gordon gets shot from 10 yards and goalie flies to left to push wide of post.
75 min...Lions Gordon is injured in Lions box after Lions goalie again dives to right to stop short kick.
77 min...Lionks sub...Mowatt replaces Cordova.
79 min...Sigma Lee passes up left and Sigma Gordon has ball poked away on left edge of box.
80 min...Sigma sub...Granic replaces Walton.
81 min...Sigma cornerkick from right is low and results in a quick break out.
84 min...Sigma Stoddart pass to Sigma Gordon and he shoots 18 yarder from left wide right of top corner. The ball boy had
given a Sigma player a ball for a quick throw-in to set up the play.
86 min...Lions Rowe 60 yard freekick down middle finds Lions Gordon on left and he runs along 18 yard line to middle
but falls over ball.
87 min...Sigma Stoddart 22 yard freekick from slight left is wide left of net.
88 min...Sigma Samuel makes big header to clear ball on Lions cross from left at 10 yards to prevent a scissor kick.
89 min...Sigma Duncan cross from right has Sigma Ghaffur dive forward and all hits him in back of leg so rolls away
from goal!
90 min...Sigma Frano pass has Sigma Stoddart blast 15 yarder on left well high on wide left on one-touch shot.
91 min...Lions YELLOW card...Nikolic earns it for tackle.
91 min...Sigma Stoddart freekick cross from 30 yards on right has Lions Rodney-Scarlett head away.
92 min...Lions Nikolic 20 yard low shot from far left is wide right of net.
93 min...Sigma Buchanan cross from right near end line has Sigma Gordon jump to left at 5 yards and send ball into net
but play is called offside.
94 min...Lions YELLOW card...Campbell the goalie earns it for delay of game on taking goalkick.
95 min...Sigma Duncan cross from 15 yards on right has Sigma Gordon not able to save it not going out.
96 min...game ends 5:56pm.

Final Score:...Sigma FC....0....Sanjaxx Lions.....0......

Attendance was about 70 on this warm and humid day. Unlike the game I saw here exactly a week ago, today
there were no airplanes coming in to land at two minute interviews. I don't know if it was the low
overhanging clouds or just a change in schedule.

This result was a big surprise for me. I was expecting Sigma to keep their 3-0-0 streak going but they
settled for a 0-0 tie.

Triston Henry earned another shutout for Sigma (their GF-GA record is 15-1) without having much to do.
Tayjon Campbell did the same in net for Sanjaxx but had to make some great saves.

This game had some rough spots with Sigma's Marcel Zajac suffering a rib injury at the 2 minute mark and had
to leave the game. Sigma head coach Bobby Smymiotis answered me after the game that Zajac had taken an elbow.
He didn't know yet how serious the injury is. He is the league's leading scorer with 7 goals. Teammate
Hilli Goldhar also had to be subbed off in the first half minutes after a collision with the Lions goalie.

There were plenty of other Sigma firepower chances with Tajon Buchanan hitting the post and then the bar within
one minute on two separate plays.

After the game while talking to the Sigma head coach I saw Cyle Larin kicking balls with the young ball
boys in today's game. HIs old MLS team Orlando City was on Canadian network television for a rare
appearance as they were playing Vancouver but he had come out today instead! He didn't leave Orlando on the
best terms. He was with Sigma since the age of 12. The kids were happy to see the club legend. I said hello
and talked to him about Canada letting a FIFA window go by without playing as teams like the USA were squeezing
in three games in the last two weeks as teams tune up for the World Cup and are anxious to get in some games.
Larin has finished his season in Turkey with Besiktas.

Earlier in the week I was expecting to stay here for a second match between North Mississauga
and Ottawa South United but that fixture was changed to Sunday afternoon. That left me less than two hours
to drive crosstown to see Masters FA against Toronto FC III.

Tomorrow I expect to drive to Hamilton to see the Women's International Friendly between Canada and Germany
so I won't catch any L1O games tomorrow.

Sigma FC starters