August 9, 2023 League1 Ontario...Masters FA vs St Catharines Roma Wolves game report (by Rocket Robin)

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

Result and details of the Wednesday August 9, 2023 League1 Ontario Men's Premier Division game between Masters FA
and St Catharines Roma Wolves played at Ontario Soccer Centre in Vaughan at 9:00pm.

Masters FA (all red uniforms, white numbers)

.............................0 Ricardo Wilson
70 Sam Azimzadeh Tabrizi...6 Anthony Wright...14 Giuseppe Vernazza...3 Tyler Miranda
...........10 Stefan Nikolic...18 Christian Inchima...16 Deandre Branch
...........11 Zion Richards...90 Maleik De Freitas...13 Terrell Spencer (cpt)

Subs:...1 Spiridon Koskinas (gk)...2 Ian Gutierrez...5 Tim Mahabir...7 Artin Sharifzadeh
...8 Devonte Brown...12 Timonthy Cordova...15 Semere Gebreyesus...19 Romeo Mian...10 Carmine Anthony Martino
team officials:...team head coach Giuseppe Mattace Raso...assistant coaches Orazio Falciano and Ramon McIntosh
...managers Devon Porter,, Junior Groves and Seif Radwan...therapist Glenn Banait
suspended players: Jason Alvarado

St Catharines Roma Wolves (all white uniforms, red numbers)

.......................1 Enrique Orozco
21 Adam Lila...2 Christian Lacuesta...5 Vicctor Kariuki...17 Sokol Qamili
19 Antonio Agovski...26 Nicholas Andreola (cpt)...25 Eric Woodland...11 Jake Kelly
.................9 Michael Solomon...10 Jordale Byers

Subs:...16 Carson Provenzano (gk)...8 Matthew Roda...12 Engjell Qamili...13 Nate Smyth
...18 Azeel Jivraj...20 Brandon Wellington...23 Matteo Muza...30 Lucas Vetere
team officials:...team head coach Federico Turriziani...assistant coach Davide Massafra
...equipment manager Chris Czeban...other official Gurkaran Singh
suspended players: none

Game officials:...referee Roain Satarzadeh...referee's assistants Twayne Anderson and Vasyl Dzikh
...fourth official Liam Tremblay...(teal shirts and socks, black shorts)

First Half:...game starts 9:04pm...Masters defends north end. The sun is already down. The temperature is mild but cooling.
12 sec...Wolves Solomon 22 yard shot from slight left is just over bar.
6 min...MFA Spencer blasts low 25 yard freekick up middle that flying goalie bats away on right post. Rebound flies out
to MFA Nikolic at 20 yards who clips ball back in but offside.
7 min...Wolves Agovski low cross into box from right along 15 yard line has defender clear.
9 min...Masters Vernazza low pass from 25 yards in middle too far forward for two Masters players and out for goalkick on left.
11 min...MFA De Freitas 22 yard freekick from slight left is low and stopped by goalie who smothers rebound before MFA player can
get to it.
12 min...Wolves Agovski cornerkick from right has MFA Nikolic sky clearance but an MFA player behind him clears out from end line.
14 min...MFA goalie is out to 30 yards to clear ball before Wolves Byers can get to it.
15 min...Wolves Sokol Qamili 55 yard chip from left has Wolves Agovski leaps but can't connect to 15 yarder.
16 min...MFA Inchima through ball pass from 30 yards is too far forward to play.
17 min...MFA goalie dives to block 15 yard shot up middle.
18 min...Wolves Agovski cornerkick from right is upfield and Wolves Solomon cross from 28 yards on right over to left near post
and knocked around for another cornerkick.
19 min...Wolves Michael Solomon GOAL...Solomon just inside the crowded MFA box after a cornerkick, gets an 18 yard
shot down the middle that has an MFA player head the ball but he just flicked the ball from 6 yards back into his own net
beyond the reach of goalie Ricardo Watson. The shot was definately on net so I can understand why Solomon was credited
with the goal.
22 min...Wolves Agovski low cross on run to near right corner has defender clear.
24 min...MFA Spencer on left on run cuts to middle and 25 yard shot is around two defenders but high and wide right of net.
26 min...MFA Spencer on left cutting to middle and pass forward is stopped.
26 min...Masters Christian Inchima GOAL...Inchima blasts a 28 yarder up the middle between a crowd of players
that deflects off a defender at 10 yards and into the left side of the open net as goalie Enrique Oroszco had dived
to the right to anticipate smothering it.
29 min...MFA YELLOW card...Wright earns it for sliding tackle on Wolves Solomon at Wolves 45 yard line.
31 min...MFA Richards dekes defenders on run on left crossing along 15 yard line. MFA Spencer stops in middle guarded
by defenders and rolls pass back upfield. MFA De Freitas shoots 25 yarder low and just wide left of post.
32 min...MFA Nikolic receives pass in middle from MFA Richards on left and bends 20 yard shot high and wide right.
38 min...MFA Brnach low cross from left has defender in 6 yard box on left flick away preventing a tap-in.
40 min...Wolves Kelly receives pass in open on right and shot from 20 yards on right has flying goalie push ball wide left
of top corner.
40 min...Wolves Agovski cornerkick from left lands in box but bounces out right for goalkick as Wolves Solomon expected
another cornerkick on right.
42 min...MFA Spencer blasts 33 yarder from slight right his and wide left.
42 min...MFA Wright makes great all-ball slide poking ball away from Wolves Solomon at 10 yards on left preventing shot.
44 min...Wolves YELLOW card...Andreola earns it for complaining about MFA being awarded freekick.
44 min...MFA Miranda 38 yard freekick from left is headed away.
45 min...Wolves Solomon 25 yard shot up middle has goalie palm ball for cornerkick but no time for cornerkick!
45 min...half ends 9:49pm.

