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Result and details of the Friday August 31, 2018 USL game between Toronto FC II and Atlanta United 2
played at Lamport Stadium in Toronto at 8:00pm.

Toronto FC II (all red, white names and numbers)

...................28 Caleb Patterson-Sewell (cpt)
36 Tim Kubel...35 Lars Eckenrode...49 Robert Boskovic...57 Terique Mohammed
50 Matthew Srbely...48 Dante Campbell...59 Noble Okello Ayo...46 Tsubasa Endoh
...............64 Shaan Hundal...56 Malik Johnson

Subs:...30 Borja Angoitia (gk)...20 Ayo Akinola (fwd)...37 Gideon Waja (mid)...38 Kyle Bjornethun (def)
...51 Malyk Hamilton (fwd)...55 Aidan Daniels (mid)
team officials:...head coach Michael Rabasca

Atlanta United 2 (all white, black numbers)

....................1 Paul Christensen
2 Tyler Ruthven...6 Andrew Kendall-Moullin...3 AJ Cochran...4 Jack Metcalf (cpt)
26 Jon Gallagher...8 Kevin Barajas...11 Laurent Kissiedou...41 Alessandro Castro
..............23 Lagos Kunga...18 Devon Sandoval

Subs:...33 Nicolas Caraux (gk)...29 Oliver Shannon (mid)...36 Jackson Conway (fwd)...43 Dylan Gaither (mid)
...47 Natnael McDonald (def)
team officials:...head coach Scott Donnelly

Game officials:...referee Pierre-Luc Lauziere...referee's assistants Chantel Boudreau and Peter Pendli
...fourth official David Barrie...(all black uniforms)

First Half:...game starts 8:07pm...TFC defends south end on this mild night with it not being as humid as earlier
in the week.
4 min...TFC Johnson is tripped up on edge of box on run down middle.
4 min...TFC Endoh freekick from 10 yards down middle hits head in player wall and deflects over net for cornerkick.
5 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right is flicked to left by header. TFC Johnson recovers ball and 25 yard shot
is through crowd of players and over net.
6 min...AU Castro misses connecting on tap-in from 3 yards on left post on AU Gallagher low cross through 6 yard box.
TFC Kubel is injured on the play and needs trainer but falls behind end line so play only stops for a freekick as Castro
ran past him to try to get to ball.
10 min...AU Kissiedou is injured at TFC 45 yard line.
10 min...TFC sub...Waja replaces injured Kubel.
11 min...TFC goalie is out to edge of box to beat AU Kunga to ball.
11 min...AU Lagos Kunga GOAL...TFC Noble Okello Ayo on right near center line receives backpass and surrounded
by two AU players rolls pass back towards TFC Lars Eckenrode at 40 yard line. Kunga charges forward to intercept
and keeps on until repositioning himself near edge of box with Eckenrode now getting in front of him. Kunga stops
with players of both teams running to edge of box and rolls screen shot from 12 yards on left behind Eckenrode
into right corner of net with goalie Caleb Patterson-Sewell frozen at 6 yards.
13 min...AU Kunga low 25 yard shot from right has sprawling goalie save at 8 yards and have enough time to crawl forward
and smother.
16 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right is over box and is behind end line on right.
17 min...AU Gallagher cross from 35 yards on right is well high and wide left of goal.
18 min...TFC Hundal slips up trying for knock down of a crossed pass at 10 yards in AU box.
19 min...AU Metcalf low cross from left end line wins cornerkick on defender's stop.
20 min...AU Metcalf cornerkick from left has defender head ball away in box.
20 min...AU Kunga low cross from 15 yards along right end line has AU Sandoval shoots off balance 8 yarder which sliding
goalie blocks also on right post.
21 min...TFC Campbell cross from 40 yards on right bounces wide left unplayed over end line.
25 min...TFC Hundal chests cross down at AU 8 yard line on left but is checked off ball.
27 min...AU Sandoval receives pass at 25 yards and shot deflects off sliding defender for cornerkick.
28 min...AU Metcalf cornerkick on right has AU Cochran head ball down and TFC partial clearance has AU Metcalf recross
and AU Cochran header in crowd of players win cornerkick off a defender conceding.
29 min...AU Metcalf cornnerkick from left is headed forward in crowd of players by AU Cochran at 8 yards but TFC player
heads ball down. Cochran bashes between defenders but TFC wins a freekick call.
31 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right bounces through box but is cleared and AU Kissiedou starts fast break out.
34 min...TFC Endoh 45 yard freekick has defender jump at 10 yards and head ball away.
34 min...TFC Srbely rolls ball from 55 yards but goalie dives out to 15 yards to smother before TFC Hundal can get to it.
36 min...TFC Campbell cross from 30 yards on far right is behind charging TFC forward and ball is unplayed out left side
of box.
36 min...TFC Endoh 30 yard freekick down middle deflects off player in wall and is wide right for cornerkick.
37 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right has TFC Eckenrode head 6 yarder on left post wide right of net.
38 min...AU Metcalf 45 yard freekick from left is called offside on AU Ruthven header on right end line.
39 min...AU Kunga cuts into box from right and 12 yard shot is saved. AU Kissiedou blasts rebound that deflects off defender
and Kunga is called offside.
41 min...TFC Srbely eludes a few tackle but is checked off ball at 10 yards in AU box.
42 min...TFC Mohammed cross from 25 yards on left has TFC Srbely twist 6 yard header wide left.
43 min...TFC Mohammed wins cornerkick on run on left on deflection of his cross.
44 min...TFC Endoh low cornerkick from left has TFC Hundal jab at 8 yards near left end line and send it wide left for goalkick.
45 min...TFC TFC Campbell cross from right is deflected through box by defender.
45 min...AU RED card...Tyler Ruthven earns it for retaliating against Terique Mohammed. Mohammed had dribbled
from the left cornerflag to the edge of the AU box and was squeezed by the check of Gallagher and Kevin Barajis
and couldn't draw a penalty. Mohammed got up and bodychecked Jon Gallagher who had just got away a clearance kick.
Referee Pierre-Luc Lauziere blew his whistle immediately to stop play but Ruthven came over and put his hand
in Mohammed's face who then went down. Sorting this out included the nearby referee's assistant and fourth official's
opinions meant that the one minute added became four.
48 min...TFC YELLOW card...Mohammed earns it for his part on last play.
49 min...TFC YELLOW card...Okello Ayo earns it for shoving AU Kunga after whistle was blown at TFC 50 yard line.
49 min...half ends 8:56pm.

