August 29, 2021 League 1 Ontario Men's Premier Division...Blue Devils FC vs Guelph United FC (game report by Rocket Robin)

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Result and details of the Sunday August 29, 2021 League1 Ontario Men's Premier League game between Blue Devils FC
and Guelph United played at St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School in Oakville at 2:00pm.

Blue Devils FC (all navy, white numbers)

.....................1 Lucas Birnstingle
18 Carlo Difeo...4 Matt Monteiro...6 Victor Gallo (cpt)...3 Luka Frankovich
7 Matt Santos...24 Marcus Channer...17 Brandon Duarte...8 Emmanuel Issac
................25 Leaford Allen...16 Khody Ellis

Subs:...26 Oliver Steinke (gk)...2 Jesse Bibby...5 Shaq Lowe...9 Cyrus Rollocks
...11 Gianluca Spadaora...13 Frank Previte...20 Hitesh Joshi...21 Guramol Pabla
...22 Mario McLellan
team officials:...team head coach Duncan Wilde...assistant coaches Billy Steele and Glenn McNamara
manager Kim Ashton...therapist Mark Heathcote

Guelph United (white socks, shorts and numbers, red shirts with 3 diagonal white stripes on chest)

.......................1 Svyatoslav Artmenko
4 Armado Oakley...19 DeVante Walker...12 Brandon Wellington...3 Colin Gander
7 Alexander Zis...5 Harvey Marchant...16 Jack Sears...11 Evan Dick
..............10 Jace Kotsopoulos (cpt)...8 Tomasz Skublak

Subs:...20 Carter Robart (gk)...2 Dylan Rennie...6 Damian Truong...9 Owen McKee
...13 Cole Fernandez...14 Lucas Doros...15 Gray Yates...17 Steven Pavan
...18 Denilson Clamp
team officials:...team head coaches Keith Mason and Justin Springer...assistant coach Don Ferguson

Game officials:...referee Filip Dujic...referee's assistants John O'Hara & Liam Tremblay
...fourth official Brian Butler...(neon yellow shirts, black shorts and socks)

First Half:...game starts 2:03pm...Blue Devils defend east end with storm clouds threatening.
5 min...GU Zis and GU goalie work out BD threat on GU end line.
6 min...GU Oakley runs to right end line and cross drifts behind net.
The corner flags have blown over in the wind!
8 min...GU Walker pokes ball away from BD Allen on rush to 25 yards.
9 min...GU Zis cornerkick from left dips and GU player in crowd of players heads ball wide left from 4 yards.
13 min...BD Issac cornerkick from left has GU Oakley as nearest player on left heads away.
14 min...GU Zis cornerkick from left has ball headed through box and GU Oakley blasts partial clearance from 15 yards
on right over bar.
16 min...BD Gallo 50 yard line freekick from right is whistled down in box for offside. BD Channer is injured
and needs trainer. Some players take water break.
19 min...Guelph United Jace Kotsopoulos GOAL...A GU player receives a cross from another GU player on the right
from 20 yards and sends low pass along 5 yard line and Kotsopoulos on right side of net pokes 5 yard shot forward.
19 min...BD sub...Lowe replaces injured Channer who leaves field with a bloody face.
22 min...BD Allen is injured in GU box twisting to get to bouncing ball. Now the teams take a water break.
24 min...game resumes.
26 min...BD Allen is down again injured at GU 35 yard line.
27 min...BD sub...Rollocks replaces injured Allen.
28 min...GU Wellington breaks up potential 2 v 1 break at 20 yards.
28 min...BD Santos cornerkick from right is short and Santos gets ball back then sends low cross that's cleared.
29 min...BD goalie pokes ball coming in from right along end line just over bar.
30 min...GU player's second cornerkick from right has GU player shot blocked and another GU player swings at ball at 12 yards.
GU Kotsopoulos can't quite get to through ball pass at 18 yards and goalie picks it up.
31 min...GU Oakley gets back to break up BD Santos run into box.
31 min...BD Monteiro receives cornerkick from left and 8 yard header on right has goalie fly to push ball away.
32 min...BD YELLOW card...Monteiro earns it at center line for sliding tackle on GU Sears.
32 min...BD YELLOW card...The fourth official calls over the referee to give a card to an official on the BD bench probably
for their comments on the last play.
33 min...GU player sends bouncer forward and GU Skublak pokes midair ball at 10 yards but goalie catches chip attempt at 7 yards.
36 min...Guelph United Tomasz Skublak GOAL...A GU player sends a low cross from 20 yards near right right end line
and Skublak lends low 12 yard shot up the middle to left corner of net.
37 min...GU Skublak receives bouncing through ball pass at 20 yards on right and 15 yard shot has sprawling goalie make
point blank save at 10 yards.
39 min...Guelph United Jace Kotsopoulos GOAL...GU Alexander Zis rushes up the middle and he's grabbed and falls backwards
but pokes ball forward for Kotsopoulos to shoot 20 yarder into left side of net. Referee Filip Dujic was signalling
the 'advantage' rule to keep play going.
The sun is out again! There's no storm threat now.
43 min...GU Skublak is injured near center line and needs trainer.
46 min...BD Rollocks pokes ball at 12 yards up middle and goalie makes one-handed grab on right side of net.
47 min...A GU defender recover a ball that head slipped into the box to prevent BD Rollocks from getting shot from 10 yards.
48 min...BD Santos breaks up cross into box and clears ball before GU player can get to it.
49 min...half ends 2:52pm.

