May 22, 2022 League1 Ontario...Vaughan Azzurri vs Simcoe County Rovers game report (by Rocket Robin)

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Results and details of the League1 Ontario Men's Premier Division game of Sunday May 22, 2022 between
Vaughan Azzurri and Simcoe County Rovers played at North Maple Regional Park in Vaughan at 8:30pm.

Vaughan Azzurri (all navy uniforms, white numbers, red trim)

....................1 Christian Calabro
15 Alejandro Portal Oliva...6 Justyn Thomas...19 Saahb Kular...3 Riley Ferrazzo
10 Jason Mills...23 Andron Kagramanyan...21 Dylan Carreiro (cpt)...5 Raheem Rose
..............9 Omar Marzouk...8 Orlendis Carlos Benitez Hernandez

Subs:...12 Anthony Gurrieri (gk)...2 Ryan Khedoo...7 Jahsua Mills...11 Zac Zitori
13...Joe Mack...16 Dilman Grewal...17 Jaytin Pabla...18 Baldwin Thomas Cerros
...20 Dujon Martin
team officials:...team head coach Patrice Gheisar...assistant coaches Anthony Vadori,
Carmine Isacco, and Jorden Felciano...therapists Katie Bartley and Casey D'Mello

Simcoe County Rovers (all white uniforms, black numbers, light blue sleeves, two light blue hoops on chests)

....................1 Richard Gomes
2 Tristan Gayle...3 Jarred Phillips...4 Illelabola Avolonto...21 Antonio Digiovanni
6 Jordan Dover (cpt)...15 Jah'moises Corona...19 Justin Earle...18 Gregory Moulopoulos
...............11 Shawn Claud-Lawson...20 Aodhan O'Hara

Subs:...5 Jadon Vilfort...7 Reshon Phillip...8 Trivine Esprit...10 Ethan Beckford
...12 Ryley Wishart...16 Tre Crosby...17 Kahill John...23 Samuel Diltz...24 Jacob Grant
team officials:...team head coach Jason Beckford...assistant coach Derek O'Keefe
...manager Ali Sozeri...equipment manager Sebastian Trinchini...therapist Taylor Ley

Game officials:...referee Fabrizio Stasolla...referee's assistants Joey Filipic and Daniel Jacob
...fourth official Nick Vagenas...(red shirts, black shorts and socks)

First Half:...Game starts 8:31pm...Vaughan defends sourth end on this cold night with the temperature dropping quickly.
1 min...SCR Corona 40 yard freekick from right is headed away on edge of box. The goalie then catches 35 yard chip.
2 min...SCR Moulopoulos bends 35 yard freekick from left wide right of net.
3 min...VA Marzouk rush on right then cuts over to center and bends 20 yarder high and wide left of net.
5 min...Vaughan Andron Kagramanyan GOAL...Vaughan Orlendis Carlos Benitez Hernandez threads through
ball pass from 35 yards up middle and Kagramanyan takes ball at 20 yards and shoots 15 yarder into right corner
of net beyond goalie Richard Gomes.
7 min...VA Carreiro 50 yard chip down middle is over net trying to catch goalie off line.
9 min...SCR O'Hara 35 yard freekick bounces between players for goalie to catch on bounce.
11 min...VA Benitez Hernandez tries through ball pass again but two defenders ensure VA Ferrazzo can't control ball for shot.
12 min...VA Marzouk rush on right and sends low cross between players to VA Rose who stops ball and sends low 8 yard shot
that has goalie dive left to push wide of post.
12 min...VA Carreiro cornerkick from left has goalie climb to punch away ball at 8 yards.
13 min...SCR Cluad-Lawson on breakaway at center is up middle but VA Portal Oliva catches him to poke ball away for throw-in.
14 min...SCR Digiovanni long throw-in from left has defender in 6 yard box head to right. SCR defenders pops over header
and goalie catches.
19 min...VA Marzouk eludes two defenders on right including slide in box but low cross has another defender slide to deflect
to slow ball for goalie to collect.
20 min...SCR Digiovanni long throw-in from right wins cornerkick on defenders header.
21 min...SCR player's cornerkick from right is cleared and rebound from 25 yards is stopped and cleared by defender.
22 min...SCR Corona 35 yard freekick from left sideline is headed away by defender.
23 min...SCR Moulopoulos 30 yard freekici up middle is just over bar.
24 min...VA Marzouk runs up right and dribbles to center but rolls 10 yard shot wide right.
VA Benitez Hernandez is hurt at center line early in the play.
28 min...Simcoe Jah'moises Corona GOAL...SCR Gregory Moulopoulos eludes defender on run up left and rolls
cross to center that Corona receives at 15 yards and shoots low into right corner beyond diving goalie
Christian Calabro.
29 min...SCR YELLOW card...Corona earns it for injurying VA Ferrazzo on right edge of VA box.
32 min...VA Benitez Hernandez is called for tripping SCR Phillips in SCR box trying to get to ball.
35 min...VA Marzouk receives long cross that bounced between goalie and defender but his cross along endline that
a VA player knocks into the net was already flagged out of play.
36 min...VA Portal Oliva is beaten at center but gets back 40 yards to break up play.
37 min...SCR YELLOW card...Moulopoulos earns it for tripping up VA Benitez Hernandez who had deked an SCR player.
38 min...VA Benitez Hernandez and VA Jason Mills on give and go play into SCR box up middle but Mills rolls return pass
too far forward and goalie picks up ball.
40 min...Vaughan wins Penalty kick from referee Fabrizio Stasolla with VA Orlendis Carlos Benitez Hernandez trying
to squeeze between two defenders in the box to get to high through ball chip and is pulled down. SCR defender
Antonio Digiovanni earns a Yellow card on the play and SCR's other defender in play Illelabola Avolonto is injured
on the play and needs the trainer.
42 min...Vaughan Orlendis Carlos Benitez Hernandez GOAL...OCBH blasts Penalty kick to top right corner
over flying goalie.
47 min...half ends 9:18pm.

