August 19, 2018 League 1 Ontario--Toronto Skillz Academy vs Masters FA Saints game review (by Rocket Robin)

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Result and details of the Sunday August 19, 2018 League 1 Ontario game between Toronto Skillz and Masters FA Saints
played at Birchmount Stadium in Scarborough at 5:00pm.

Toronto Skillz (red socks and shirts, black shorts, white numbers)

......................1 Peter Katsaras
22 Payman Mohammadzadeh...24 Tim Mahabir...12 Manssur Mobarak
11 Tomas Castaldo...17 Mackenzy Kropa...10 Wadohi Fadul...30 Anfal Ekhlas...9 Danial Khalili
.............7 Michael Jashan...25 Vithunan Sivakumar

Subs:...0 Francis Okotete (gk)...5 Zamir Mohammad...8 Mikael Khalam...16 Rinat Kassimgereyev
...21 Felix Mua Ngha...19 Mohamad Abdallah...34 Trevor Hill
team officials:...assistant coaches Ian Cummins and Jake Doodnath...manager Wais Azizi
...therapist Monique Wojcik

Masters FA Saints (all white, black shirts)

......................1 Spiridon Koskinas
3 Tristan Gayle...6 Eddy Dabire...5 Marc Jankovic...2 Adam Czerkawski
8 Aziah Reid...20 Maleik De Freitas...10 Jose Melo...15 Antoine Paul
..............70 Jose De Sousa...7 Milos Scepanovic

Subs:...00 Sebastian Zeballos (gk)...4 Joshua Lee...9 Cyrus Rollocks...13 Evan James
...14 Idean Zarrabi...16 Randy Durand Miss Miyenga...12 Bryson Brown...18 Joshua Da Silva
team officials:...team head coach Rick Titus...assistant coaches Pernell Mason and Rob Meikle

Game officials:...referee Fabrizio Stasolla...referee's assistants Ryan Schwenger and Daniel Boduryan
...fourth official Anthonyk Dimambro...(yellow shirts, black shorts and socks)

1st Half:...starts 5:00pm...TS defends south end on this mild late afternoon with the sun in the northwest.
3 min...MFA player's cross from left and MFA Gayle pops up shot from 7 yards but ball deflects out of box
for throw-in.
5 min...TS Jashan pushes into box after TS players pass ball from left along outside of box but he's checked
off ball and wins cornerkick.
6 min...MFA goalie catches cross from right after short cornerkick is worked out.
7 min...MFA De Sousa cornerkick from right is cleared.
8 min...TS Ekhlas run up middle eludes MFA Dabire and low 15 yard blast has goalie make point blank sliding save.
9 min...MFA goalie dives on end line to beat TS Jashan to dive on deflected ball. The MFA goalie is injured
in the collision.
10 min...MFA De Freitas ends pressure with tapped pass forward from 20 yards that no MFA player runs for so goalie
picks it up.
12 min...TS Khalili 30 yard freekick from left has MFA Jankovic pop up header for cornerkick.
13 min...TS player's cornerkick from right has MFA Jankovic head away in crowd of players.
15 min...MFA Gayle runs forward on right rescue pass pass from right and shot along end line is into outside mesh of net.
16 min...TS Khalili rush along 22 yard line from left towards center and cuts 22 yard roller directly to goalie.
17 min...MFA Scepanovic 35 yard cross from right is into box and headed down by defender and MFA Melo bicycle kick
from 15 yards is caught by goalie.
18 min...MFA Melo high cornerkick from left is cleared on right side of box.
20 min...MFA Melo 28 yard freekick from right has MFA Dabire pop up 10 yard header in middle that goalie catches.
21 min...MFA goalie steps forward to catch low cross sent in from right ahead of TS Sivakumar waiting for ball
at 8 yards.
22 min...TS Ekhlas short pass from middle to TS Sivakumar on left who bends 15 yard shot that goalie catches.
23 min...MFA Jose De Sousa GOAL...MFA Milos Scepanovic eludes fallen defender at 30 yards on left and rolls
centering pass to De Sousa at 18 yards and he rolls shot into left corner of net past diving goalie Peter Katsaras.
24 min...TS Khalili cornerkick from left is headed away by defender.
25 min...TS Jashan on 3 on 2 rush shoots low 15 yarder from right that goalie slides to save.
25 min...TS player's cornerkick from right is over goalie but MFS Czerkawski on left side of box heads away.
26 min...MFA goalie dives out to smother shot that spun off defender at 12 yards.
28 min...MFA Scepanovic takes off-balance 28 yard shot from right that's well wide left.
30 min...MFA De Sousa rush on left but his cross is well over box and out for throw-in. TS Ekhlas was injured
earlier in play by eye-poke at MFA 50 yard line and needs trainer.
35 min...TS Ekhlas rush down left and MFA Czerkawski keeps him from cutting in until he rolls ball over end line.
Ekhlas then goes down again with same recurring injury (the eye poke or head injury).
36 min...MFA YELLOW card...De Freitas earns it for tripping TS Jashan at MFA 35 yard line.
37 min...TSkillz Tim Mahabir GOAL...Mahabir blasts 35 yard freekick down middle into top left corner of net
over flying goalie Spiridon Koskinas. (Giovinco who?)
38 min...MFA Scepanovic 30 yard chip pass to MFA De Sousa who shoots down middle wide right of net from 12 yards
on volley.
39 min...TSkillz Michael Jashan GOAL...Jashan is passed back ball and his 12 yard low shot down the middle
is between a crowd of players into left corner of net.
41 min...MFA Melo blasts 25 yard shot down middle which hits TS Mobarak in the back at 15 yards as he dries
to duck and pops up for goalie to catch on jump just under bar.
42 min...MFA Scepanovic cornerkick from left wins another cornerkick.
42 min...MFA player's cornerkick from right is headed away by defender.
43 min...TFC Giovinco runs to end line but can't keep ball from crossing end line.
44 min...MFA Scepanovic pass over to MFA De Sousa who shoots 20 yarder well over net.
44 min...TS Ekhlas rush down left and low cross into box is cleared by defender in 6 yard box.
49 min...half ends 5:49pm.

