Direwolves Take Shine Off of Emeralds

This highly anticipated match between the Emeralds and Direwolves did not disappoint. The hype around this game even drew one of the beautiful game’s biggest stars, David Villa. Intimidated by the talent on display in the TCL, Señor Villa chose to make a swift exit before kickoff. His presence was felt nonetheless.

Substitute Fernando Ayala drew inspiration from the little Spaniard early on picking off a pass in front of the Emeralds goal and forcing a solid save out of keeper Brad Hughes. In trying to fire home the rebound, Fernando was met by a timely challenge from the immovable force that is Dave Ashton and was forced to leave the game with a knee injury.

Determined to avenge the selfless substitute who put his body on the line, Dale Burgess unleashed a rocket from just inside the Emeralds half to open the scoring. The rest of the half saw chances from both sides that were handled with confidence by both keepers. 1-0 Direwolves at halftime.

Both teams started the second half well organized and full of energy. With neither team allowing the opposition too many chances, Theo Blanchard created his own by beating his marker and making a surging run up the wing. Theo’s low cross was too quick for a defending Victor Cristiano to prevent from careening off his outstretched body into his own goal doubling the Direwolves lead. Not to be outdone, Victor got his revenge off an Emeralds corner in which he fired in a cross that ricocheted in off of the Direwolves’ own Dale Burgess. 2-1 Direwolves.

With the Direwolves’ lead cut in half and time winding down, the Emeralds pushed further up the field looking to even the score. The Direwolves defense withstood the mounting opposition attacks and sprung a counter attack by second string substitute Andrew Winnett. Winnett was able to pass the ball around an oncoming Brad to Theo who finished calmly.

Final score: Direwolves 3 – Emeralds 1. This result keeps the Direwolves top of the table and sets the stage for a blockbuster fall final with the second place Lightning next week.

Andrew Winnett

Vaders Beat Bulls

The match kicked off with an advantage in ball possession from Red Bulls, who managed to control the game in the early going.  It was the Vaders who would strike first, with Vlad taking a volley pass from Bob, and sliding a low shot into the back of the net. Rejuvenated by the quick score, the Vaders would strike twice more on the goals by Usama and on a Red Bulls’ own goal (credited to Winnett).

In keeping with the holiday tradition of giving, shortly before half-time, Vaders’ keeper Frank gifted one for the ages by clearing the ball straight to John Altinian just outside the box. The Red Bulls striker promptly blasted the ball top shelf… 3:1 Vaders at half-time.

The second half opened with more pressure from the Red Bulls. It was Altinian who took matters into his own hands, blasting a low hard shot to the left of Frank. Alimena had to exhibit his trademark cat-like reflexes, just getting enough of the ball with his foot, kicking it out of bounds. Altinian would not be denied though, finishing with a casual hat-trick.

Andrew “el Mago” Winnett would bury the winner on a counter attack by Vaders, via a superb kick off the cross bar and in… While the Barons would get one more, the Vaders take this thrilling affair: 4:3.

Vlad Moisseykin

Lightning Double-up on Nightmares

What a Nightmare! It was a horrifying start for the undermanned Lightning as they quickly fell behind by 2 goals as the Nightmare jumped out to 2-0 and 3-1 leads.  When the reinforcements arrived, the Lightning were able to play a more aggressive style righting the ship to finish the half 3-3 tie.

The 1^st goal of the second half came as a result of a controversial call against defender Neil Bisset for dangerous play in the box.  The Lightning were awarded a penalty kick which Seamus Lynott placed squarely in the back of the net.

From that moment on Lightning played with renewed confidence, the Nightmare weren’t able to regain their composure and the game finished with the Lightning victorious.

Aaron St. Bernard

 

A hard fought victory on Wednesday night saw Direwolves ascend to the top. See the game reports below.

Direwolves Edge Out Lightning

What a match! It began with the undermanned Lightning; with only 1 substitute available, playing a conservative style.  On the flip side, the Direwolves, with a constant supply of fresh legs off the bench attacked in waves. Both teams had glorious chances but failed to score as goaltenders Murat Cokgezen and Brad Hughes guarded the net with passion even though both were loaned from other teams. The spirited first half ended at 0 – 0.

