October 15, 2016 League 1 Ontario--Vaughan Azzurri vs FC London--League Championship Final (by Rocket Robin)

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Result and details of the Saturday October 15, 2016 League 1 Ontario game between Vaughan Azzurri and FC London
played at The Ontario Soccer Centre in Vaughan at 4:00pm. This was considered the League 1 Ontario Championship Final game.

Vaughan Azzurri (navy socks, shorts, and shirts, white numbers, red trim)

........................1 Colm Vance
2 Jarred Phillips...5 Daniel Gogarty...6 Adrian Butters...3 Joseph Amato (cpt)
10 Brandon Mills...8 Jason Mills...23 Joseph Di Chiara...7 Jashua Mills
...............9 Jarek Whiteman...27 Mario Kovacevic

Subs:...12 Shyon Gaeeni (gk)...11 Massimo Mirabelli...14 Tre Crosby...15 Marko Miketic
...25 Stefan Popovic...21 Adam Parda...16 Luca Tivisonno
team officials:...head coach Carmin Isacco...other team officials Patrice Gheisar, Wayne Mills, Esteban Clavijo,
Tony De Palma, and Jorden Feliciano

FC London (all lime green, black numbers)

.........................1 Anthony Sokalski
.........18 Parker Seymour...11 Petar Karan...15 Randy Ribeiro
8 Mohammad Reza Nafar...40 Alex Julia Franco...28 Brian Pistor...7 Daniel Amaya...5 Max Marsh
................9 Michael Marccocia (cpt)...10 Elvir Gigolaj

Subs:...20 Alex May (gk)...41 Abdulrahman Youef Al-Daqqaq...4 David Gonzalez...8 Sean Fawsitt
...44 Connor Wilson...92 Benjamin Vyfschaft...2 Willy Kashindi
team officials:...team head coach Mario Despotovic...manager David DeBenedictis...assistant coach Philip Millar

Game officials:...referee Armando Pereira...referee's assistants Bradley Doubrough and Adan Devenyl
...fourth official Hassane Rifai...(yellow shirts, black shorts and socks)

1st Half:...game starts 4:04pm...VA defends north end on this mild late afternoon with a bright sun in the south west. There's a wind from the south.
3 min...VA player long throw-in from left to VA Kovacevic and ball is knocked around and finally VA Whiteman crosses along right end line and goalie picks up left of post.
5 min...FCL Amaya rolls 25 yard shot up middle that goalie picks up.
6 min...FCL Amaya 25 yard shot down middle is over bar.
9 min...VA Adrian Butters GOAL...VA Joseph Di Chiara takes 22 yard freekick from left that has Butters on right post leap for to head in 3 yarder to short side and ball bounces down and into net between post and goalie Anthony Sokalski.
10 min...FCL Reza Nafar low 22 yard shot from middle is wide right.
12 min...VA Daniel Gogarty GOAL...VA Joseph Di Chiara takes 22 yard freekick from left end line and VA Mario Kovacevic squeezed near left post and ball deflects off him away and Gogarty in middle shoots low 7 yarder between crowd of players low to right corner of net.
15 min...VA YELLOW card...Di Chiara earns it for trip on FCL Amaya at FCL 40 yard line.
16 min...FCL Gigolaj pokes ball over end line on rush on right.
16 min...VA Phillips rush on right and 20 yard shot from far right has goalie palm from just under bar wide left.
16 min...VA Amato crosses in short cornerkick from left that defender heads away at 10 yards.
19 min...VA Di Chiara intercepts ball at 30 yards, runs forward to edge of box and crosses low to streaking VA Whiteman who shoots low 12 yarder that goalie dives left to push ball out of 6 yard box.
22 min...VA Jashua Mills run up left sideline but finally is checked off ball on edge of FCL box.
25 min...FCL Karan 30 yard freekick down middle is high and wide left.
26 min...VA Kovacevic is offside on one-touch shot from 22 yards.
28 min...FCL Amaya is injured at VA 33 yard line wins freekick.
29 min...FCL Ribeiro chips 35 yard freekick down middle and defender heads away at 15 yards.
30 min...VA Jashua Mills wins freekick being pulled down after long run up right wing.
30 min...VA Di Chiara 30 yard freekick from right has defender head away.
32 min...VA YELLOW card...Jason Mills earns it for tackle at FCL 40 yard line.
34 min...FCL Marsh cross from 18 yards on left is over to FCL Gigolaj who charges in to kick 5 yarder well over net.
38 min...VA Jason Mills can't win freekick on trip on edge of FCL box.
41 min...VA Phillips cross from 30 yards on far right has VA Kovacevic scissor kick ball at 8 yards on left that just misses top left corner.
46 min (first half)...VA RED card...Jashua Mills earns it from referee Armando Pereira. FCL Randy Ribeiro 30 yard freekick from left has FCL Elvir Gigolaj pop header up from 12 yards and ball lands wide right of net. A dust-up takes place near where the freekick was taken. Jashua Mills in the crowd of players gets in a head butt on an FCL player. [I confirmed after the game with fourth official Hassane Rifai and the referee]. VA head coach comes on the field to argue the call but since the half had ended he wasn't ejected.
49 min...half ends 4:53pm.

