.....................
June 30, 2023 MLS NEXT Pro league...Toronto FC II vs Crown Legacy FC game report (by Rocket Robin)
.....................
Result and details of the Friday June 30, 2023 MLS NEXT Pro match between Toronto FC II and Crown Legacy FC
played at York Lions Stadium in North York at 7:00pm.
Toronto FC II (all red uniforms, white names and numbers)
.....................40 Adisa De Rosario
........65 Antony Curic...51 Adam Pearlman...76 Lazar Stefanovic
92 Theo Rigopoulos...95 Ife Adenuga...82 Julian Altobelli...71 Markus Cimermancic...73 Jesus Batiz
...............33 Reshaun Walkes...72 Jordan Faria
Subs:...50 Gianluca Catalano (gk)...38 Jalen Watson (def)...62 Rohan Goulbourne (def)...74 Kundai Mawoko (def)
...89 Matthew Mediros (def)...68 Lucas Olguin (mid)...85 Marko Stojandinovic (mid)...86 Alec Diaz (fwd)
...91 Dekwon Barrow (fwd)
team officials:...head coach Gianni Cimini...assistant coaches Marco Casalinuovo and Yianni Michelis
...goalkeeeping coach David Monsalve
Crown Legacy FC (all white uniforms, black names and numbers)
......................39 Isaac Walker
.........37 Jack Neeley...83 Joao Gilherme...44 Joao Pedro
35 Nick Scardina...58 David Poreba (cpt)...66 Philip Mayaka...75 Jacob Williams
..........80 Marko Filipovic...21 Vinicius Mello...79 Iuri Tavares
Subs:...41 Russell Shealy (gk)...38 Brian Romero (mid)...48 Aron John (mid)...56 Erik Pena-Boardman (mid)
...61 Gurman Sangha (mid)...63 Aryeh Miller (mid)...71 Josue Rodrigues (fwd)...91 Brandon Bedolla (fwd)
...92 Ivan Mata (def)
team officials:...manager Jose Tavares...assistant coaches Kevin Sawchak and Pedro Mane...goalkeeping coach Brian Edwards
Game officials:...referee Youcef Boumsied...referee's assistants Peter Pendli and Vasyl Dzikh
...fourth official Yusri Rudolf...(all black uniforms)
First Half:...game starts 7:03pm...TFC defends south end on this mild humid evening with a hazy sun now not a factor
in the north west.
1 min...CL Scardina backheeler from right has CL Filipovic low 15 yard shot throukgh crowd of players is caught by goalie.
3 min...TFC YELLOW card...Pearlman earns it for a knock down.
3 min...CL Poreba 40 yard freekick up middle has defender pop header over net.
4 min...CL Pedro cornerkick from right drops on short side of box but is cleared.
4 min...CL Pedro 50 yard cross from left is caught by goalie charging out at 10 yard on right.
5 min...CL Scardina gives pass to CL Tavares who has 20 yard shot from left is caught by goalie on left side.
9 min...TFC Faria bends cross from left at 25 yards and defender head ball away atr 15 yards in middle.
10 min...CL Mello passes over to CL Poreba whose 22 yard shot is saved by diving goalie on left side of goal.
11 min...CL player runs to right end line and crosses into 6 yard box has defender clear.
.........TFC YELLOW card...Altobelli earns it on a delayed call for a sliding tackle at the start of the last play
that injured CL Guilherme.
12 min...CL Filipovic runs up right rolls pass forward to CL Williams who sends in low cross too far ahead of sliding
CL Mello to redirect.
12 to 22 min...A long spell of nothing but midway play and no shots on net in fairly even patch of play.
23 min...TFC Cimermancic makes key stop and clearance on CL tavares low cross into box from left.
24 min...TFC Walkes on 3 on 3 loses ball on edge of box rolling away on him.
25 min...TFC Faria weaves around defenders on run along 20 yard line from left but CL Pedro blocks his shot.
26 min...TFC goalie is out to top left of box to make clearance.
29 min...TFC Adenuga makes key clearance but trips up CL player giving up freekick on left.
30 min...A CL player's 30 yard freekick on far left is cleared back and out of box. CL Pedro recrosses from left has CL Neeley
heads ball across box and CL Guilherme ends threat with midair shot from 15 yards on slide to right is over net.
31 min...CL Mello taps over ball in middle for CL Williams to blast low 18 yarder from left wide left into sign board.
34 min...CL Mellow can't draw Penalty kick call for fall on touch by TFC Stefanovic on run to top right of box.
35 min...TFC Curic make key cutoff on CL Filipovic running up to 20 yards down middle.
37 min...TFC Walkes run on right to end line and wins cornerkick.
38 min...TFC Altobelli cornerkick from right is low to 25 yard line and TFC Faria skies 25 yard shot well over net.
40 min...TFC Curic chip from 60 yards too far ahead for TFC Altobelli on charge and goalie catches on bounce.
41 min...TFC Batiz can't draw Penalty kick on weak fall on left side of box.