Halftime Entertainment: There's a reminder to try freekick Anthony's Espresso coffee samples in the north end. There's also
a giveaway of an espresso machine to the loudest fan. Only the TFC subs including the back up goalie stay out at halftime to warm up.

Second Half:...half starts 9:11pm.
45 min...TFC Campbell wins corrnerkick on cross along right end line.
46 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right has TFC Boskovic flick foot on right but pass is over players in box.
47 min...AU Gallagher cross from right end line drits out of play.
48 min...TFC Endoh cross from 22 yards on far left has defender head b all away. TFC Srbely blasts shot up middle from 25 yards
between players but wide right.
50 min...TFC Mohammed low cross has TFC Hundal tangle ball in legs at 5 yards and tip wide left.
50 min...TFC sub...Akinola replaces Hundal.
51 min...TFC Srbely rush on right and 28 yard shot is caught by goalie on bounce.
51 min...AU Lagos Kunga GOAL...Kunga on right sideline at AU 50 yard line receives a pass upfield from Jon Gallagher
and turns on TFC Noble Okello Ayo and races upfield and at 25 yard line cuts towards center cutting in on defender
Robert Boskovic. He holds up shot then fires from 15 yards between Ekenrode and Okello and into middle of net
over flying goalie.
56 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right is cleared in crowd of players in box wide right for goalkick.
56 min...AU sub...Shannon replaces Castro.
60 min...AU Gallagher run up right and rolls cross through 6 yard box unplayed.
61 min...TFC Akinola knocks down cross and 20 yard shot on left wins cornerkick on defender's header.
63 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right is headed away and TFC Srbely 25 yard blasts is stopped and cleared by defender at 6 yards.
64 min...AU Kunga is fed through ball up left and wins cornerkick on tangle with TFC Boskovic and goalie on end line.
65 min...AU Metcalf cornerkick from left has AU Kendall-Moullin flick 5 yard header in middle just wide right of post.
66 min...AU Gallacher survives two checks and wins throw-in on 10 yard shot blocked by defender.
67 min...TFC sub...Daniels replaces Okello Ayo.
67 min...AU Sandoval high cross along right end line after a short throw-in is caught by goalie.
68 min...TFC Endoh cuts low 30 yard shot up middle that bounces for goalie to smother.
69 min...AU Kunga backheels ball to AU Kissiedou after run up left but Kissiedou's first touch is over end line on left.
72 min...TFC Endoh blasts 35 yard roller up middle wide left.
73 min...TFC Waja chips 40 yarder through players and it bounces to goalie.
73 min...AU Sandoval passes upfield to AU Gallagher and he runs to 15 yards near end line and then shoots over net.
75 min...TFC Waja is centered ball and his 30 yard shot is wide right.
76 min...AU sub...Conway replaces Kunga.
78 min...AU Metcalf makes key header to clear of TFC Mohammed cross into box.
80 min...TFC Endoh 30 yard freekick from right has TFC Boskovic head 15 yarder that flying goalie pushes wide right of the post.
80 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right wins another cornerkick after ball is knocked around in box.
81 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right has TFC Eckenrode shoot 10 yarder just wide left of post.
82 min...AU Barajas cross from right end line is cleared by defender.
85 min...TFC Campbell is tapped pass from TFC Endoh and blasts 30 yarder well high wide left of net.
87 min...TFC Endoh cornerkick from right has ball headed around and cleared.
87 min...TFC Mohammed cornerkick from left has leaping AU player head ball near left post over to TFC Endoh at 18 yards at slight
right who blasts low shot that sliding AU Sandoval stops at 12 yards. TFC Waja recovers at 40 yard line and chips ball down
middle that TFC Boskovic pops header back at 7 yards on left and AU player heads away at 12 yards. TFC Mohammed recovers
at 30 yards on left and eludes checkers and crosses 15 yarder along end line that goalie catches.
89 min...TFC Daniels is tapped back pass and blasts 30 yarder up middle wide left.
89 min...AU sub...McDonald replaces Kissiedou.
91 min...TFC Srbely low 20 yard shot that goalie dives left to push wide of post. TFC Daniels chips cross from left over players
to right but cleared.
92 min...TFC Matthew Srbely GOAL...TFC Tsabasa Endoh chips ball from 50 yard line on right all the way
to AU Andrew Kendall-Moullin who had run in front of Eckenrode and Ayo Akinola and headed the ball from 5 yards
on left post but straight back to Srbely who rolled 12 yarder up middle to center of net past sprawling goalie
Paul Christensen.
93 min...game ends 9:59pm.