2nd Half:...starts 5:11pm...the temperature is cooling down.
halftime sub:...FCL Fawsitt replaces Amaya.
45 min...VA player's chip from 45 yards on left has goalie catch just ahead of charging VA Di Chiara at 12 yard line.
46 min...VA Kovacevic long run downfield in middle and rolls pass to right and VA Jason Mills has low shot from 22 yards tipped wide by defender for cornerkick.
46 min...VA Di Chiara cornerkick from right is partially cleared. Di Chiara eventually gets ball back on right and his low cross from 22 yards is grabbed by goalie.
48 min...FCL Marcoccia 22 yard freekick up middle hits head in player wall and is cleared to right.
51 min...VA Amato makes key stop and clearance of FCL cross at 10 yards in middle of box.
41 min...VA Whiteman long run down left cutting to middle and his low 12 yards hot is saved point blank by sprawling goalie and deflects for a cornerkick.
51 min...VA Mario Kovacevic GOAL...VA Joseph Di Chiara cornerkick from left has Kovacevic flick header from 8 yards on left that bounces at 2 yards across into right corner of net with goalie guarding left post.
54 min...VA Jason Mills low 25 yard shot on run down right rolls to goalie.
55 min...FCL Gigolaj run on right to elude defender but rolls cross over end line.
56 min...FCL YELLOW card...Ribeiro earns it for tripping VA Jason Mills at FCL 40 yard line.
57 min...VA Di Chiara lofts 40 yard freekick down middle that goalie catches.
58 min...VA gaolie out to 15 yards to beat FCL Gigolaj to FCL Reza Nafar through ball pass from 25 yards.
59 min...VA Jason Mills eludes three guys but rolls ball to goalie from 15 yards.
60 min...FCL YELLOW card...Franco earns it for tackle on VA Kovacevic.
61 min...VA Di Chiara 30 yard freekick from left has goalie catch at 8 yards on right.
65 min...VA Amato rolls pass over to VA Jason Mills on right who heads up for attempt.
65 min...FCL Karan shoots 8 yarder down middle wide right of post on through ball pass.
66 min...FCL Karan centered tap back pass and low 22 yard shot that's smothered by goalie.
67 min...VA Jarek Whiteman GOAL...VA Joseph Di Chiara receives throw-in near center line and turns to get by defender and runs to 35 yard line on left and rolls pass that a VA player lets get by him and charging Whiteman at 25 yards on left cuts into box and shoots 15 yarder under sliding goalie at 7 yards into center of net.
69 min...FCL sub...Wilson replaces Marcoccia.
.........VA sub...Miketic replaces Jason Mills.
70 min...FCL Mohammad Reza Nafar GOAL...Reza Nafar gets rolled backheel pass at 18 yards between VA defenders and his low 15 yard shot from right is into left corner of net under goalie Colm Vance diving at 6 yards.
74 min...VA Phillips long run down right and shot near right end line is saved.
75 min...FCL Gigolaj low 25 yard shot wide right of net. FCL Franco falls over with leg cramp on left side of box.
76 min...FCL sub...Vyfschaft replaces injured Franco.
78 min...FCL Wilson has 22 yard chip into box is stopped by sliding defender.
80 min...FCL Elvir Gigolaj GOAL...FCL goalie punts ball upfield from own box after defenders backpass which broke up a 3 on 1 VA rush and FCL Parker Seymour pokes pass forward at FCL 45 yard line just before a late sliding tackle knocked him over. An FCL player at VA 45 yard line on right taps pass over for another FCL player who centers ball for charging Gigolaj at 22 yards and his 18 yard shot down middle is under charging goalie who ran forward to 15 yards and ball pops up and Gigolaj follows up with 8 yard shot into right side of open net.
81 min...VA sub...Mirabelli replaces Kovacevic.
82 min...FCL Reza Nafar is called offside on short pass forward from FCL Karan at VA 18 yards into box.
84 min...FCL Reza Nafar dribbling up on left side of box deflects off him over end line.
86 min...FCL Karan cross from 25 yards on far right is off head of VA Amato for cornerkick.
87 min...FCL Karan cornerkick from right has defender make diving header to clear and FCL Seymour blasts 25 yarder down middle well over net.
89 min...FCL Karan 25 yard blast through players up middle and over net.
90 min...FCL players work out quick cornerkick from left and cross into box and FCL Vyfschaft has header from 12 yards stopped by goalie.
92 min...VA defender clears ball just inside VA box.
93 min...FCL Gigolaj rolls cross from 12 yards and has ball deflect off VA Amato at 6 yards and goalie dives to smother.
94 min...game ends 6:00pm.

