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Result and details of the Sunday April 17, 2022 MLS NEXT Pro game between Toronto FC II and Chicago Fire II
played at York Lions Stadium in North York at 2:00pm.
Toronto FC II (gray socks, red shorts and shirts, white names and numbers)
............................1 Greg Ranjitsingh (cpt)
58 Kobe Franklin...51 Adam Pearlman...62 Rohan Goulbourne...81 Themi Antonoglou
...........72 Steffan Yeates...52 Alonso Coello...82 Julian Altobelli
...........73 Stefan Karajovanovic...83 Hugo Mbongue...80 Paul Rothrock
Subs:...90 Luka Gavran (gk)...33 Reshaun Walkes (def)...34 Klaidi Cela (def)...63 Joseph Daher (def)
64 Kota Sakurai (mid)...65 Antony Curic (mid)...68 Nakye Greenidge-Duncan (mid)...86 Alec Diaz (fwd)
team official:...manager Gianni Cimini
Chicago Fire II (all white, navy names and numbers, light blue shoulders)
...........................41 Mihajlo Miskovic
56 Diegoarmando Alvarado...54 Christian Baumgartner...42 Ryan Quintos...48 Charlie Ostrem
.............39 Allan Rodriguez...52 Richard Fleming
........38 Alex Monis...46 Matteo Kidd (cpt)...47 Josh Penn
.........................53 Luka Bezerra
Subs:...43 Justin Reynolds (def)...44 Noeh Hernandez (fwd)...45 Maximillano Viera (fwd)
...51 Michael Flores (mid)
team official:...manager Ludovic Taillandier
Game officials:...referee Marie-Soleil Beaudoin...assistant referees Twayne Anderson andd Brad Doubrough
...fourth official Scott Bowman...(all black uniforms)
First Half:...game starts 2:04pm...TFC defend south end on this very cold afternoon with a bright sun from the south west.
2 min...Fire Bezerra 20 yard roller from left is justt wide right of post.
3 min...TFC Mbongue is tapped back a pass but defender pokes away the ball before he can get away a shot up the middle
from 15 yards.
4 min...Fire Alex Monis GOAL...TFC goalie Greg Ranjitsingh gets pressured into making a poor clearance
and Fire Josh Penn recovers ball on the left at 20 yard line and rushes towards the end line then chips a cross
over a defender for Monis to head a 7 yarder on the right into the right side of the open net.
6 min...Fire Kidd blasts 22 yarder up pmiddle well over net.
6 min...Fire Monis 22 yard shot from right has goalie catch wide right of side netting.
7 min...TFC Rothrock low cross from 25 yards on right has diving header by defender stop ball at 10 yards in middle of box.
9 min...Fire Fleming long high cross from 30 yards on the left has Fire Monis head 15 yarder on right but defender clears.
10 min...Fire Kidd cuts into box from left and blasts shot that deflects for cornerkick.
11 min...Fire Kidd cornerkick from right has defender head ball away and follow up shots are blocked before reaching the box.
12 min...Fire Kidd freekick near right cornerflag has TFC Karajonovic flick header out left side of box.
13 min...Fire Kidd cornerkick from right is flagged down in box for curving over the end line before bending back in.
15 min...TFC Mbongue low cross in boxx from left side between players and TFC Karajonovic stops ball, turns,
and fires 10 yarder that goalie makes point blank stop.
16 min...Fire goalie dives on through ball bbefore TFC Yeates can get to it.
17 min...Fire Kidd cornerkick from right has defender in crowd of players head ball away on left post.
21 min...TFC Kobe Franklin GOAL...TFC Hugo Mbongue threads through ball to Franklin on right who eludes
a grabbing defender to get away 12 yard shot over goalie Mihajlo Miskovic and into left corner of net.
22 min...TFC Rothrock runs on left and rolls centering pass into box that defender stops and clears.
25 min...TFC Antonoglou rolls short centering pass from far left. TFC Altobelli shoots sharp angle 6 yard shot off
underside of crossbar and ball is cleared on right.
26 min...TFC Altobelli is injured and needs trainer at Fire 35 yard line.
28 min...Fire Kidd cornerkick from right has defender head away in box and it starts fast break out.
29 min...TFC Karajovanovic run down left and cuts around defenderr to get 12 yard shot into outside webbing of net.
31 min...Fire Kidd 35 yard freekick from right has Fire player head 12 yarder from left side of box but defenders clear.
34 min...TFC Antonoglou blasts 25 yarder from left on rush well over net.
35 min...Fire Penn rusn on right and long cross has Fire player head 12 yarder on left but defender clears.
36 min...Fire Alvarado run on right and long cross is over players in TFC box.
37 min...TFC Rothrock runs into left side of box and Fire Baumgartner bumps him over too easily and he can't win a Penalty kick.
39 min...TFC Franklin rolls centering pass from right forward and TFC Karajovanovic point blank shot at 8 yards is stopped
by sliding goalie at 4 yards.
41 min...TFC Rothrock hits arm of sliding Fire Baumgartner at 8 yards on his low cross from left but can't win Penalty kick.