Halftime: The players stay outside during halftime because there's no access to the school building.

The Blue Devils 2005 Boys team is introduced as they have made it to the Ontario Cup Final to be played
at the Ontario Soccer Centre on September 18th.

Second Half:...starts 3:05pm.
Halftime sub:...BD sub...McLellan replaces Issac.
45 min...GU Kotsopoulos is injured at near center line and needs trainer.
47 min...BD Gallo makes key header to clear pressure in BD box.
48 min...GU Kotsopoulos returns to game.
49 min...GU Skublak is injured and wins freekick at GU 38 yards.
50 min...GU Zis low rolled cross from 20 yards on right rolls through box unplayed.
51 min...BD Ellis is injured at GU 30 yard line.
53 min...GU Skublak takes shot from 12 yards on right past flying goalie and BD Gallo saves ball off goal line on left post.
GU Skublak was over there to check him and pass to GU Dick who shoots 22 yarder over net.
54 min...BD Rollocks low 20 yard shot from left has goalie dive and save on near post.
55 min...GU goalie out to catch ball deflected back to him off defender.
56 min...BD Rollocks cuts in to middle after run on right and blasts 25 yarder high and wide left.
57 min...GU Zis bends 35 yard cross from right tghat ogalie stepts forward to 8 yards on left post to catch
in front of GU players.
58 min...GU Zis pass to GU Skublak but retreating defender breaks it up preventing a 6 yard tap-in.
61 min...BD Rollocks can't win Penalty kick call just insed the box.
62 min...GU Oakley has short pass after rescuing ball on end line and wins cornerkick on deflection.
62 min...GU player's cornerkick from left has goalie punch ball away.
62 min...BD Gallo 40 yard freekick on left is cleared in box.
63 min...GU Skublak wins cornerkick on trying to round goalie on left.
63 min...GU Zis cornerkick from left is headed away bu defender.
64 min...GU Skublak has 12 yard shot is blocked by defender.
66 min...BD Gallo bends 40 yard freekick from left well wide right of goal.
67 min...Guelph United Jace Kotsopoulos GOAL...GU Tomasz Skublak runs on right and sends low cross from 20 yards that
diving goalie Lucas Birnstingle gets a hand to but the ball trickle to left post where Kotsopoulos kicks a 2 yarder
into the open net.
67 min...A water break is called.
69 min...Play resumes.
71 min...BD sub...Joshi replaces Difeo.
............BD sub...Previte replaces Ellis.
............BD sub...Spadafora replaces Moteiro.
74 min...GU goalie leaps to catch high pop up at 8 yards.
75 min...BD YELLOW card...Spadafora earns it for tackle on GU Dick breaking along right at 37 yard line.
76 min...GU Kotsopoulos gets to loose ball at 12 yards and goalie catches his shot.
77 min...GU sub...Doros replaces Marchant.
.........GU sub...Yates replaces Sears.
78 min...GU Dick 15 yard shot from far right is caught by goalie.
80 min...BD sub...Pabla replaces Duarte.
83 min...GU sub...Truong replaces Dick.
85 min...Guelph United Alexander Zis GOAL...GU Tomasz Skublak runs down right side and looking like he'd freeze ball
near the cornerflag stopping for a second then cutting inside defender and running along end line and rolling centering
pass along 2 yard line for Zis to slide and poke ball into net.
86 min...BD player's cornerkick from right has GU Skublak slide to pop up ball at 12 yards.
87 min...GU sub...Rennie replaces Zis.
90 min...GU Skkublak standing at 22 yards even with last defender runs up left and shoots 12 yarder that flying goalie
pushes wide right of post.
91 min...there's no time for the cornerkick.
91 min...game ends 3:51pm.

Final Score:.....Blue Devils FC.....0....Guelph United.....5.....