42 min...TFC Stefanovic key clearance of cross into box is followed by TFC Curic making similar play.
43 min...CL Poreba low cross along 15 yards on right is cleared away. CL Scardina cross from right is headed away.
CL Poreba recross has CL Mello low 25 yarder on left has goalie sprawl on left post to knock down and smother.
45 min...half ends 7:48pm with no time added.
Halftime: Only the TFC subs stay outside to warm up.
Second Half:...starts 8:03pm.
46 min...CL Williams checks TFC Walkes off ball but gives up cornerkick.
47 min...TFC Altobelli cornerkick from right has ball bobbled and in 6 yard box before it's cleared. TFC players rush it back
into box but roll it over end line.
Half the CL players warm up while no TFC subs do (they had warmed up at halftime).
This half so far has been playing in the CL end.
50 min...TFC Walkes can't draw a Penalty kick when he recovers ball he'd been checked off on right.
51 min...Crown YELLOW card...Scardina earns it for pulling down TFC Faria at TFC 50 yard line.
51 min...TFC Batiz cross has CL Pedro make key header in CL box to clear.
52 min...TFC Batiz rush on left and cross to middle has TFC Altobelli slide to get shot that's blocked.
53 min...TFC Altobelli cornerkick from left has TFC Batiz in crowd of players head ball wide left on leap at 7 yards.
54 min...TFC Curic has shot blocked.
54 min...Toronto FC II Jordan Faria GOAL...TFC Theo Rigopoulos rolls pass up the right to TFC Ife Adenuga
who fights off two defenders and crosses from the top right edge of 18 yard box that charging Faria leans
in to head 8 yarder into top center of net over flying goalie Isaac Walker.
55 min...CL sub...Romero replaces Filipovic.
56 min...CL YELLOW card...some official on the Crown bench earns it by the request of the fourth official.
56 min...TFC Curic makes clearance on CL Mello preventing shot.
57 min...CL Mello is tripped up at 22 yards cutting towards middle.
58 min...CL Pedro low 22 yard freekick is smothered by diving goalie in center of net.
60 min...TFC sub...Medeiros replaces Stefanovic.
62 min...CL Williams rushes for through ball on left and cross from 20 yards on endline is well over box and out for TFC throw-in.
63 min...CL Scardina runs into right side of box and has shot blocked.
63 min...Crown Legacy David Poreba GOAL...CL Joao Pedro send in long pass forward from 50 yard line that Poreba
gets foot to high ball at 20 yards to settle it down and slides to blast 15 yarder from slight right around retreating
defender Matthew Medeiros and beyond reach of diving goalie Adisa De Rosario at 6 yard line into left corner of net.
64 min...TFC Faria sends high cross from left side of box to TFC Walkes who has his kick from 6 yards shot into outside
mesh of net.
66 min...CL Poreba receives centering pass and 22 yard blast deflects off defender high and wide right.
67 min...CL Pedro cornerkick from right is over leaping players in box and cleared on left.
69 min...TFC sub...Dias replaces Walkes.
72 min...CL Williams beats TFC Dias to conced cornerkick to prevent breakaway on right.
72 min...TFC Altobelli cornerkick from right is headed away. TFC player chips back into box but play is ruled offside.
73 min...CL sub...Rodrigues replaces Tavares.
75 min...CL Williams high cross from left along 5 yard line is over players in box.
76 min...TFC Rigopoulos is injured in TFC box and ends up leaving field.
77 min...TFC sub...Goulbourne replaces injured Rigopoulos. CL had no real chance to play up a man.
78 min...CL Rodrigues low cross from left along edge of box results in fast TFC break out when CL forward slips.
81 min...CL Williams cross from 35 yards on left has diving Cl Scardina head ball from right wide right of net.
82 min...TFC Faria can't draw Penalty kick on grab in box but first tug is outside box that should have been a freekick.
83 min...CL Williams cross from left end line is behind charging CL players.
84 min...TFC Altobelli is injured at CL 50 yard line.
85 min...CL sub...John replaces Neeley.
..........CL sub...Bedolla replaces Mayaka.
86 min...CL YELLOW card...Williams earns it on delayed call for complaining a call earlier in play.
89 min...TFC Cimermancic pass to open TFC Dias at 12 yards and he rushes net but sprawling goalie stops him at 6 yards.
90 min...CL Josue Rodrigues draws a Penalty kick when tripped up at the 10 yard line by TFC Adam Pearlman after he received
a short pass in the middle from the right end line. Referee Youcef Boumsied made the call.
92 min...Crown Legacy Joao Pedro GOAL...Pedro blasts his Penalty kick low to right side of net as goalie dives left.
93 min...play restarts.
94 min...CL YELLOW card...Romero earns it for kicking ball away running to TFC corner he can't get to before ball rolls
over end line.
96 min...TFC Altobelli chips 25 yard freekick from right has TFC player flick header wide left.
96 min...game ends 8:54pm.
Final Score:....Toronto FC II.......1.........Crown Legacy FC...........2..........