2nd Half:...starts 6:04pm.
halftime subs:...MFA James replaces Reid.
.................TS Abdallah replaces Castaldo.
47 min...MFA player has 15 yard shot blocked.
48 min...TSkillz Mohamad Abdallah GOAL...TS Mackenzy Kropa while outside the right side of box
crosses over to TS Danial Khalili who blasts 15 yarder that goalie saves. Abdallah nods in 3 yard header
downward that spins slowly over the goalline to the left corner of the net.
49 min...MFA sub...Miss Miyenga replaces Czerkawski.
49 min...MFA player cornerkick from right is low and through box unplayed.
50 min...TS goalie smothers 8 yard shot up middle.
50 min...MFA sub...Zarrabi replaces De Freitas.
52 min...MFA Melo cornerkick from left is cleared from box. Melo recross from 25 yard line has defender
pop up header and goalie catches at 3 yards.
54 min...MFA Paul rush on let but cross is well over box.
55 min...TS Jashan rush down right eluding defender and cross into box is cleared by defender.
56 min...TS sub...Hill replaces Mobarak.
56 min...MFA James cross from 25 yards in middle has charging MFA Zarrabi not able to keep it in on right
end line.
58 min...MFA Jankovic jumps for header and crushes TS Fadul when he lands at TS 37 yard line injurying him
but Jankovic wins freekick.
59 min...MFA Melo chips 37 yard freekick up middle but MFA Jankovic is called offside on right heading
it across box.
61 min...MFA Melo 45 yard freekick up middle has defender head ball away between two MFA players.
62 min...TS sub...Kassimgereyev replaces Sivakumar.
62 min...MFA Jankovic heads 12 yarder receiving long cross from left that bounces and flying goalie pushes
wide left of post.
64 min...TSkillz Mohamad Abdallah GOAL...Abdallah is given a through ball pass up the middle beating
MFA Tristan Gayle and shoots low 15 yarder into right corner of net.
66 min...MFA De Sousa is called offside when he receives through ball pass and fires 15 yard shot wide right
before flag is even raised.
68 min...TS Khalili rush on left and cross through box where ball is stopped.
68 min...TS Ekhlas hits right post with 20 yard shot.
69 min...MFA De Sousa 18 yard shot has goalie fly and push ball wide left of post.
70 min...MFA Melo blasts 35 yard freekick which deflects off player wall and lands on top of the net.
70 min...MFA De Sousa flicks header from 15 yards which skims top of net behind bar.
72 min...TSkillz Michael Jashan starts a multi pass play that ends with TS Mohamad Abdallah winning
a Penalty kick call from referee Fabrizio Stasolla for being pushed over in the box.
73 min...TSkillz Mohamad Abdallah shoots Penalty kick low to left and the goalie dives and saves the shot
and the ball deflects directly back to Abdallah who then shoots a low 12 yarder that the goalie stops while
on his knees.
74 min...MFA Milos Scepanovic GOAL...MFA Jose Melo heads a ball forward from 12 yards and Scepanovic heads
a 5 yarder into the left side of the net.
75 min...TS Kropa is injured at TS 50 yard line.
77 min...TS Hill makes key header on MFA cross from right into box.
78 min...MFA Marc Jankovic finishes MFA sustained pressure with a 15 yard shot that wins a Penalty kick
on a hand ball call.
79 min...MFA Jose De Sousa GOAL...De Sousa blasts low Penalty kick to left as goalie dives right.
79 min...MFA YELLOW card...Zarrabi earns it for pull down of TS player at MFA 43 yard line.
80 min...TS sub...Mua Ngha replaces Fadul.
81 min...MFA Melo cornerkick from right has defender clear across box and MFA Jankovic head 12 yarder that
goalie catches under bar.
85 min...MFA Melo cornerkick from right has MFA Paul head 12 yarder over players and over bar.
87 min...TS Jashan rushes into box from right but he's spun off play and defender clears.
88 min...MFA Melo cornerkick from left has defender on near post head ball away.
89 min...MFA Melo cornerkick from left wins a Penalty kick when TS Mohamad Abdallah is called for a foul in the box
by holding an MFA player.
90 min...MFA Jose De Sousa GOAL...De Sousa rolls a Penalty kick to the right side of the net as the goalie
dives left. (see Giovinco? Mix it up!)
91 min...MFA De Sousa picks up ball after goal and runs it upfield and defender punches it away causing
a multi-player dustup.
91 min...TS sub...Khalam replaces Khalili.
92 min...MFA player heads ball wide left of TS net.
93 min...TS Kassimgereyev eludes two defender at center line and runs up left but eventually wins cornerkick.
94 min...TS player cornerkick from left starts frantic play in MFA box and TS Mua Ngha wins freekick when pushed
over just outside box.
96 min...TS Mahabir blasts 19 yard freekick down middle well over net.
96 min...game ends 6:55pm.