Halftime: both teams return to the dressing rooms.

Second Half:...starts 9:34pm.
45 min...VA Carriro cornerkick from left bounces over heads and out right side of box.
47 min...VA Carreiro cornerkick from right has VA Marzouk on right post flick header through box and out left.
49 min...SCR Earle receives pass back and 30 yard shot up middle is caught by goalie.
50 min...VA Marzouk runs down right and crosses along end line that goalie catch on near post.
51 min...VA Jason Mills centers pass for VA Marzouk to blast 28 yarder high wide left.
53 min...VA YELLOW card...Portal Oliva earns it for argueing when SCR awarded freekick in play he wasn't involved in.
55 min...SCR Corona passes forward on right and SCR O'Hhara beat goalie to get to ball but 8 yard shot is stopped point blank.
56 min...SCR Esprit taps pass to SCR Digiovanni but 20 yard cross is over end line on left.
56 min...VA sub...Pabla replaces Portal Oliva.
57 min...SCR Earle ends SCR pressure with chip forward from 25 yards over left end line.
59 min...SCR YELLOW card...Dover earns it for trip on VA Benitez Hernandez at center line in front of referee.
62 min...SCR sub...Phillip replaces O'Hara.
65 min...VA Jason Mills touches pass to VA Carreiro for 10 yard short deflected over net by sliding goalie on right.
66 min...VA player's cornerkick from right over players in box but SCR defender concedes cornerkick.
66 min...VA player's cornerkick from left has ball cleared but VA player injured in box.
68 min...SCR sub...Wishart replaces Dover.
..........SCR sub...John replaces Digiovanni.
72 min...SCR Wishart rush up to right end lilne and finally cross to left and SCR Phillip heads 6 yarder to ground that goalie
dives and pushes wide left. SCR Avolonto is injured earlier in play.
73 min...SCR Earle cornerkick from right is cleared.
73 min...SCR sub...Vilfort replaces Moulopoulos.
...........SCR sub...Esprit replaces Avolonto.
74 min...SCR goalie is out to edge of box to beat VA Carreiro to through ball.
76 min...VA sub...Khedoo replaces Carreiro. Jason Mills becomes the captain.
..........VA Thomas Cerros replaces Marzouk.
76 min...VA goalie beats SCR Corona to bouncing pass.
77 min...VA Jason Mills chips pass forward that SCR Vilfort off balance header back to goalie ahead of VA Benitez Hernandez.
78 min...VA sub...Mack replaces Jason Mills. Thomas becomes captain.
...........VA sub...Zitoli replaces Rose.
80 min...SCR sub...Grant replaces Corona.
81 min...SCR Esprit cornerkick from right has SCR Earle head but ball tipped wide. SCR is really pressing now!
82 min...SCR Wishart cornerkick from right has SCR player head wide left from 12 yards eluding diving goalie and diving
SCR player on left post.
84 min...VA YELLOW card...Kagramanyan earns it for grabbing SCR Phillip at center line.
84 min...VA sub...Martin replaces Benitez Hernandez.
85 min...SCR Trivine Esprit 40 yard freekick from right lands in crowd of players in right side of box but SCR Jadon Vilfort
wins Penalty kick on left side of box when he's pulled down in crowd of players on that side of the box.
86 min...Simcoe Reshon Phillip GOAL...Phillips rolls Penalty kick to slight left of net as goalie dives right.
87 min...VA Kagramanyan mid air shot from 7 yards is tapped to goalie but must have beaten offside play.
89 min...SCR Wishart run down right and low 20 yard shot saved by sprawling goalie and defender clears rebound.
91 min...VA Martin heads 12 yarder down middle that goalie palms over net.
92 min...VA Moulopoulos cornerkick from right is cleared.
93 min...VA Moulopoulos cornerkick from right has VA Thomas head towards net.
94 min...SCR sub...Crosby replaces Earle.
95 min...VA YELLOW card...Mack earns it for kick on SCR Vilfort while trying to take shot.
96 min...SCR Grant 12 yard shot from right has goalie but down on near post.
96 min...VA player's 30 yard freekick from left is cleared and game is stopped as SCR breaks out.