41 min...Fire players can't draw a Penalty kick when one of their players falls over on left corner of TFC box.
43 min...Fire Rodriguez chips 28 yarer from slight right and goalie catches between crowd of players.
44 min...Fire goalie picks up ball that TFC Antonoglou and defender were dueling for.
45 min...TFC Mbongue injures goalie as he tries to block clearance just inside Fire box.
47 min...Fire Monis (?) on breakaway from 40 yards up middle and rolls 20 yarder wide right as goalie slides at 15 yards.
47 min...half ends 2:51pm.
Halftime: there is nothing special today. I was relieved to find that the washrooms were open.
Second Half:...the weather is still sunny and cold with a wind from the north. With the sun shifting more to the west,
some of the seats were now in the shade and it felt much colder so I moved forward about ten rows.
halftime sub:...Fire Reynolds replaces Monis.
49 min...Fire Kidd chips pass from left but goalie steps forward to beat Fire forward to ball and make catch.
49 min...TFC Franklin low shot/cross from 30 yards but ball tips back of player for goalie to make an easy pick-up.
51 min...TFC Antonoglou 35 yard cross from left is just wide right of post ahead of TFC player charging for it.
52 min...TFC Karajovanovic pass has TFC Altobelli take mid-air shot from 18 yards on left that's wide right of net.
52 min...Fire Bezerra and Fire Penn get away on a 2 on 1 rush but shot has ball deflect wide right.
53 min...TFC goalie catches cornerkick from right in crowd of players.
54 min...TFC Mbongue gets pass behind Fire defenders and his low hard blast from 15 yards on left has goalie sprawl
and push ball wide left of net.
55 min...TFC Rothrock cuts to middle from right along 20 yard line and bends shot dodwn mniddle missing top left corner of net.
57 min...TFC Coello rush on left and 18 yard shot is stopped by goalie on short side.
58 min...Fire Luca Bezerra GOAL...Fire Richard Fleming sends low pass from right between players in box to Bezerra
who shoots 10 yarder into top left side of net.
61 min...TFC sub...Greenidge-Duncan replaces Karajovanovic.
62 min...TFC Mbongue rolls centering pass across 6 yard box but defender clears.
63 min...TFC YELLOW card...Mbongue earns it for crashing into Fire goalie at Fire 20 yard line after whistle had blown
for offside flag.
65 min...TFC defenders clear ball in box.
66 min...TFC Paul Rothrock GOAL...TFC Julian Altobelli sends pass forward to Rothrock who makes long run on left
and he gets by defender to turn it into a 3 on 2 but shoots 12 yarder himself from left into right corner of net.
(Fire player Christian Baumgartner was injured on the play twisting to try to catch Rothrock and needed to be replaced
before play resumed).
67 min...Fire sub...Viera replaces Bezerra.
68 min...Fire sub...Flores replaces injured Baumgartner before play resumes.
69 min...Fire Fleming passes forward to Fire Flores who has shot tipped for cornerkick.
69 min...Fire Kidd cornerkick from left is over players and Fire Quintos shot deflects off defender for cornerkick.
70 min...TFC Nakye Greenidge-Duncan GOAL...The Fire goalie out of his box made a diving header clearance only as far
as TFC Hugo Mbongue who gets to loose ball with goalie on right side of box. He passed to Greenidge-Duncan who has
open shot from 12 yards with only a defender on the goal line. The defender gets a piece of it as he sprawls but only
pushes it into the right corner of the net.
71 min...TFC sub...Sakurai replaces Altobelli.
73 min...TFC Pearlman is injured in TFC box and needs trainer.
75 min...TFC Franklin threads 30 yard ball between players and TFC Antonoglou gets to it at 7 yards and shoots off goalie
and back off himself for goalkick on deflection.
77 min...TFC Rothrock run into left side of box but Fire Reynolds pokes ball away.
78 min...TFC Pearlman is hurt at TFC 35 yard line and needs triner. Pearlman had raised his arm to signal his injury while
still standing but a defender passed the ball back to him on a misunderstanding before he went down.
80 min...TFC sub...Walkes replaces injured Pearlman.
............TFC sub...Diaz replaces Mbongue.
82 min...TFC Antonoglou 35 yard freekick from left is cleared from box.
84 min...Fire Flores shoots 12 yarder well over box on play started at 40 yards when two TFC players crash together on header.
86 min...TFC Alec Dias GOAL...TFC Steffan Yeates in center circle chips pass to TFC Paul Rothrock at 40 yard line
who rushes up left to the end line and rolls centering pass and Dias who had run past ball reaches his foot back
and redirects 2 yard shot forward into middle of net.
90 min...TFC YELLOW card...Antonoglou earns it for pushing incident on TFC goal line wide right of net.
90 min...Fire Viera gets away on 30 yard break as defender slipped and shoots 12 yarder from right that goalie sprawls
to save at 4 yards.
92 min...Fire Penn 22 yard freekick from right is into outside right side webbing of net.
93 min...TFC YELLOW card...goalie Ranjitsingh earns it for timewasting on goalkick.
94 min...TFC YELLOW card...Goulbourne earns it for tackle at TFC 35 yard line.