Halftime: both teams return to the dressing rooms while the subs of both teams warm up.

Second Half:...starts 10:08pm.
46 min...MFA Richards 60 yard run up left but pushes ball too far forward allowing defender to clear at 8 yards on left.
47 min...MFA Wright low 22 yard freekick is off a leg in the player wall.
48 min...MFA Inchima blasts rebound off defender that goalie traps low from 20 yard shot in middle.
49 min...MFA Branch 35 yard cross from left is well wide right of box.
51 min...Wolves Agovski cuts into box from left and chips 18 yarder to Wolves Byers on right near end line and his low shot
is caught on near post by sprawling goalle.
53 min...MFA Inchima rolls pass forward up middle from 25 yards but it's cleared.
54 min...MFA Azimzadeh Tabrizi chips 25 yarder from right forward and left. MFA Inchima makes flying header at 6 yards that's
over net.
54 min...MFA sub...Gutierrez replaces Azimazdeh Tabrizi.
..........Wolves sub...Wellington replaces Woodland.
56 min...Masters Maleik De Freitas GOAL...MFA Christian Inchima runs for pass on left and cuts towards goal at 10 yards
and passes across 6 yard box and charging De Freitas pounds 3 yarder into open right side of net as the goalie had to guard
the near post.
57 min...Wolves Lila gets to partial clearance and blasts 22 yarder that goalie palms over bar.
58 min...Wolves Solomon cornerkick from left is cleared on right side of box.
59 min...MFA retreating defender gives up cornerkick.
60 min...Wolves Agovski cornerkick from left has defender head back left for throw-in.
62 min...Wolves Solomon 35 yard freekick hits head in three man wall and MFA player at 10 yarder behind them and heads away.
63 min...MFA Gutierrez low 12 yard shot from right is saved on near post by sprawling goalie.
65 min...MFA Richards 28 yard blast from left is well high and wide right.
66 min...Wolves sub...Smyth replaces Lila.
67 min...MFA sub...Gebreyesus replaces Vernazza.
67 min...Wolves Solomon 35 yard freekick from right is into play wall. He chips 35 yard rebound high and wide right.
68 min...Wolves sub...Jivraj replaces Byers.
70 min...Wolves Smyth low 22 yard shot from left is into outside webbing of net but they are awarded cornerkick.
70 min...MFA goalie catches cornerkick from left and pounds ball downfield where MFA Spencer duels with Wolves Smyth
and gets 15 yard blast high and wide right of net.
72 min...MFA Inchima shot is high and over net.
72 min...Wolves Agovski cuts back and blasts 30 yarder well over net.
73 min...MFA spencer passes ahead up right to MFA De Freitas but goalie is out to 15 yards near top right of box to clear ball.
75 min...Wolves sub...Engjell Qamilla replaces Kelly.
76 min...Wolves Agovski dribbles from far right to near right and his 1 v 4 rush gets away 22 yard shot that's wide left of net.
78 min...MFA Richards dribbles into box from left and 12 yard shot on 1 v 4 is just over net.
80 min...MFA Nikolic freekick from near right cornerflag has defender clear on header on left side of box.
82 min...MFA De Freitas taps ball to MFA Gebreyesus for run down right and low 22 yard shot that wins cornerkick.
83 min...Wolves sub...Vetere replaces Solomon.
...........Wolves sub...Roda replaces Andreola. Kariuki becomes captain.
83 min...Masters Anthony Wright GOAL...MFA Terrell Spencer takes high cornerkick from left has Wright score
on 3 yard header from right post across goal into left corner of net.
87 min...Wolves Smyth 20 yard hip shot from slight left is wide right for goalkick.
87 min...Wolves Vetere makes quick turn and takes 18 yard shot that goalie palms over the net.
88 min...Wolves player's cornerkick from right is cleared.
88 min...Wolves YELLOW card...Engjell Qamili earns it for tackle on MFA Wright at 40 yard line on run on left.
90 min...MFA goalie is out to 30 yards to clear on high punt away.
91 min...MFA defenders prevent Wolves Agovski from getting away shot at 20 yards down middle.
92 min...MFA Gutierrez run down right and centers pass to MFA Inchima who turns and shoots low 15 yarder that goalie
pushes wide left.
94 min...MFA cornerkick from right has a bit of time wasted. Wolves players recover ball and run to Masters 45 yard line
but referee blows final whistle.
95 min...game ends 10:58pm.