Final Score:.....Vaughan Azzurri.......4.........FC London........2..........

Attendance eventually climbed to about 700 on this surprisingly mild and sunny mid October afternoon. Toronto FC II which uses this facility as their home ground would probably have counted this crowd as 1000.

Referee Armando Pereira gave out four Yellow cards (two to each team) that I counted along with the Red to Vaughan in a game that was mostly wide open. The checking wasn't particularly close and nothing close to what would warrant a Penalty kick.

MVP of the game (the prize was a gift certificate) was awarded to VA Joseph Di Chiara who I say assisted on every VA goal. The league doesn't track assists on their website so I compliment them making an outside the box choice. The two early freekick plays put Vaughan off to a perfect start and the second half cornerkick was crucial in knocking out FCL momentum of their man-up situation.

FCL spent too much time passing the ball around in their own backfield in the second half until it was too late and then on some desperate attempts later they were called offside. Vaughan forwards were still shredding FCL defenders even down a man on 2 vs 7 rushes. It would sometimes take the fourth defender to check them off the ball. Vaughan got burned on the final goal by having three men upfield and FCL countered for their goal at 80 minutes.

The VA backline of Jarred Phillips, Daniel Gogarty, Adrian Butters, and captain Joseph Amato shut down all FCL attempts in the first half making the opponents try low percentage long range efforts

Best non-scoring chances were at 16 minutes when VA Jarred Phillips ran downfield and his 20 yard shot from the far right had the goalie palm the ball from just under the bar wide left of the post. 19 minutes had VA Joseph Di Chiara intercept a ball at 30 yards, run forward to the edge of the box and cross low to a streaking VA Jarek Whiteman who shot a low 12 yarder that the goalie dove left to push out of the 6 yard box. 34 minutes had FCL Max Marsh cross from 18 yards on the left over to FCL Elvir Gigolaj who charged in to kick 5 yarder well over the net. 41 minutes had VA Phillips cross from 30 yards on the far right and VA Mario Kovacevic scissor kicked at 8 yards on the left that just missed the top left corner. 51 minutes had VA Whiteman make a long run down the left cutting to the middle and his low 12 yard shot was saved point blank by the sprawling goalie and deflected for cornerkick. 58 minutes had the VA goalie run out to 15 yards to beat a FCL Gigolaj to FCL Mohammed Rez-Nafar through ball pass attempt from 25 yards. 65 minutes had FCL Petar Karan shot an 8 yarder down the middle wide right of the post after receiving a through ball pass. Injury time had FCL Gigolaj roll a cross from 12 yards and the ball deflected off VA Joseph Amato and the goalie then dove forward to smother.

FCL players were presented with silver medals followed by VA receiving gold medals then the league championship trophy. The team name was already welded or stickered onto the wood base but I'm sure an FCL tag had been prepared as well. The team then posed in front of a league banner then in the north end net. Jushua Mills had returned to the field to be presented with his medal along with his fellow midfielder brothers Brandon and Jason and their father Wayne who is a team official.

I'd attended L1O league games this season plus the Cup final. That included three games of FC London visits to the GTA and only three Vaughan games (their Sunday afternoon home games started too early for my work schedule) plus their 1-0 Cup Final win against Woodbridge back at the end of July.

I saw FCL beat league punching bags Aurora United 4-3 while playing a man up back in July and lose to North Mississauga 4-2 at the end of August while playing up a man from the 12 minute mark which I wrote at the time--and still consider my 'game of the year'. Vaughan I didn't see lose but that wasn't a surprise as they'd only lost once this entire season.

I asked Azzurri head coach Carmine Isacco after the game if any of today's lineup would be in the York University tomorrow and he answered "Maybe one". They play a home game against Brock Badgers at 3:15pm.

The result now sets up the league's next series—The Interprovincial Cup against the league champions of Quebec which for the second year in a row are CS Mont-Royal Outremont. Last year Oakville Blue Devils won 5-3 on aggregate. The games will be held Saturday November 5 in Quebec and the return leg on Saturday November 12. L1O chair Dino Rossi said they'd rent two venues—Ontario Soccer Centre in case the weather is good, and Pickering Soccer Centre if the game needs to be played indoors because of poor weather.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca

Vaughan Azzurri starters