95 min...Fire Kidd freekick from 35 yards on right has goalie step forward to left to bat down and grab.
95 min...game ends 3:58pm.
Final Score:...Toronto FC II.......4.........Chicago Fire II.......2.......
Attendance was about 300* on this sunny but cold day. This was the second Sunday home game in a row at York Lions Stadium the day after Toronto Arrows of Major League Rugby played here. This upcoming Friday night, York United FC of the CPL play here...Hey ground-sharing! The university may use the field the days in between. I did a double take when I saw what I thought was a lawn mowing tractor at halftime but it must have been some kind of roller/waterer as this ground is on a recently installed field turf. *The games are still officially closed to the public except for family members of players and there was a security guard with a clipboard scrutinizing the guest list like he's catered for The Rolling Stones. Just before the players lined up for the national anthems, a TFC game crew official asked we fans hanging on to the north end zone prison bars oops ok metal fence if we wanted to come inside and watch. I certainly heard him and was able to come through the gates and found a seat. Oops same row as TFC head coach Bob Bradley so I kept ten seats away so I wouldn't bother him. Next two home games are at BMO Field after MLS games so I expect all fans will be able to stay. My problem is I don't have SSH to TFC anymore. Tough choice and I bet the subway line I use won't be running on those weekends as the station-building of an East-West line has taken something like five years! TFC the parent club used five Canadian starters in yesterday's MLS game lineup with six Canadians on the subs bench. As that was a home game, two of the unused subs, defender Themi Antonoglou and midfielder Adam Pearlman were brought uptown to be used as starters today. Both goalies made some point blank saves but dished up some clangers with poor clearances and the Fire goalie being caught out of his net twice including a diving header outside the box that left his net empty. Referee Marie-Soleil Beaudoin gave out four Yellow cards, all to TFC players in the second half. Mbongue for the second time he'd crashed into the goalie at 65 minutes, Antonoglou for a pushing incident of the TFC goal line well wide of the net at 90 minutes and Ranjitsingh at 93 minutes for timewasting taking a goal kick. 94 minutes had Goulbourne earn one for a tackle at the TFC 35 yard line. 90 minutes was one of the few incidents of any rough play in the game but it was probably Fire frustration that sparked it. It was announced that there'd be a minute of silence before the national anthems for TFC II midfielder Mehdi Essoussi whose father passed away (the night before?). The players also wore black armbands and posed for a pre-game picture with coaches squeezed in and held a #35 jersey of Essoussi. Nice tribute! TFC II's record improves to 2 wins and 1 loss for 6 points and up to fourth place in the ten team Eastern Conference. Top four teams make the playoffs. Three points for a regulation time win, zero for a loss, one point for a tie BUT if there is a tie after 90 minutes, a Penalty shootout ensues and one more point is given to the 'winner'. So 3-2-1-0 are the possible points given out every game. I was more concerned of how TFC II would fit in after playing at the USL League One level these last few years (OK not playing at all in 2020 because of the pandemic making border crossings not practical). Most of the MLS teams had their second teams in the 'higher' USL Championship League but seeing the standings the first weeks (and TFC II didn't play the first week of the season). MLS withdrew all their teams from USL and started their own league with only their own teams plus one in Rochester New York. TFC dropped from the USL's top league years ago for either: lesser standards that they wouldn't need to play in a large stadium when they were only drawing 200 people or they were always finishing near the bottom of the standings back then. TFC II and the few other League One teams are so far holding their own. Chicago II's record falls to 1 tie (lost in Pks) and 3 losses for 1 point and drop to last in the ten team conference. They only listed four substitutes (no extra goalie) so I don't know if that was border issues or they are injury riddled. Only good news is some of their tweets say they scored their first goals of the season today.Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
twitter @RocketRobin01
Stats from MLS NEXT Pro
TFC II Chicago Fire II
Possession % 40.9 59.1
Shots 16 15
Shots on Goal 8 6
Blocked Shots 3 3
Total Passes 376 536
Passing Accuracy % 73.9 81.2
Corners 1 6
Crosses 11 17
Offsides 3 2
Duels Won 32 47
Tackles Won 9 16
Saves 4 4
Clearances 14 14
Fouls 9 6
Yellow Cards 4 0
Red Cards 0 0
Stadium: York Lions Stadium
Location: Toronto
Toronto FC II starters
Chicago Fire II starters
TFC II players and staff pose for a special picture for the mourning Mehdi Essoussi.
TFC Hugo Mbongue (83) takes the opening kickoff.
Fire Matteo Kidd (46) will curl this cornerkick into the box but it's ruled to have first crossed the end line.
TFC Stefan Karajovanovic (73) and Fire Josh Penn (47) duels for the ball just outside the Fire box.
Fire Luka Bezerra (53) takes the second half kickoff.
Fire Josh Penn (47) charges forward on win waiting to take pass.
TFC Kobe Franklin (58) dribbles up right wing.
TFC Adam Pearlman (51) makes painful long walk around parameter of field after suffering injury and being subbed off.
A last chance Fire freekick as time is running out.
TFC players celebrate after another win.
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