Final Score:...Masters FA........3.........St Catharines Wolves.......1........

Attendance peaked at about 50 by halftime. This game didn't start until 9:00pm and was not at Masters' usual home stadium L'Amoreaux Park in Scarborough although the team played here on Saturday as a home game for Unionville Milliken SC in a game moved up from 8:00pm to mid afternoon so it would be over before the final of the L1O Women's Premier Division game.

Ricardo Watson played well for Masters with him palming the ball over the bar at least four or five times. Captain Terrell Spencer led the offence with long runs into the Wolves end. Wolves most threatening players were Michael Solomon and Jordale Byers and later Antonio Agovski.

Both teams brought 19 players and Wolves eventually made six subs and Masters only two. This is the time of year when rosters can be hard to fill because of players returning to school but just looking over the L1O website limitations with their linescores means counting only 13 players can mean there were only that many players in total or the team just decided not to break up a good dynamic by subbing a lot of players. Also maybe Wolves making three of their subs in the last 15 minutes was a reward for those players coming 150 km for a late weeknight game and not just sitting on the bench.

Referee Roain Starzadeh gave out three Yellow cards tonight (two to Wolves) in a fairly played game. Surprise complaint was he signalled for no added time in the first half even with two goals being scored expected to add 30 seconds each and wouldn't be a big deal except Wolves Michael Solomon took a 25 yard shot up the middle that the goalie palmed over the bar but Starzadeh blew the whistle before the Wolves players could even run to the corner and box to set up a cornerkick. The end of the second half he added five minutes but that was Masters hanging on to their two goal lead and looking for a breakaway ball when they could clear it from their own end.

Masters have lost quite a few game by late goals in the last two seasons and this game must have felt nice to have scored an insurance goal. Saturday they raced off to a 3 goal start in the first 30 minutes but ended up hanging on to a 3-2 victory so with them, no lead is safe.

Masters win their second game in a row and only their third game of the season. They have scored 6 goals in their last two games after scoring only 9 in their first 16 games this year. Part of that can be explained by finding their level and beating the now twentieth team on Saturday and the seventeenth place team tonight.

Masters' record improves to 3 wins, 13 losses, 2 ties for 11 points and are nineteenth of the twenty-one teams. Wolves record falls to 4 wins, 11 losses, 2 ties for 14 points and they are currently seventeenth.

Both teams were doomed from before this season started to finish below the Top 12 because of combined games from the 2022 and 2023 year and will be in the second tier 'Championship Division' for 2024.

This is only the second time this season I've seen both teams in the 31 L1O Men's games I've attended. Wolves I understand because their home games are too far away but Masters is a surprise to me as by distance they are maybe the third closest to my home (when they play at L'Amoreaux). The one time I did see them play was the weekend my car was out of service and I got there in one bus ride.

I expect next year I'll only see Premier Division games as I've imposed a three games a week maximum and so many weekends are filled with CPL York United and MLS NEXT Pro Toronto FC II games both teams play at York Lions Stadium. Right now I've got to walk back a statement about neither team playing a home game for three weekends and that's every time I've driven by the place it's packed with tennis fans every night for the Men's Canadian Open on the university properties. Next year it will be the Women's turn as both events are held concurrently but rotated between Toronto and Montreal.

Rocket Robin
robin.glover.1958@gmail.com
twitter @RocketRobin01

Masters FA starters