July 31, 2022 League1 Ontario...Woodbridge Strikers vs Blue Devils FC game report (by Rocket Robin)

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

Results and details of the League1 Ontario Men's Premier Division game of Sunday July 31, 2022
between Woodbridge Strikers and Blue Devils FC played at Vaughan Grove in Vaughan at 7:00pm.

Woodbridge Strikers (all blue uniforms, white numbers)

....................1 Shafique Wilson
19 Tyler Miranda...4 Alex Meczarski (cpt)...5 David Mutembezi...12 Luca Pinto
6 Patrick Braun...25 Santiago Muniz Saavedra...22 Santino De Bartolo...24 Sheikh Mehboob
..............20 Kadiebue Kadiebue...7 Aziah Reid

Subs:...76 Markland Simpson (gk)...3 Matthew Trasente...9 Abdou Raouf Mohamed...10 Ignazio Muccilli
...11 Dante Pavan...13 Noah Macintyre...14 Paulo Migotto...15 Gianluca Condello...21 Santiago Bueno
team officials:...team head coach Peter Pinizzotto...assistant coach Michael Aquino...manager John Scarlato
...theapists David Lisi and Muhammet Furkan Demir

Blue Devils FC (white socks and shirts, navy shorts and numbers)

.....................1 Lucas Birnstingl (cpt)
12 Mario McLennon...5 Shaq Lowe...6 Adam Czerkawski...3 Luka Frankovich
19 Matheus Mello...17 Brandon Duarte...18 Dre Neptune...20 Gianluca Spadafora
................16 Khody Ellis...9 Taha Ilyass

Subs:...25 Sam Diltz (gk)...2 Michael Krzenminski...8 Mo Shamkhi...11 Navid Rahman
...15 Antonio Sereno...22 Marcus Niviere
team officials:...team head coach Duncan Wilde...assistant coach Billy Steele...manager Kim Ashton
...therapist Deon Jajalla

Game officials:...referee Nivin Raizada...referee's assistants Kurtis Portengen and Michael Konstantopoulos
...fourth official Roshan Mendonca...(red shirts and socks, black shorts)

First Half:...game starts 7:03pm...W defends south end on this hot evening with a bright sun in the west.
1 min...W Kadiebue receives throw-in on left end line and cross is into outside webbing of net.
1 min...BD Duarte low 25 yard shot from left is between players and smothered by goalie.
4 min...BD Ellis eludes two defenders on run down right. BD Ilyass receives rolled centering cross and rolls 20 yard shot
wide left.
7 min...BD Ellis 15 yard shot near left end line deflects off defender.
8 min...W Muniz Saavedra gets rebound after teammates two blocked shot and his shot is tipped wide left for cornerkick.
8 min...W Reid cornerkick from left is cleared near left post.
9 min...BD Ellis low ross from right side from 8 yard line. BD Neptune has 18 yard one-touch low shot smothered by goalie.
14 min...BD McLennon long throw-in from right is whistled down in box.
15 min...BD Ilyass receives centering pass and 18 yard blast has goalie bat down and pick up.
17 min...BD McLennon run on right and high cross has BD Frankovich on left centers ball with header. BD Ilyass twists
header that's stopped.
18 min...W Kadiebue can't win Penalty kick when he rushes into BD box.
19 min...BD Ilyass stops ball on pass with upraised leg and taps ball at 8 yards that goalie catches.
19 min...W Kadiebue stopped but gets ball back on deflection and wins cornerkick on partially blocked shot.
20 min...W Reid high corxnerkick from left has play whistled down in box.
21 min...BD Ilyass short pass to BD Ellis who blasts 8 yarder on far right that goalie bats down and picks up.
22 min...W Mehboob rush on right and centers for W Kadiebue who can't get away shot in box with four defenders.
24 min...BD Mello cornerkick from left is cleared in box.
25 min...BD McLennon throw-in is crossed to left and BD Ilyass has 20 yard shot from left that's saved by goalie but offside
flag is up.
29 min...W player's freekick from 25 yards on right end line is headed away for fast break out. BD Ilyass on right rolls
centering pass into box but defender clears.
32 min...Woodbridge Alex Meczarski GOAL...Meczarski receives loose ball at 45 yards on right, takes a few steps
forward and blasts 35 shot into the top left corner of the net past goalie Lucas Birnstingl.
33 min...W goalie is out to 15 yards to pick up through ball bouncer.
35 min...BD Ilyass eludes checks and cross from right cornerflag is cleared.
35 min...BD McLennon cross from right into box is cleared by defender's header in 6 yard box.
36 min...BD Ilyass receives tapped pass but defender pokes ball away on slide from behind.
38 min...BD Duarte 50 yard chip from right has W Miranda clear from box with header.
39 min...BD Frankovich blasts 35 yarder from left is well over net.
40 min...Woodbridge Tyler Miranda is called for a hand ball on a BD quick shot from 15 yards. Referee Nivin Raizada
awarded BD a Penalty kick.
41 min...Blue Devils Taha Ilyass shoots his Penalty kick low to the slight right but goalie Shafique Wilson falls
to ground to save and smother the ball.
44 min...W YELLOW card...Goalie Wilson earns it for taking too long for a goalkick.
45 min...W Pinto takes ball to head and is down at BD 40 yard line.
47 min...play resumes.
48 min...W Kadiebue is given pass downfield and 15 yard shot is saved on near right post by sliding goalie that deflects ball
over back fence for goalkick.
48 min...Woodbridge Alex Meczarski GOAL...A WS player takes a high cornerkick from the right just over a bunch
of jumping players in the box. WS Aziah Reid recovers ball on left end line and took a shot and ball deflects out
to Meczarski who has his 12 yard shot on slight left blocked by a sliding defender. Meczarski has ball deflect back
to him and shoots low to right side of open net.
49 min...half ends 7:52pm.

