September 26, 2018 USL Toronto FC II--Toronto FC vs Ottawa Fury FC game review (by Rocket Robin)

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

Results and details of the September 26, 2018 USL game between Toronto FC II and Ottawa Fury FC
played at Lamport Stadium in Toronto.

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

...................28 Caleb Patterson-Sewell (cpt)
36 Tim Kubel...38 Kyle Bjornethun...49 Robert Boskovic...57 Terique Mohammed
..............27 Liam Fraser...48 Dante Campbell
..........54 Ryan Telfer...11 Jon Bakero...46 Tsubasa Endoh
..................20 Ayo Akinola

Subs:...30 Borja Angoitia (gk)...50 Matthew Srbely (mid)...55 Aidan Daniels (mid)...56 Malik Johnson (mid)
...58 Jordan Faria (mid)...59 Nobel Okello Ayo (mid)...64 Shaan Hundal (fwd)
team officials:...head coach Michael Rabasca

Ottawa Fury FC (all white, black shoulders, names and numbers)

...................16 Maxime Crepeau
9 Carl Haworth (cpt)...20 David Edgar...26 Thomas Meilleur-Giguere...3 Eddie Edward
99 Tony Taylor...5 Christ Mannella...80 Cristian Portilla...30 Adonijah Reid
..............8 Steevan Dos Santos...2 Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare

Subs:...12 David Monsalve (gk)...6 Sergio Manesio (mid)...17 Azake Luboyera (mid)...22 Jamar Dixon (mid)
...24 Jimmy-Shammar Sanon (mid)
team officials:...head coach Nikola Popovic (although Julian de Guzman was on the bench tonight)

First Half:...game starts 6:07pm...TFC defends south end on this mild night with a bright sun in the west.
3 min...OF Portilla cornerkick from right has goalie punch away in crowd of players but play whistled down.
4 min...TFC Telfer cornerkick from right has OF Edgar head away at 12 yards in middle.
6 min...OF Portilla cornerkick from right is over players in box snd bounces out for goalkick.
7 min...TFC Telfer freekick from 30 yards on right is floated up and goalie catches on left post.
9 min...OF Haworth shot from 25 yards on right is wide left. OF Reid rescues ball on left end line and passes
back but OF Taylor is checked off ball at 12 yards.
10 min...OF Portilla 25 yard freekick from far left has OF Dos Santos head 6 yarder up middle wide right of post.
15 min...TFC YELLOW card...Campbell earns it for pulling down OF Reid on run down left at 35 yard line.
.........OF YELLOW card...Mannella earns it in resulting dust up.
16 min...OF Portilla 40 yard freekick is cleared after header on right by defender's clearance.
16 min...OF Reid 25 yard shot is blocked by TFC Bjornethun at 20 yards.
18 min...OF Haworth chips ball at 15 yards forward and TFC goalie crashes with OF Taylor raised foot on end line
and both are injured. TFC goalie needs the trainer.
........OF YELLOW card...Taylor earns it for his high boot on the last play.
20 min...TFC Endoh low cross from 25 yards on left has defender duck and head ball away at 12 yards in middle.
21 min...TFC Endoh has 15 yard shot from left is blocked by OF Haworth starting fast breakout.
22 min...OF Edgar makes big stop on edge of box to stop TFC Akinola to charging TFC Endoh pass.
23 min...TFC Mohammed and TFC Campbell both have shot in box blocked.
24 min...OF Taylor beats TFC Fraser on run to right end line but his rolled cross into box is unplayed.
27 min...OF Portilla freekick from 28 yards on far left has OF Dos Santos leap and pop 10 yard header over net.
28 min...OF Taylor rescues ball on right end line a d run into box where he has 8 yard shot blocked by defender.
30 min...TFC Kyle Bjornethun heads down long chipped pass from Fury player at 23 yard line on left but the ball deflects off foot
of Tim Kubel two yards away and rolls back towards goal and Fury Adonijah Reid who had been sandwiched between the two defenders
suddenly finds himself in alone at top left side of box and gets to near edge of 6 yard box while lining up shot and Kubel puts his
knee out and pushes him over. Referee Yusri Rudolf whistles for a Penalty kick. Goalie Caleb Patterson-Sewell stands over Reid
gesturing at him and Reid gets up and pushes the goalie twice.
30 min...OF YELLOW card...Reid earns it for his part in last play.
31 min...Toronto FC II 0-1 Ottawa Fury FC Steevan Dos Santos blasts his Penalty kick to the left side over flying goalie
Caleb Patterson-Sewell.
34 min...OF Reid has heel clipped in TFC box on left deking defender but gets away cetnering pass that ends up winning throw-in.
36 min...OF Haworth long throw-in from right ends up with OF Edward running ball over left end line.
37 min...OF Haworth 30 yard freekick from right has goalie catch overhead on left side of net.
39 min...TFC Mohammed high cross from 25 yards on left is over box and OF Edward wins freekick when TFC Campbell jumps on his back
on header attempt near right end line.
40 min...TFC Telfer 25 yard cross from left has goalie catch on right post.
44 min...OF Edgar checks TFC Telfer before he can get 10 yard shot but TFC win cornerkick.
44 min...TFC Telfer cornerkick is low and nearest defender clears.
45 min...TFC Endoh 33 yard freekick from left has defender behind crowd of players head away at 15 yards.
45 min...TFC Bjornethun midair shot at 18 yards on right is stopped by defender.
46 min...OF goalie charges to 12 yards to catch ball ahead of TFC Endoh.
47 min...half ends 6:54pm.