Final Score:...Toronto Skillz.......4.......Masters FA Saints.......4........

*the L1O website listed TS players Rinat Kassimgereyev, Mackenzy Kropa, and Anfal Ekhlas
receiving Yellow cards but I didn't notice any of them.

Attendance climbed to about 60 as the game wore on and sounded pro-MFA. Both teams' stadiums are on Birchmount Avenue
in Scarborough with MFA being at around '3000' in the city's north end and Skillz' Birchmount Stadium being
maybe '100' right near Lake Ontario.

There was definitely a turning point in this game but it wouldn't be obvious at the time. If Spiridon Koskinas
doesn't stop that Penalty kick at 73 minutes it would be 5-1 rather than MFA marching upfield and closing to 4-2
a minute later. Skillz were definitely hanging on after that and having two Penalty kick calls against them were
signs of panic.

This was a game where at times the action moved too fast to write it all down. This game wasn't Livestreamed but
will show up on the L1O website within a few days with just crowd noise. If you only had time to play one game
this season...this would be it!

The best non-scoring chances that I did catch were at 8 minutes when TS Anfal Ekhalas ran up the middle eluding
MFA Eddy Dabire and sending a low 15 yard blast which forced the goalie to make a point blank sliding save. 17 minutes
had MFA Milos Scepanovic send in a 35 yard cross from the right into the box that was headed down by a defender
and MFA Jose Melo bicycle kicked from 15 yards that had the goalie catch. 25 minutes had TS Michael Jashan
on a 3 on 2 rush rather than pass shoot a low 15 yarder from the right that the goalie slid to save. 62 minutes
had MFA Marc Jankovic receive a long cross from the left and heads a 12 yarder that bounces and the flying goalie
pushes the ball wide left of the post. 69 minutes had TS Ekhalas hit the right post with a 20 yard shot. That same
minute MFA Jose De Sousa took an 18 yard shot that the TS goalie had to fly over and push the ball wide left
of the post. Next minute MFA Melo blasts a 35 yard freekick which deflects off the player wall and pops high
and lands on the top of the net. That same minute MFA De Sousa flicks a header from 15 yards which skims the top
of the net just behind the cross bar. 81 minutes had Melo with a cornerkick from the right that had a defender
flick across the box and Jankovic headed a 12 yarder that the goalie caught under the bar.

It is usually Master's who leave points on the table by giving up late goals to end with a tie or a loss so
a comeback like this was inspirational for them and had their fans cheering.

I saw some Master's players arriving while their teammates were warming up. The game roster had three write-in
candidates displacing some preprinted ones since being prepared possibly earlier that day. Milos Scepanovic was
one and it would be hard to believe there would be any comeback without him. I notice that Scarborough United
of the outlawed CSL had a 6:30pm game but it was in Hamilton so thankfully coach Rick Titus must have won out.
The CSL doesn't publish rosters and only name drops if a player scores a goal but I've seen Scepanovic be mentioned
for his goal prowess in previous weeks playing for them.

While the game was exciting including the last minute of injury time when Skillz Idean Zarrabi blasted his 19 yard
freekick well over the net, this tie result went a long way to eliminating both teams from playoff contention.

While Master's record improves to 2 wins, 4 losses, 6 ties for 12 points, they remain alone in twelfth place with
only four games to go. This was MFA's eighth game in a row without a win.

Skillz' record improves to 3 wins, 9 losses, 1 tie for 10 points, they move into a tie for thirteenth with Ottawa
who I had just seen lose against TFC III a few hours earlier. Only three games left for them.

Other weekend results left the playoff points bar at 14 but both these teams are running out of time.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
twitter @RocketRobin01

Toronto Skillz starters