In the second half the hard fought battled continued as both teams withstood attacks and countered aggressively. It wasn’t until late in the game that Dale Burgess received a perfect pass which was just out of the reach of 3 exhausted Lightning defenders and scored the decisive goal with a devastating finishing touch. The frantic final moments of the game were not without controversy as a number of hand balls appeared to be ignored by the referee. The Lightning also had a goal disallowed due to a questionable goaltender interference call. Final score Direwolves 1 –  Lightning 0

Aaron St. Bernard

Nightmares Terrorize Red Bulls

They say in waging war you need a clear goal, otherwise you get bogged down.  This wasn’t the case in the land of Nightmares. General Trabulsey had a very clear goal: “Don’t let Altinian shoot.” When the game started, Altinian wasn’t there yet. And with almost a full team for the first time, the nightmares were coming wave after wave. The first goal came quick. Hans (I run like a beast) Wang passed to an open Daniel (the best defense is offence) Rubiano from a corner, and Daniel shot it straight into the net. A few minutes after, quick passes between Metinho and Hans, and before the ball could get to their General, it was booted in by a defender.  Then again only a few minutes after that, at the end of another series quick passes General Trabulsey showed how you lead: in the frontlines. It was 3-0 just like that.

At this point, Altinian was back and the Bulls were able to get their passing game together after their famed three star General Ivan (the terrible) Gojmerac put his foot down and showed who is boss.  The game turned just like that and now it was the Red Bulls turn. Shots from Golden foot Altinian (his last name literally has the word gold in it) and John Di Re came off Mutlu. But there is no stopping Altinian, so he shot one in.  The half time whistle was the only thing that stopped their momentum. Second half was a battle between the two sides. The Red Bulls putting in all they got, firing all cylinders but the Nightmares true to their name turned their half into a nightmare for the Bulls. Game ended 3-1.

Metinho Guler

Emeralds Vanquish Vaders

Vaders vs Emeralds in week 5 was the story of two teams in the basement, sitting 5^th place and 6^th place respectively.  Emeralds win-less since week one and Vaders Winnett-less since week two.  Both sides fought hard in this one, it was a scrappy affair. Emeralds would strike first with a beautiful goal from Sam Modarresi from an impossible angle on the left side.  Vader keeper Frank Alimena was quoted after as saying “There’s no way”.  Later in the first half there was a foul on Vader striker Fernando Ayala and the Men-in-Black were awarded a free kick on the edge of the box. They would make no mistake as Winnett quick touched the ball and Usama Nini put it top corner with authority on the week Emerald wall.  David Ashton compared the wall to a slice of Swiss Cheese.  1-1 at half.

The second half was all Vaders as they capitalized on the counter through the middle.  Emerald’s tough grind line and Zach Siewart and Hossein Haider muscled the ball up the field to a waiting Victor Cristiano. Italy may have been denied but he was not, scoring the game winner! Final Emeralds 2 – 1 Vaders

‘Pistol’ Paul Callahan

 

This week saw a first in the TISL as all 3 games ended in a draw.  None of them were boring draws though, read below for details.

Lightning v Red Bulls

As one of the three most anticipated games of the week, Lightning Strike FC hosting Red Bulls FC certainly lived up to its hype.  The game itself was intense, thrilling, and certainly very entertaining. However, one would be forgiven if they were to take their eyes off the game for a moment every few minutes as just like every driver’s worst nightmare, the teams sported bright yellow and red jerseys; bad for gas and bad for the eyes.

Red Bulls FC started off on the front foot and were ahead with less than 2 mins on the clock. John Di Re caught most of the Lightning players sleeping and neatly slotted the ball into the net pass a helpless Prathesh Senthil. Lightning tried to regroup and shake off their early struggles but were made to pay for another mistake as Red Bulls star Gabriel Ajon was able to cap off a great team play to take a 2 nil lead. Lightning thought they found their way back into the game through league leading scorer Dillon Suresh as he smashed home from close range, however, their momentum was put to an abrupt end when Red Bulls strikers John Di Re and Mohit Talwar scored 2 quick goals taking the game to 4-1. Though Julio Araujo was able to capitalize from a rare mistake and poked the ball into the net before half time, feeling was that it was too little too late for Lighting. Half time Lightning 2 – 4.

