August 4, 2024...League1 Ontario...Woodbridge Strikers vs Alliance United game report (by Rocket Robin)

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Result and details of the Sunday August 4, 2024 League1 Ontario Premier Division game between Woodbridge Strikers
and Alliance United played at Vaughan Grove in Vaughan at 7:00pm.

Woodbridge Strikers (all blue uniforms, white numbers)

.........................1 Dante Ferraro
5 Carmine Fiore...4 Alex Meczarski...3 Gianluca Condello...27 Sebastian Cochrane
........2 Luca Pinto...8 Joe Mac...6 Jacob Spizzirri (cpt)
.......22 Santino De Bartolo...9 Ronaldo Marshall...13 Alexander Santillian

Subs:...76 Ezequiel Carrasco (gk)...10 Ignazio Muccilli...12 Alessio Lui...14 Santiago Almada
...15 Dujon Martin...16 Stenzel Mtienjem...20 Exosse Kadiebue...21 Alexander Wiktorek...23 Jordan Hendriks
team officials:...head coach Peter Pinizzotto...assistant coach Fabio Panetta...team manager John Scarlato
goalkeeper coach Kelvin Friseiro...physiotherapist David Lisi

Alliance United (white socks and shirts, black shorts and numbers, orange trim)

..........................1 Lucas Birnstingl
2 Shon Siegelwachs...5 Matthew Monteiro...8 Mehdi Essoussi...7 Nirun Sivananthan (cpt)
............12 Kai Garvey...6 Paul Ekwueme...13 Ife Adenuga
............9 Atchu Sivananthan...22 Michael Maslanka...11 Michael Osorio

Subs:...30 Liam Janicki-Zeballos (gk)...4 Quinton Chung...14 Kingsley Belele...15 Antonio Tripodi
...17 Volodymyr Kharyton...18 Jadon Lashley...19 Zak Drake
team officials:...head coach Ilya Orlov...assistant coach Eric Nelson and Cormac Rea...physical trainer Michael Silverstri
...physiotherapist Daniel Dalla Rosa...kitman Eric Silverstri

Game officials:...referee Fabrizio Stasolla...referee's assistants Twayne Anderson and Miguel Carrillo
...fourth official Liam Tremblay...(red socks and shirts, black shorts)...match commissioner Chiara Mondelli

First Half:...game starts 6:59pm...Woodbridge defends north end on this very hot and humid evening with a bright setting sun
in the north west.
A breeze picked up from the west before game time.
5 min...WS Spizzirri in open on slight left bends 22 yard shot that goalie palms up on the right post and catches on the way down.
6 min...AU Atchu Sivananthan rolls 25 yard shot from slight left wide left of net.
8 min...WS Marshall races for loose ball up right an rolls centering pass to WS Santillian who rolls 12 yard shot wide right
and he can't draw Penalty kick on knock over.
10 min...WS Mac chips 28 yarder from right over players in box and wide left of net.
10 min...WS Cochrane heads ball back to goalie to prevent 2 on 1 break from 20 yards.
11 min...WS De Bartolo midair 25 yard shot from right is well wide right.
12 min...WS Santillian passes ball from 25 yards on left just a step ahead of charging WS Marshall who does rescue ball on right
end line. He taps ball back and WS player shoots 15 yarder over net.
14 min...WS Cochrane and WS Marshall put back and forth crosses over AU box.
15 min...WS Santillian 30 yard freekick from slight left has WS players in crowd of players head wide right.
19 min...AU Atchu Sivananthan has shot blocked. AU Maslanka blasts 22 yard rebound off defender and deflects wide left for goalie
to pick up preventing cornerkick.
19 min...AU Garvey can't turn high pass over to right end line and out for goalkick.
21 min...WS Marshall midair cross from 15 yards has AU Ekwueme get foot high and wins cornerkick.
21 min...WS Santillian high cornerkick from left wins another cornerkick.
22 min...WS Santillian cornerkiick from left has WS Fiore in crowd of players head 6 yarder downward and bounces up for goalie
to catch under bar.
25 min...WS Cochrane run on left and high cross into box has defender make key header to prevent three WS players waiting on right.
30 min...water break called.
32 min...play resumes.
32 min...WS Santillian 40 yard freekick from left drops in crowd of players and WS players shot on edge of box is blocked by defender.
34 min...WS Marshall 28 8yard freekick from slight left bends high wide left of net.
34 min...AU goalie picks up 12 yard roller in crowd of players.
36 min...AU Atchu Sivananthan has shot is blocked on right then crowds 15 yarder over to AU Osorio at 10 yards who midair
flips 10 yard shot wide right. (the AU head coach shouted out for him to head the ball).
37 min...AU goalie beats WS Marshall to through ball pass on edge of box.
40 min...AU Essoussi low centering pass from left has AU player take 20 yard shot high and wide right.
41 min...WS Spizzirri and WS Cochrane give and go on left and defender deflects low cross over back fence.
42 min...WS Santillian cornerkick from left is high and out of play.
43 min...AU Maslanka stubs foot before getting weak 20 yard roller that's blocked and he can't win hand ball call.
43 min...AU YELLOW card...Siegelwachs earns it on delayed call.
45 min...AU Garvey runs to right end line and cross is over box.
48 min...half ends 7:47pm.