Halftime entertainment: There's the usual giveaway of an Antony's espresso machine to the loudest fan.

Second Half:...starts 7:09pm.
45 min...OF Taylor can't win Penalty kick on 1 v 5 rush into box.
The singing fans arrive to support TFC. There's about 20 of them.
46 min...TFC Telfer cross from right end line to TFC Akinola who stops it but checked off ball at 12 yards on left.
47 min...TFC Campbell gets back to prevent OF Dos Santos lining up 12 yard kick.
48 min...OF Portilla cornerkick from right has goalie palm ball through box for throw-in.
48 min...OF Edward long throw-in from left has defender clear away.
50 min...OF Reid rescues ball on middle edge of TFC box and eludes two defenders and 15 yard shot from left has
goalie fly right to catch.
51 min...OF Portilla 45 yard freekick from left has defender head ball away. Eventually he gets second chance
at 35 yards on left has another defender head away in box.
53 min...TFC Boskovic heads ball back to goalie on right but it's messed up to give away a cornerkick.
53 min...OF Haworth cornerkick from right is out for OF Edgar at 30 yards down middle but he shanks shot.
54 min...TFC YELLOW card...Mohammed earns it for shirt grab on OF Dos Santos at 45 yard line on right.
56 min...TFC players on two man run up left side push ball over end line before they can cross.
57 min...OF Dos Santos pass from 40 yards in middle to right and OF Taylor low 25 yard shot is easy save for goalie.
58 min...TFC Bakero is checked off ball in OF box on first and second time of possession.
60 min...TFC Baker bends 30 yard shot from right wide left of net after TFC Kubel had flattened OF Dos Santos just
outside box.
61 min...OF Dos Santos breaks up middle and 30 yard shot is over fence and hits team bus in parking lot.
63 min...TFC Bakero is chested back pass and his 30 yard blast down middle is well high and wide right.
66 min...OF Dos Santos 25 yard shot from right is caught by goalie.
68 min...TFC Telfer can't rescue long pass before it goes over left end line.
69 min...OF sub...Luboyera replaces Taylor.
70 min...OF player's freekick is a pass and then OF Dos Santos has 10 yard goal up middle called offside.
71 min...TFC Telfer cornerkick from left is short to TFC Bakero and back to Telfer who runs it over end line trying
to deke defender.
72 min...TFC sub...Hundal replaces Kubel.
.........TFC Okello Ayo replaces Mohammed.
73 min...OF Edward long throw-in from left is caught by goalie on bounce.
74 min...TFC Endoh 30 yard cross from right has defender head away.
77 min...TFC Endoh 30 yard freekick from right has ball headed down at 8 yards and the OF players make a fast breakout.
79 min...TFC Okello Ayo heads away long throw-in from right into box.
80 min...OF Portilla 40 yard freekick from right has charging OF Edward head 10 yarder that goalie catches.
80 min...OF sub...Dixon replaces Gagnon-Lapare.
81 min...OF Porilla 45 yard freekick from left is caught by goalie.
82 min...OF Haworth cornerkick from left is sent low to near post and diving OF player pops header over the crowd
of players and TFC Bjornethun runs it out on right side.
84 min...TFC sub...Srbely replaces Akinola.
85 min...OF Dos Santos chips quick 30 yarder down middle is high and wide left.
88 min...TFC Srbely can't win Penalty kick on OF Edgar sliding block just inside top right corner of box he flips over
him and a goalkick is given.
90 min...TFC Endoh is injured near center line.
........OF sub...Sanon replaces Dos Santos.
91 min...TFC Srbely has cross along end line saved by defender who stops and clears ball.
92 min...OF YELLOW card...Sanon earns it for not giving 10 yards on a center line freekick.
93 min...OF Meilleur-Giguere makes sliding tackle in OF box to give up throw-in.
94 min...game ends 7:58pm.