Final Score:...Vaughan Azzurri......2.......Simcoe County Rovers.......2........

Attendance was about 350 people which must have been a record for any L1O game I've seen at NMRP.
The two sections of metal bleachers were filled with the overflow lining beside them up the east side
of the field. A lot of the fans were young guys of soccer playing age. There a few L1O players from
other teams here watching like from Pro Stars and Alliance United and even at least one guy from
North Toronto Nitros who must have driven here from Oakville after his team finished playing
Blue Devils FC a few hours earlier. Lot of 'oohing' and 'awwing' in appreciation of the skills
of the players with 'give and goes' and nutmegs. Some travelling fans supporting the Rovers including
their supporters group 'Barbarriens' who were behind the schoolyard style high chainlink fence behind
the north net. I couldn't hear them but they let off some blue coloured flares after the two Rovers
goals. At various times from at least two angles we could see fireworks from what were probably
professional/municipal organizations because they were higher than the trees. It is the Victoria Day
weekend so it wasn't unexpected once it got dark.

Each side controlled the action at different times in the game. The Rovers pressed at various times
with varying success. Even with 6 minutes of added time at the end there were chances for a winner
to take all the points. 91 minutes had Dujon Martin head a 12 yarder down the middle that the goalie
palmed over the net. 96 minutes had SCR Jacob Grant get a 12 yard shot from the right that the goalie
batted down on the near post. The same minute a VA player's 30 yard freekick was cleared
and the final whistle was blown as the SCR players ran upfield on a fast breakout creating an uproar.

The referee was Fabrizio Stasolla who I spoke to before the game. This was a weekend where he didn't
have a CPL assignment. Good choice by L1O giving him what could be one of the most high strung games.
This game had a lot of action for him awarding a Penalty kick to each team and giving out six Yellow
cards (four to SCR) and with both teams also maxing out the seven substitutions they are permitted
(well Vaughan only made six) for more strategic reasons then the often time-wasting involved or awards
for making those long bus trips. The players involved in that added time drama were fresh-legged
substitutes.

The weather got cold very quickly after it got dark to go along with the wind. I realized just
stepping out of my car that I wasn't dressed warm enough. Should I wear my windbreaker
or my hoodie? Hmm I'm glad that my hoodie is oversized as I ended up wearing both and was quite
comfortable. There were some parka wearing fans here and some folks got blankets out of their
cars to keep warm. Some crowd control barriers used to protect the construction equipment at the
top of the hill had blown over and I saw some tree branches down on the grounds but this didn't
look as bad as my neighbourhood and was certainly no Electric City/Peterborough damage-wise after
yesterday's storms.

This was the second tie for each team this young season which makes the rest of the competition glad
as coming into this last game of Week 5 this was a contest between the third and fourth place team.

If one team 'won' today I'd consider it the Rovers. They got the late goal to tie, this was one
of their toughest road games, and they came off a short rest as they were down in the GTA on Wednesday
night to play while Vaughan had not played since hosting Blue Devils FC last Sunday night
(hmm also a 2-2 tie).

Rovers are also having to adapt to forward Leaford Allen leaving to join a team in New Zealand.
This is there second game without him. He played for Blue Devils FC last season and Sigma FC
in year previously to that.

The result improves Vaughan's record to 3 wins, 0 losses, 2 ties for 11 points and Rovers' record
improves to 3 wins, 1 loss, 2 ties for 11 points. Vaughan stays ahead in third because of playing
one less game. Alliance United passed both of them last night with a 1-0 win against Sigma FC
to take over second place with 12 points. Good news for all the trailing teams is that
North Toronto Nitros 'only' tied in the afternoon against Blue Devils FC and have a 5 win, 0 loss,
1 tie record for 16 points. Top six teams make the playoffs. Top twelve (over two seasons) survive
in the Premier league with the division split between the 22 teams.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
twitter @RocketRobin01

Vaughan Azzurri starters