Halftime: All the starters return to the dressing room that's at least 200 yards away. The subs stay on the field to warm up.
I see former Canadian national team player Paul Stalteri on the spectator side of the field talking with a few people. He's an
assistant coach with Toronto FC but he's here tonight? Isn't he busy enough? I'll ask him after the game.

Second Half:...starts 8:09pm.
Halftime sub:...BD Shamkhi replaces Neptune.
45 min...BD YELLOW card...Czerkawski earns it for stopping W Kadiebue breakout.
47 min...BD McLennon 40 yard freekick from right has defender head ball away. BD Ellis cross from 30 yards on far left
has goalie make overhead catch just under the bar.
51 min...BD Ilyass crosses from 25 yards on far left has defender boot ball away ahead of diving BD player trying for header
at 10 yards on left post. BD McLennon shoots 15 yarder from right high ad wide right.
52 min...W sub...Condello replaces Pinto.
53 min...W YELLOW card...Mehboob earns it for sliding tackle on BD Frankovich at W 45 yard line.
56 min...BD players work out quick cornerkick from right that's partially cleared and BD Czerkawski blasts 28 yarder well high
and wide right of net.
57 min...BD Mello cornerkick from right has goalie back pedal to left in 6 yard box and catch preventing a head-in from two
BD players on far post.
57 min...BD Mello is centered ball and has 20 yard shot blocked.
58 min...W Mehboob suffers leg injury at W 30 yard line and needs trainer.
59 min...W sub...Pavan replaces injured Mehboob before play resumes.
60 min...W Kadiebue run up left and wins cornerkick on deflection.
60 min...W Reid cornerkick from left has W Meczarski duck and flick header at 6 yards wide left of post.
61 min...W player's 22 yard shot on rush down middle is over net.
63 min...BD sub...Riviere replaces Mello.
65 min...BD Ilyass 22 yard freekick from slight left is into W player wall and cleared.
66 min...BD Ilyass has one-touch 8 yard shot deflect off defender for cornerkick.
66 min...BD Shamkhi cornerkick from left is whistled down in box.
67 min...BD player's 20 yard shot on rush has defender clear.
68 min...Blue Devils Luka Frankovich GOAL...A BD high cross from the right has a BD player shoot that's stopped
but Frankovich pokes in 4 yard ball to right side of open net.
69 min...BD Ellis wins freekick on left edge of box.
70 min...Blue Devils Brandon Duarte GOAL...Duarte takes a 20 yard freekick from the left that bends into the top
right corner of net with most players standing well wide right of the net waiting to take or prevent a header.
71 min...BD Ilyass leaps to head 12 yarder down middle wide left of post.
71 min...W Kadiebue is injured at BD 40 yard line.
72 min...W sub...Raouf Mohamed replaces Kadiebue.
73 min...W Mutembezi heads ball back to goalie to break up through ball pass.
74 min...BD Ilyass deflects 8 yard ball wide right while on break.
74 min...BD YELLOW card...McLennon earns it for complaining about the last play.
75 min...BD sub...Sereno replaces Lowe.
76 min...Woodbridge RED card (second Yellow)...Goaltender Shafique Wilson earns his second Yellow card
for wasting time taking a freekick.
..............WS Markland Simpson comes into game to play goal. Outfield player Tyler Miranda comes off
so WS will play with ten men.
...............WS head coach Peter Pinizzotto and therapist David Lisi earn a Yellow card each for taking turns arguing the decision.
82 min...W Pavan bends 25 yard freekick from right just wide right of the top corner of net.
82 min...BD Riviere blasts 20 yarder from right well over net.
83 min...Woodbridge Abdou Raouf Mohamed GOAL...Raouf Mohamed rushes in from 30 yards on left and shoots
low 18 yarder from far left catching the bottom right corner.
84 min...W goalie dives forward on loose ball at 12 yards on cross.
84 min...W Muniz Saavedra is injured on the sideline and needs trainer but they are not on the playing field so play is restarted
quickly.
85 min...W Raouf Mohamed wins freekick just outside the top right of BC box.
85 min...W Pavan 25 yard freekick from right has goalie stop.
86 min...W sub...Muccilli replaces injured Muniz Saavedra.
89 min...BD Ellis chips cross from middle to right but BD Sereno blasts shot from right well over net.
90 min...The fourth official signals 10 minutes of added time on the signboard.
90 min...BD Sereno takes shot over net.
91 min...W YELLOW card...W goalie Simpson earns it for time wasting taking goalkick.
92 min...BD goalie sends in 60 yard freekick from left that BD Czerkawski pops 20 yard header over W net.
93 min...W De Bartolo is injured and needs trainer.
94 min...BD player's cornerkick from left has BD Shamkhi head from right and bounces into ground wide right of net.
96 min...BD Frankovich long throw-in from left is knocked around on right side of box.
98 min...BD Duarte cornerkick from right has nearest defender on near post head away. The BD goalie had come into the box
for this play.
99 min...BD YELLOW card...Spadafora earns it for complaining about a call.
100 min...game ends 9:04pm. (My friend was surprised that just the 10 minutes was played because of the W injury at 93 minutes).