Final Score:.....Toronto FC II......1......Atlanta United 2......2........

Attendance wasn't announced but the uslsoccer.com site listed it as 196 on this warm night with the
blinding setting sun down just before the game started. Another disappointing crowd as it turns out
there were 7557 fans here the next afternoon for a playoff game of second division English rugby.
One factor may have been with the CNE running just the other side of the railway tracks, parking
is about impossible.

Man of the Match (who is always a TFC player) was goalie Caleb Patterson-Sewell who had to make a few
spectacular saves in the first half to keep them in the game. I will say it is quite possible the
decision was made before Srbely's goal to give the sponsor enough time to prepare. Srbely had enough
chances to win the game on his own.

Srbely answered after the game “We came out flat and when they took the Red card we didn't take
advantage of it like we should have, it's just a learning experience. When they sat back like
that it's difficult to find pockets of space...so we have to get creative”.

Tonight was a battle of young teams with just TFC II players and none of their MLS roster
'dropping down' to stay in game fitness (frequently used Jordan Hamilton and Liam Fraser were
both flown out to Portland for Wednesday night's game). I'll trust the Atlanta website of doing
the math correct of averaging the players' ages as 20.7 for TFC II and 21.7 for AU2.

It was a mistake by the 30 year old defender Tyler Ruthven for running across field and retaliating
on the knock down at the end of the first half. It's always the third man in who will be dealt
with most severally. He had signed for the team just two weeks earlier after playing last year
with Miami FC of the NASL.

TFC had to make an early adjustment when defender Tim Kubel was injured at just 6 minutes and fell
behind the end line so play wasn't stopped after the resulting freekick and it took until 10 minutes
to get Gideon Waja stretched and ready.

The game wasn't actually rough. The halftime dust-up resulted in the only cards of the game including
the next minute when Akello pushed a player after a whistle.

Tsubasa Endoh took all the freekicks and cornerkicks in the game. He had scored three goals in the
last two games so I could see why. I felt a bit of variety would have helped. Finally after taking
a cornerkick at 87 minutes and the ball going out the other side, Mohammed took one that resulted
in one of their best scoring chances up to that point.

When asked after the game about playing up a man for the second half, TFC II head coach Michael Rabasca
said he told his players “'Let's not get desperate, just look for the right passes, do the right
things like we trained on'. We became a little impatient at times, our youth shone through maybe trying
to score two. We have to score a goal at a time. We just needed one and then there would have been
more pressure on them. Unfortunately it came too late”.