Halftime: Both teams subs warm up and AU starters stay on their bench rather than go back to the dressing room.

Second Half:...starts 8:02pm.
46 min...AU goalie is out to edge of box to smother through ball ahead of WS Atchu Sivananthan.
46 min...AU Nirun Sivananthan has run into left side of box and wins cornerkick.
47 min...AU Adenuga cornerkick from lelft wins another cornerkick when headed ball is deflected on way over bar.
48 min...AU Adenuga cornerkiick from left is cleared.
49 min...Alliance Michael Maslanka GOAL...AU Michael Osorio at 25 yards in middle rolls ball forward and to right
for open Maslanka on edge of 18 yard box. He steps forward and blasts 10 yarder from slight right over sliding
goalie Dante Ferraro into center of net.
49 min...WS YELLOW card...Spizzirri earns it for dissent after goal.
50 min...AU Maslanka run up right who rolls centering pass that AU Atchu Sivananthan takes too long to shoot and has 15 yard
shot blocked.
51 min...WS Cochrane high cross from 20 yards on left andd AU goalie catches ahead of leaping WS Marshall at 6 yards on right.
52 min...WS goalie has already signalled and referee's assistant has flagged ball was over end line before put back into play.
53 min...AU Maslanka race up right and blasts 25 yard roller that diving goalie stops at 8 yards and retreating defender clears.
54 min...WS sub...Kadiebue replaces Pinto.
55 min...the sun is now below the tree line.
56 min...WS Cochrane runs to left end line and low cross has AU Essoussi concede cornerkick.
57 min...WS Cochrane cornerkick from left has AU Essoussi head away.
58 min...WS Kadiebue 15 yard shot from slight right has defender block at 10 yard line.
59 min...WS Santillian 20 yard shot from near left end line is well over net.
60 min...AU sub...Lashley replaces Adenuga.
60 min...AU Osorio cuts towards center and blasts 25 yarder well over net.
62 min...AU sub...Belele replaces Garvey.
64 min...WS Santillian cornerkick from right has ball headed down in box but AU Osorio clears out left side of box.
65 min...WS YELLOW card...Kadiebue earns it for bashing goalie to get to 12 yard header into open net.
67 min...WS De Bartolo is injured.
............AU sub...Chung replaces Osorio.
68 min...WS sub...Hendriks replaces Santillian.
71 min...AU defender clears ball over own fence when WS player rushes upfield to rescue ball on AU end line.
72 min...WS Mac cornerkick from left is out to WS Cochrane who blasts 22 yarder from left between players and wide right of goal.
73 min...Au Atchu Sivananthan run on left nad cross into 6 yard box has defender clear.
75 min...AU YELLOW card...Monteiro earns it for knock down of charging WS Kadiebue.
76 min...WS Cochrane 25 yard freekick from left has goalie catch in crowd of players on near post.
77 min...a water break is called.
..........AU sub...Drake replaces Maslanka.
79 min...play resumes.
80 min...AU Drake is injured at WS 35 yard line.
81 min...AU sub...Tripodi replaces Siegelwachs.
............AU sub...Kharyton replaces Atchu Sivananthan.
............WS sub...Martin replaces Marshall.
81 min...AU Essoussi 35 yard freekick from right wins cornerkick on left.
82 min...AU Chung cornerkick from left has defender clear on near post.
84 min...AU Chung cornerkick from left has defender clear ball which is eventually chipped back into box and AU Tripodi has
shot deflected over bar.
85 min...AU Chung cornerkick from left has ball go out over end line on right.
86 min...AU Chung cornerkick from left is partially cleared and three shots on the edge of box are cleared.
87 min...WS Kadiebue and an AU player are injured in AU end.
88 min...WS De Bartolo cross from 25 yards on far right. AU Essoussi makes big leaping header that prevents WS player getting
to ball on left inside box.
89 min...WS Cochrane long throw-in from right is into box and AU Drake wins freekick when pulled down making clearance.
90 min...Alliance RED card...Zak Drake earns a direct ejection for late sliding tackle on Joe Mac who'd already
passed ball away at AU 40 yard line.
91 min...WS player's 45 yard freekick from left has defenders cover on edge of box and ball is poked through for easy goalie pick up.
92 min...WS Mac blasts 20 yarder over bar.
93 min...AU YELLOW card...goalie Birnstingl earns it for time wasting taking goal kick.
95 min...WS play on left is ran over end line for goalkick.
96 min...Woodbridge (AU own goal) GOAL...WS Sebastian Cochrane shoots low 25 yard shot that AU Mehdi Essoussi
swings leg to blast ball away at 12 yards but ball spins backwards on his clearance attempt and changes direction
to catch short corner of net past goalie Lucas Birnstingl guarding center of goal.
97 min... game ends 8:54pm...ie. before the kickoff after the goal.
Post game...Woodbridge RED card...Back up goalie Ezequiel Carrasco is shown the RED for arguing with the referee
after the game ends. (That I only caught from the L1Canada app and could see it on the quickly posted game
on the L1O YouTube channel).