Attendance was about 200 on this very hot and humid day with storm clouds overhead at the start
but drifting away and a burning hot sun came out. Some Twitter confusion made it seem like travelling
Guelph fans were going to be segregated behind a fence outside the gates because of Covid concerns
(but how would the home team collect the $10 admission fee?). The facility had aluminum stands split
at the center line and it was easy to see the fans split into one of the two stands. Blue Devils fans
were about 2/3's of the attendees. They could make the last minute decision whether the storm cloud
was going to move on and they could get here within minutes.

This would turn into four 'storms' I've seen this weekend. Sigma FC would blitz Windsor TFC yesterday
afternoon with a 5-0 score with three goals in the first half and a player scoring a hat trick the same
as this one! Later last night the game between 1812 FC Barrie (playing home games in Brampton because
of Covid concerns) and Masters FA was not played because of severe thunderstorms—not just one.
I'd follow up this Guelph game by driving to Maple to see the two best teams in the 'East' Vaughan Azzurri
hosting Unionville Milliken SC also stormed out. This time I wasn't so lucky getting soaked even
with an umbrella. That made my interview (posted in this report) with Guelph head coach Keith Mason
delayed as my cell phone took on water and had to dry out before it would let me transfer and edit
the sound file. I guess 'Guelph Storm L1O Opponent' as a headline wouldn't work because that city
has a hockey team named the Storm.

I'd been keeping track of Guelph through the league website rolling off a 4-0-0 record until today
and me recognizing players from the CPL and other L1O teams over the years.

Today the hero was Jace Kotsopoulos with three goals (not the first time he's done that this season).
Also Tomasz Skublak who had a goal and had at least one assist. I remember him playing for
Vaughan Azzurri...actually so did Kotsopoulos for a brief time. Coach Mason will say he knew
them from being players for him at University of Guelph. Assistant coach Justin Springer was also
a player with Vaughan in 2018 then I knew him playing in the defence for York 9 FC in the CPL in 2019.
I've got current Guelph defender DeVante Walker playing beside Springer with Vaughan in 2018.
Also midfielder Alexander Zis on Vaughan in 2019! I can imagine Guelph and Vaughan meeting in the
final this season as the Azzurri are undefeated in the 'East' at 3-0-0.

I think Blue Devils were hurt early with game ending injuries, having to replace midfielder
Marcus Channer right after the first goal at 19 minutes and then forward Leaford Allen at 27 minutes
injured for the second time in the game. Actually Channer was making a trek around the outside
of the field with the physio holding a bloody towel around his face when the goal was scored.
The early changes seemed to catch them ill prepared.

Only good thing in the day for Blue Devils were at halftime when their 2005 Boys team was introduced
as making it to the Ontario Cup Final to be played next month.

Svyatoslav Artmenko earned the shutout for Guelph with a few routine saves but the defenders
of Amado Oakley, DeVante Walker, Brandon Wellington, and Colin Gander were always around to break up
plays or keep the shots at a distance. Probably their biggest defensive plays were when Wellington
broke up a potential 2 on 1 at the 20 yard line at 28 minutes and Artmenko at 31 minutes flying
to push away BD Matt Monteiro's header from 8 yards when he received a cornerkick. These plays took
place after the first goal when the game was still in doubt.

The game was held at St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School which is a beautiful facility with
what looks like a new turf field (OK football lines but it makes it easier for me to measure shot
distances) BUT Blue Devils did not have full access to it. The doors to the building were locked
and players had to change in their cars in the parking lot or behind the bushes. Also meant no access
to any washrooms. I was tipped off there was one port-a-potty before the game about 200 yards away
so limited how much water I drank. Long time Blue Devils media contact/broadcaster Pierce Lang came
over to say hello and said he lived in the building in the south end zone overlooking the field.
“Great maybe everyone here will come over at halftime to use your bathroom”. They also didn't have
access to the scoreboard nor electricity. Ari the sound guy brought a gas powered generator to power
his sound system so they could play 'O Canada' and music before the match and at halftime and he could
make announcements for goals and substitutions.

Guelph improves to a record of 5-0-0 while Blue Devils take their first loss to go 3-1-1. I mentioned
in yesterday's report and asked officials today about the playoffs seeing as how the 'regular' season
goes until the end of October, and they're still unsure of what the league will do. The only guarantee
is to finish first and then you're 'in' even if it will be 'Winner of the West vs Winner of the East—one
game final' to end the season before the snow falls.

Rocket Robin
robing@eol.ca
Twitter @RocketRobin01

Guelph United head coach Keith Mason

Post game interview with Guelph United head coach Keith Mason (audio by Rocket Robin)
4 minutes 21 seconds
Questions: A few words about today's game?
How did you assemble your team from former CPL and L1O guys such as Kotsopoulos and Skublak?
How were able to link with the all the organizations in Guelph?

Blue Devils FC starters