It would have been interesting what would have happened if TFC had scored 10 minutes earlier. The
crowd finally got into the game after that goal. Both goalies wore a teal coloured kit so that could
have caused trouble for the referee if the TFC goalie came into the AU box if TFC drew a late cornerkick.
The goal by Srbely came just a minute after a near identical shot was pushed just wide left of the post.
The goal came so late that the only play after that was an AU clearance out of bouncs of a TFC rush
that only reached 35 yards.

AU player won some late freekicks on TFC players desperate checking in the AU end and slowed paly down
with timewasting.

Kunga gave his own team a huge shot of confidence with that insurance goal at 51 minutes, his second
of the night scored with individual brilliance. Atlanta didn't change their game play including
confident backpasses and didn't resort to punting it upfield until the last 15 minutes.

Kunga is from Luanda Angola and is only 19 but counts as a homegrown player on their MLS roster as he
grew up in Atlanta and was on the USA national team at the FIFA U-20 World Cup last year.

Best non-scoring plays of the game were at 4 minutes when Endoh took a freekick from 19 yards up the
middle that hit a head in the wall and deflected over the net. 6 minutes had AU Jon Gallagher send
a low cross along the right end line and AU Alessandro Castro missed a 3 yard tap-in running in and
banging into Kubel's leg and spinning him around like a weather vane. 13 minutes had AU Kunga almost
score his second in two minutes when his low 25 yard shot from the right had the sprawling goalie
save at 8 yards and have time to crawl over and smother the ball. 20 minutes had Kunga send
in a low cross from 15 yards along the right end line and AU Devon Sandaval shot an off balance 8 yarder
which the sliding goalie blocked on the right post. 40 minutes had Kunga cut in to the box from the
right and had his 12 yard shot saved and AU Laurent Kissiedou then blasted the rebound that the
diving goalie stopped on the right post and Kunga was called offside before his rebound. 42 minutes
had Mohammed cross from 25 yards on the left and Srbely twisted a 6 yard header wide left of the post.
50 minutes had Mohammed send in a low cross and TFC Shaan Hundal had the ball tangle in his legs and
shoot wide left from 5 yards. 65 minutes had AU Jack Metcalf take a cornerkick from the left and
AU Andrew Kendall-Moullin flick a 5 yard header down the middle just wide right. 80 minutes had Endoh
take a 30 yard freekick from the right that TFC Robert Boskovic head a 15 yarder that the flying goalie
pushed wide right of the post. 81 minutes on his second cornerkick within a minute Endoh sent it
to Eckenrode who shot a 10 yarder just wide left. 87 minutes had Mohammed with his first cornerkick
of the game sent it in from the left and a leaping defender headed on the near post over to Endoh
at 18 yards and had his low shot stopped by a sliding defender. Mohammed would eventually get the ball
back and cross from the end line that the goalie caught.

I was somewhat surprised at the result. TFC II had won their first road game of the year 4-1 over
the 2017 champions Louisville City in a rescheduled game on Tuesday night. I was thinking they would
be able to build on that after winning three of their last six games (their only wins of the season).
Atlanta had also only won three games this season and hadn't won in seven games. TFC had the entire
second half with a man advantage which I thought they would exploit even though behind by a goal.

TFC II's record falls to 3 wins, 19 losses, 3 ties for 12 points and are in 16th place, last in the
East and are the first team to be officially eliminated from playoff contention (now that other
weekend results are known) by the sportsclubstats.com site. I'm glad TFC webmasters weren't playing
this up the entire year as their MLS team has got their now 2.4% chance weighing on them like
a boat anchor.

Atlanta improves to 4 wins, 13 losses, 8 ties for 20 points and are one spot above TFC II.
Both teams have a Goal Differential of -27.

TFC II's next game is against Ottawa Fury on Thursday night at 8:00pm here at the renovated
Lamport Stadium where the team will play the rest of their home games after playing at five different
venues. I just wish they could spend a few more dollars on replacing a few broken light bulbs on the
scoreboard particularly the minute hand. A rescheduling glitch has these two teams meeting twice
this month in Toronto with a desperate Fury ducking above and below the playoff line.

With the CNE on I wasn't going to take the Harbourfront streetcar and then be marooned inside the
grounds so decided I'd take the streetcar on King which now has almost a dedicated car free path.
Nope no luck! After 10 minutes of waiting someone walking up the stree said there'd been a big
accident up the street and the streetcars were marooned behind the accident area. I walked about
2/3s of the way there before they started up again. On the way home a subway jumper or prankster
caused a delay just one stop away from my train and we were stuck at the stadium behind until
power was restored. Another plus two hour trip home mskes me sick of the downtown.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
twitter @RocketRobin01

Toronto FC II starters