Final Score:.....Toronto FC II......0....Ottawa Fury FC......1.....

Attendance was not announced but the USL website listed it as 107. That was exactly 100 less
than TFC II s last home game which was also against Ottawa almost three weeks ago. The game
was played at 6:00pm which is an unusual starting time for a weeknight but the game was
rescheduled from March 31st when BMO Field was in rough shape weather wise and overused
hosting the senior team's MLS games and CCL run. The head of security at Lamport answered
me that the grounds were rented out later for other permit holders and when I looked back
waiting for the streetcar I could see some beer- leaguers practising.

Maxime Crepeau earned the shutout for the Fury tonight. It was his 14th of the season
and breaks all kinds of records including the USL most-in-a-season one and the Fury's team
record back to their NASL days. TFC II made it easy for him with no shots on net. Last time
these teams played it was a 4-3 shootout but Crepeau was away with the Canadian National team
and David Monsalve played and Borja Angoitia was the TFC goalie and allowed a goal directly
from a cornerkick. Tonight's defensive work on both teams was much improved.

Liam Fraser and Dante Campbell both played as defensive midfielders and sometimes ended
up on the backline to help out the four defenders with outside cornerbacks Tim Kubel
and Terique Mohammed often venturing up the wings. Interesting that in the last few MLS
games Michael Bradley has been playing center back. Fraser has been deemed by some as the
successor* to the aging Bradley and he was mirroring his positioning tonight. *Unless Mr TAM
or Mr GAM are brought in to replace him. Steady and reliable center back Robert Boskovic
was named by the TFC sponsor as Man of the Match.

Tsubasa Endoh was kept silent again for the second game in a row after his hat trick
against FC Cincinnati. TFC was shut out 4-0 away against Bethlehem on the weekend. Today
he shared freekick and cornerkicks with fellow midfielder Ryan Telfer. Former TFC MLS team
Endoh has not made any MLS appearances since being re-signed midway through this year.
Telfer, Liam Fraser and Jon Bakero, who could do little tonight, were the only other
MLS experienced players on the roster.