Attendance started off at only about 60 when the game started to about 200 by halftime. Canada Day is tomorrow and I wasn't expecting a huge crowd with fans having to fight rush hour traffic for a 7:00pm start. Their MLS team plays tomorrow night with a brand new coach against Real Salt Lake. Referee Youcef Boumsied decided this game with his Penalty call. I was preparing for another Penalty kick shootout to decide the one extra point given after each team earns a point in regulation for a tie. He had waived off both teams lame attempts to draw numerous ones earlier although the ones I remember, save one, were not as far into the box. He had given out six Yellow cards in the game and the two to TFC were for fouls in the first 12 minutes and that settled the game down. Crown's were all in the second half and after one for a pulldown, he gave one to someone on their bench at the insistance of the fourth official within 2 minutes of the the TFC goal, one at 86 minutes for complaining about a call, and one for timewasting for kicking a fall away after it had rolled over the TFC end line. Two of the cards were on a delayed basis to not break up the 'play on' chance of a goal being scored. 89 minutes had TFC Markus Cimermancic pass to an open and fresh Alec Dias at 12 yards and he rushed towards goal and bashed into the sprawling goalie (picture a hockey goalie's butterfly save) who stopped him at 6 yards. Some in the crowd howled for a Penalty call but it was Dias who did the bashing. Again I enjoyed the referee's non-call of this. After the game the Crown players and coaches formed a circle on the field. I thought it was to avoid a confrontation with TFC players in the walk in the tunnel back to the dressing rooms. TFC defender Adam Pearlman was restrained by a team official from chasing after the game officials. Then I thought that the circle might have been a prayer meeting from the days of the Charlotte Eagles from USL days in games against Toronto Lynx. They didn't do that onfield as I remembered but was a 'Christian' team whose players were often missionary students. I was able to confirm that the Crown players were just having a player meeting after talking to goalie Isaac Walker who had come into the stands to talk to his mother. Earlier in the day, I received a tweet from the team that they'd signed midfielder Lazar Stefanovic from their Academy. It wasn't news to me as I'd seen him play last season. It's possible that he couldn't be officially signed before now as he's just age 16. Today he was a starter and played the first 60 minutes on the backline before coming off for Mattehw Medeiros. I saw regular TFC II goalie Luka Gavran in street clothes before the game during warm ups. New short term signing Gianluca Catalano was the backup goalie tonight. His League1 Ontario team Vaughan Azzurri is hosting lowly Windsor City SC on Sunday and are favoured without him. I don't know if Gavran will move up tohe MLS team to be on the bench behind Greg Ranjitsingh. Regular MLS goalies Sean Johnson (USA) and Tomas Romero (El Salvador) are both away at the Gold Cup for the next few weeks so it offers opportunities for others to show what they can do. Crown Legacy FC is the MLS NEXT Pro team of Charlotte FC. They play in Matthews North Carolina and it's only 12.3 miles from Charlotte. Well that's less thanhalf the distance from BMO Field to York Lions Stadium. The loss keeps TFC II in a tie for eleventh (although ranked twelfth) in the East in 16 games with a record of 3 wins, 9 losses, 4 ties, and 2 Shoot Out Wins for 15 points. They are only ahead of Inter Miami II by one point. I wonder if the making room on the MLS team for Lionel Messi will move a player down to their II team and improve that team too? This was the first game of the weekend in the Eastern Conference and the playoff line of seventh is held by New York City FC II with 22 points in 14 games so that line can be raised further by Monday. Crown Legacy's record improves to 11 wins, 2 losses, 3 ties, and 2 shootout wins for 38 points and will stay in first place this weekend. TFC II will stay in the city for a home game next Friday against Columbus Crew 2 with an 8:00pm starting time...as long as they're aware of the 10:30pm 'lights out' curfew of York Lions Stadium they should even be able to administer a Shoot Out contest within the time confines. Maybe they're draw a larger crowd.Rocket Robin
robin.glover.1958@gmail.com
twitter @RocketRobin01
Toronto FC II starters
Crown Legacy FC starters
Crown Vinicius Mello (21) takes opening kickoff.
TFC Lazar Stefanovic (76) deciding where to pass.
Crowd players on prepare for freekick on far left.
TFC Julian Altobelli (82) takes second half kickoff.
Crown Joao Pedro (44) will take this freekick.
Crown goalie will clear this backpass ahead of TFC Ike Adenuga (95).
Crown Joao Pedro (44) will score on this added time Penalty kick.
TFC Julian Altobelli (82) takes this late freekick.
Crown Legacy players hold an onfield team meeting after the game.
Stats (from MLS NEXT Pro website)
TFC II Crown Legacy FC
Possession % 42.5 57.5
Shots 8 12
Shots on Goal 1 6
Blocked Shots 3 2
Total Passes 412 556
Passing Accuracy % 84.5 85.8
Corners 5 2
Crosses 7 15
Offsides 3 3
Duels Won 56 51
Tackles Won 13 24
Saves 4 0
Clearances 20 8
Fouls 10 16
Yellow Cards 2 3
Red Cards 0 0
.
.