Final Score:....Woodbridge Strikers.....1......Alliance United.......1.......

Attendance was only about 70 held in the middle of the long weekend. It was another hot and humid day with the weather people saying there'd be a thunderstorm all day which never happened.

Better shooting from both teams would have made it tougher on each goalie. The problem with the stopping the ball instead of one-touching a shot over the net was that by the time the shooter had steadied the ball, a defender stepped in the way and blocked his shot.

Referee Fabrizio Stasollo gave out five Yellow cards (three to Alliance) in a game with a lot of rough play. Two RED cards after the 90 minute mark with them both not really changing the strategy, one of them actually after the game ended and not Woodbridge's only card for dissent. Staff on both benches were warned about their infringement and bad mouthing but stepped back and shut up to not be carded. Stasollo had arranged a water break earlier at 30 minutes of each half which was greatly appreciated. The temperature began to fall right before game time and their was a refreshing cross field breeze from the west. The setting sun was finally below the treeline at the start of the second half.

This game hurt both team's chances to win the Championship. There's no playoffs so first place is everything...a trophy and a spot in next year's Canadian Championship probably a road game against a non-seeded MLS team because of the league's low co-efficient. CF Montreal?

By the time I got home the last game of the weekend was over...that was Vaughan Azzurri beating ProStars 1-0 a few km about one hour after this game ended.

Scrosoppi won on Saturday night and increased their lead in first place with a 4-0 win over Sigma FC. They finally used up their game in hand back on Wednesday with a 1-0 win over Hamilton United. When I had my interview with the Hamilton head coach two weeks ago one of the few points I forgot to ask about his team that hadn't won all season but held a scoreless tie with Scrosoppi. So holding them to one goal in two games will be one of their few happy talking points. Scrosoppi's record is now 10 wins, 5 ties, 1 loss for 35 points. Four games left to complete the season!

Vaughan is in second with a record of 9 wins, 6 ties, 1 loss for 33 points.

Woodbridge now has a record of 8 wins, 6 ties, 3 losses for 30 points and has played one game more than the teams ahead of them.

Alliance holds on to fourth with a record now of 7 wins, 6 ties, 3 losses for 27 points.

The PA announcer was promoting next week's home game against Scrosoppi. Hmm maybe except for that game when I look at the remaining schedule ending on the Labour Day weekend less than a month from now, Scrosoppi looks like they could run the table. Maybe the away game against a late streaking Simcoe County Rovers will be tough will be the last chance for Vaughan who have a much tougher schedule to try one last flip over them.

Rocket Robin
robin.glover.1958@gmail.com
X @RocketRobin01

Woodbridge Strikers starters