Final Score:...Woodbridge Strikers........3........Blue Devils FC...........2.........

Attendance was about 150 on this mild evening that had cooled off from very hot a few hours earlier.

This game like others this season was played on one of their artificial turf fields. The grass field
has at least four times the seating in their larger bleachers. This game had people stand inside
the fence so they wouldn't have to squish into the bleachers. Of course who could tell why twice
the number of fans as usual would come tonight in the middle of a holiday weekend? My surprise was
tonight for a change, no community league was renting the grass field to stomp all over it.

Referee Nivin Raizada gave out five Yellow cards to people on the field (four to Woodbridge including
two to starting goalie Shafique Wilson and one to back up goalie Markland Simpson...in second half
injury time for time wasting). One of the Blue Devils Yellows was in second half injury time for
complaining about a non-call. There were some necessary substitution required injuries in this game.
Santiago Muniz Saavedra had one at 84 minutes when he was knocked out of bounds and needed the trainer.
Because he was off the field there were a few minutes when WS were in effect playing two men down
for three minutes until a sub could be made.

Blue Devils Taha Ilyass is second in the L1O in scoring with 15 but tonight was not his night because
besides his Penalty kick which was saved rather easily, he had a bunch of shots that were off target
or blocked or saved. He was being set up by Khody Ellis as they ripped down the wings in each half.

In the crowd along the fence was retired Canadian National team player Paul Stalteri. He was wearing
a Woodbridge team windbreaker with his initials sewn on just like current Woodbridge officials.
After the game I finally had to ask. He wore it because his kids play in the Woodbridge Strikers
system and he still works for Toronto FC (he's an assistant coach for TFC).

This was a huge upset at this time of year as second place Blue Devils had only lost once this season
and had only allowed 12 goals in 17 games until tonight.

As this was the final game of the weekend, these standings should hold until midweek games
on Wednesday night.

Woodbridge improves to a record of 7 wins, 7 ties, 2 ties for 23 points. Their win flips them back
up to twelfth place over BVB IA Waterloo who I watched win just last night on a rare trip for
me outside the GTA.

That twelfth place bar has finally been raised to 23 points (Woodbridge who were twelfth last week
had their game postponed because of lightning and remains to be played). All the teams thirteenth
to twenty-two will be split off to a second tier 'Championship Division' at the end of next season.
This year the points will only count as 75% of next seasons' points but no one wants to fall too far
behind because after the split, it will be a promotion/relegation one up/one down for future years.
FC London who were beaten by Waterloo last night pulls up the rear with only 9 points.

Blue Devils record falls to 11 wins, 2 losses, 5 ties for 38 points. They hold on to second place.
The only reason they have not been flipping back and forth with Vaughan Azzurri up to first is because
they had too many early season ties. The sixth place playoff line is currently 36 points so they
don't have much breathing room. Second place would give them a bye from the third to sixth
quarterfinal round.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
twitter @RocketRobin01

Woodbridge Strikers starters