TFC II manager Michael Rabasca did try to shake things up at 72 minutes to get some more
offence going with a double swap of offensive players Shaan Hundal and Noble Okello replacing
defenders Terique Mohammed and Tim Kubel. His final move was a 84 minutes with midfielder
Matt Srbely replacing the mostly ineffective lone forward Ayo Akinola. Srbely was on the
field four minutes and had a fair claim for a Penalty kick but David Edgar's sliding tackle
got the ball at the top of the box even with Srbely flipping over him. The USL soccer
website listed Edgar as its Man of the Match for 'two interceptions and five clearances'.

Fury subbed in their max three players but from a selection of only four outfielders plus
goalie Monsalve on the bench.

Team stats have Fury out-shooting TFC 10 to 4 with Fury leading 4-0 with shots on target.
The home team led 72% in possession and 617 passes (vs 240) with lots of them between the
six defensive field players while Fury were waiting to counterattack and send long balls
upfield looking for a big play.

Best scoring chances were at 18 yards when Fury Carl Haworth chipped a ball at 15 yards
forward and the TFC goalie crashed with OF Tony Taylor on the end line and both were injured.
Taylor earned a Yellow for his high boot. 50 minutes had Reid rescuing a ball on the edge
of the box then elude two defenders and get away a 15 yard shot from the left that the goalie
flew right to catch. 80 minutes had OF Cristian Portilla take a 40 yard freekick from
the right that the charging OF Eddie Edward headed a 10 yarder down the middle that
the goalie caught.

Head coach Rabasca said after the game “We were confident on the ball, good in moments
and better in the first half before they adjusted. It was a good performance by our
young group”. He said they face a lot of counterattacking teams and credit to them they
did what they had to do to sneak out of here with the points. He felt like they had enough
chances and TFC were the better team. On this game compared to the Bethlehem game;
“What we expect them to do and the criticism they received after that game, I'm pleased
with this performance. We have a lot of positives to take away, the focus, workrate,
and willingness to learn we'll be happy”. On keeping the goals against down: “We didn't
have those mistakes tonight, our defender on an individual level was far better than
those previous games. On defender Robert Boskovic “He did well tonight, Steevan Dos Santos
is a strong player with some unique things about his games in terms of how he can manage
and not manage the referee, Boskovic handled that well”.

Boskovic answered after the game “We were good behind the ball. We were tough to break down.
It was definitely a tough night. It was a learning point in keeping the goals against down.
From last week to this week it was way better and definitely a positive performance. We can
build off and take it into Charleston on Saturday”.

This will be the end of the Ontario Derby but not for the initially expected reason. Ottawa
is staying in the USL instead of joining the new Canadian league—which I think they would
dominated if they kept their roster. They meet those requirements with 2/3s Canadians
on the roster. The CPL rules have recently been announced as 50% Canadian. TFC II have
a 2/3s Canadians roster too.

It's TFC II who are self-relegating themselves to the new USL D3 which has already changed
it's name to USL League One this week. Lots of flash in the league's re-brand with
“Ball in motion, 13 stripes the same as our flag”. I freeze-framed on a tile map
of a stylized North America and counted only 8 tiles including Toronto for the new division.
I hope TFC likes multiple road trips to Arizona.

TFC II's record falls to 3 wins, 4 ties and 23 losses for 13 points and bottom of the
sixteen team Eastern Conference.

Ottawa improves to 13 wins, 5 ties, and 14 losses for 44 points and good for seventh place.
Their problem is they have only two games left and New York Red Bulls have 42 with four games
to go and North Carolina have 41 with five games remaining. That's three teams dueling
for the last two playoff spots. The higher ceded team has the home date in all rounds
of the one game playoffs so conference quarterfinal, semifinal, final, then cross over
to the western conference winner all on the road will be a tough ask. The eastern leaders
FC Cincinnati on a nine game win streak and twenty game unbeaten streak are just waiting
to rip through these teams as they are waiting to join MLS next season.

No time for TFC II to rest as they have a road game on Saturday night against Charleston
before their final home game Friday October 5th against Louisville.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
twitter RocketRobin01

Toronto FC II starters