May 14, 2003 from Ontario Soccer Web
| Turnover Sinks
Lacklustre Lynx May 14, 2003 (Lino Terra, Editor, Ontario Soccer Web) - 3,572 screaming school children were not able to coax a motivated performance out of the Toronto Lynx (1-2-0) this afternoon as they dropped a 1-0 decision to the expansion Syracuse Salty Dogs (2-0-0). Despite carrying the play for the better part of the match, the Lynx were unable to create a dangerous scoring opportunity and were done in when midfielder Nikki Vignjevic was caught in possession just outside his penalty area. Lars Lyssand was left alone in front of Theo Zagar and made no mistake to send the visitors home with the victory. Toronto started the game very positively. Ryan Lucas started up front in place of Ali Ngon and was the designated target for passes from the midfield and the wings. Sebastian Barclay, who was marked tightly all game, hovered in support of Lucas to pounce on loose balls and redirections. The strategy also seemed to include getting Robbie Aristodemo into the game early. Against Montreal, Aristodemo barely had a touch in the first half, but in this game much of the build up started on his right wing. Even with the wind in their face, Syracuse was content to just boot the ball up field at every opportunity and hope for a miscue by the Toronto defence. This strategy led to a few anxious moments but nothing in the way of real scoring chances. The closest they came was when Zagar was forced to come off his line to cut out a low through ball in the 23rd minute. Syracuse came out strong to start the second half. Within four minutes they had drawn a yellow card for Joe Mattachione and forced the first save of the game from Zagar. The Lynx managed to regain their composure and begin to push forward, but continued with some bad habits they exhibited in the first half. The Toronto strikers never did adjust to the Syracuse offside trap and were caught out many times - twice on free kicks, which is unacceptable. Their free kicks and crosses were also horrible on this day. Joe Mattachione, Brian Ashton and Ali Ngon all tried their luck on the dead ball, but the result was the same - into the wall or way over the net. As well, communication was non-existent on crosses and corner kicks. Balls would be played short when the strikers made far post runs, and long crosses would be delivered when players were asking for the ball at their feet. The goal came in the 66th minute. Another Syracuse attack was quickly dealt with by the Lynx defence and Vignjevic found himself 22 yards from his own goal and a little bit of space. With the ball at his feet, he tried to beat his man rather than play the ball to safety. As a result, three Salty Dog attackers found themselves in the box with only the keeper standing between them and a goal. Lyssand was the man lucky enough to find the ball at his feet and he easily beat the defenseless Zagar. At a time when the Lynx needed to rise to the occasion, they were instead forced back on their heels by the suddenly invigorated Syracuse squad. Machel Millwood, who came one as a substitute just before the goal was scored, gave the Toronto defenders fits with his speed and relentless pressure. Even with ten men behind the ball, Syracuse was able to keep the ball in the Toronto half of the field for uncomfortably long stretches. The Lynx had only two real opportunities to tie the match, and both were foiled by offside calls. In the 83rd minute, Barclay pulled down a cross and was headed to goal when the linesman raised his flag for a questionable offside call. One minute into injury time Ali Ngon found the back of the net. Unfortunately he and three of his teammates were offside at the time. Lynx Notes: The large attendance (3,572) was primarily due to the School Day promotion put on by the Lynx. Students from over 30 public schools were invited to this Wednesday afternoon match... The Lynx have been shutout in both of their home games in 2003... Sebastian Barclay was voted 'Hardest Working Man of the Match' by the media... Is it me, or does forward Ryan Lucas bear a striking resemblance to Orville Reynolds, editor of "It's Called Futbol" magazine?...The Lynx get a chance for revenge when the face the Salty Dogs in Syracuse this Saturday ....Toronto's next home game is Victoria Day against the Rochester Raging Rhinos at 6:00pm. Call (416) 251-4625 or visit http://www.lynxsoccer.com/ for tickets. Lynx Player Ratings (Out of 10) GK Theo Zagar [6] - Zagar once again got no support from the offence and had no chance on the only goal of the game. He is beginning to show his frustration in the team's slow start. Many of his outlet passes were rushed and went astray. DF Mauricio Vincello [7] - Vincello played a feisty game and was even cautioned in the second half when he took exception to being shoved into the sideline advertising board by Tommy Tanner. He played a solid game in defence. DF Adrian Serioux [6] - Serioux had a few anxious moments in this game. He partially misplayed a harmless high ball late in the first half and was forced into giving away a corner midway through the second. Against a more polished A-League offence, he may have paid for these miscues. DF Jan Veenhof [8] - After only three games Veenhof has become the leader of this defence. He played another solid game in the back, basically as the sweeper while Serioux moved from side to side in front of him. The Lynx may have found their replacement for former captain Marco Reda, who left last season to sign with a Norwegian club side. DF Josue Mayard [7] - Mayard successfully shook off a weak performance and played a strong game in defence against Syracuse. After allowing Anthony Medina to break free to unleash a dangerous cross early in the game, he settled down and was not threatened again until he was forced off with an injury in the 84th minute. MF Joe Mattachione [5] - Mattachione was able to initiate a few positive stretches during open play, but he let the team down on what is supposed to be his strong point - free kicks. Coach Peter Pinizzotto obviously agreed as Joe did not take any of the second half set pieces. MF Nikki Vignjevic [4] - Vignjevic once again started wide in the midfield, but it has become evident that he does not have the fitness level to play this position. He showed some flashes of his creativity and vision, but for the most part was a step behind the play throughout the game. The giveaway that led to the 66th minute goal was the last straw as he was substituted three minutes later. MF Robbie Aristodemo [7] - It was evident early on that the plan was to get Aristodemo more involved in the play this afternoon. Robbie responded with a strong performance at both ends of the pitch. However, he was unable to create any dangerous chances from about half a dozen corner kicks. This is something the offence as a whole needs to address. MF Brian Ashton [6] - Ashton once again played a solid game and did what he's paid to do - get stuck in and win the ball. However, he needs to refine his offensive abilities in order to justify remaining on the pitch while the Lynx are behind. F Sebastian Barclay [7] - Barclay put in a determined effort on the day, as evidence by the condition of his uniform. He was covered in mud after repeatedly picking himself up after having been fouled. He was unlucky to be called offside late in the game when it looked like he had a direct path to goal. F Ryan Lucas [5] - Lucas got his first start of the season and used his size early on to get on the end of a number of high balls directed towards him. He was not able to convert any of them into legitimate scoring chances. He never did seem to find his footing on the soft pitch and was replaced by Ngon in the 79th minute. Substitutes: MF David DiPlacido [5] - DiPlacido played 31 minutes, replacing Vignjevic soon after the Syracuse goal. He was obviously brought on for his offensive abilities, but was unable to make his mark on the game. MF Elvis Thomas [6] - Thomas came on in the 76th minute for Aristodemo, who left it all on the field. Like DiPlacido, he was unable to shake up the anemic Toronto offence. F Ali Ngon [NR] - Ngon played the last 11 minutes after replacing Ryan Lucas. D Nick Blicharski [NR] - Former CPSL player Nick Blicharski played 6 minutes, coming on for the injured Josue Mayard. Coaching: Peter Pinizzotto [6] - Pinizzotto decided to go with the big and small striker combination and it looked like it was going to work. Unfortunately Lucas hasn't quite found his game yet. Peter took a chance starting Mayard again after a weak performance against Montreal, and it paid off as Mayard had a solid game. Pinizzotto's one mistake may have cost him the game. It was obvious even in the first half that Vignjevic was struggling out on the wing. Rather than sit him down, the coach decided to push Ashton outside and move Nikki into the middle. The rest, as they say, is history. |
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