Surprising to many, Lightning came out in the second half in high spirits and started putting together waves after waves of attacks. They were rewarded when striker Aaron St Bernard scored to bring the game back to within reach for their team. Aaron then thought he had scored the game tying goal but the goal was disallowed for dangerous play. This brought an uproar from both benches as both teams badly wanted the win. However, as the teams realized that there were not a lot of time left, they decided to continue to play soccer. Lightning Strike was awarded a penalty near full time, and though Red Bulls keeper Murat Cokgezen was able to make the initial save, the momentum of the ball carried it over the line into the net. Neither team were able to find the winner and thus the game ended with both teams sharing the spoils. Full Time Lightning 4 – 4 Red Bulls.

Markos L

Vaders v Direwolves

The Direwolves were pegged as favorites by the oddsmakers in their first match against the Vaders. They entered with a full squad, while the Vaders were without key player Andrew Winnett. It proved to be a close match. The Direwolves pressed throughout the opening half but could not find the finish. The Vaders took their chances on the occasional counter, but also without success. The half finished at 0-0, despite heavy artillery from the wolves. In the second half it was more of the same, until a counter from the Vaders finished with Vlad placing the ball in the back of the net. The Vaders fought hard to hold the lead, but the Direwolves would not be denied. With less than 10 minutes to go, a corner from Kaveh found its way into the box and was tucked in by Theo. This one finished 1-1.

Leon P

Nightmares v Emeralds

The 7pm game featured team green vs team darker green. Nightmare, still looking for their first win of the season, hoped to make some Halloween magic but standing in their way were Emeralds, who started the season strong but came crashing back to earth in week two. The game started off slow, until Sam, in a rare blunder, let the ball roll past him right to the foot of Adrian who made no mistake and buried it into the back of the net. Offside? Not in this league. 1-0 Nightmare! The game moved back and forth with strong defensive play, and solid saves on both ends. Finally, seeing their opportunity on and odd man rush, Metin The Man Guler played a crisp pass to Adrian who found the back of the net for the second time this game. 2-0 Nightmare! Looking to get something going, Emeralds pushed hard, throwing five men into the attack. After a scramble the ball rolled to the foot of Hossein “Triple H” Haider (the third H is for Triple H) who wound up and let one fly. Inside post! And GOAL! 2-1 Nightmare at halftime.

If the fans thought the first half was wild they were in for a treat in the second. Odd man rushes on both sides. Shots, blocks, and diving saves, both teams could generate chances but no goals. It was the kind of football that fans love, but coaches hate. The best chance of the half came as Super Mario lofted a soft cross into the box, right to the foot of his favourite player Zach Attack. Foot found ball, and Zach fired an absolute screamer at the net, unfortunately right into the arms of the Nightmare keeper. More of the same until Zach fired a low shot which trickled through the keeper and headed towards the net. A couple hacks of the ball later and he found paydirt! 2-2! One more chance came late in the game as Emerald defender Dave Ashton picked up the ball at the top of the box and fired on net. Post! Off the keeper’s head! Crossbar! Close, but no goal!  2-2 final score.

Dave A

 

 

Lightning Strike FC sit atop the standings after week 2.

Emeralds vs Lightning Strike

With Emeralds coming off from a huge win in the opening week, it was up to Lightning Strike FC pull off an upset. The game began with Lightning stringing passes and creating chances, though none were converted. Lightning’s inability to convert in the opening minutes allowed Emeralds players to settle and they quickly pounced on a mistake which allowed them to score and take the lead. Credit to Lightning, they continued to believe in their abilities and were rewarded when Dillon Suresh headed in from within the area off of a corner. Emeralds were soon back on the front foot, and scored a second before half time.  2-1 Emeralds at the half.

Second half saw Lightning Strike FC coming out strong, forcing Emeralds keeper Kevin Bonner into multiple world class saves. Both teams then had golden scoring chances and it took a smart save from Lightning keeper Prathesh Senthil to deny Emeralds increasing their lead. This, however, provided lightning the spark, and Dillon Suresh scored 2 more goals in quick succession bringing the game to 3-2 Lightning. Seamus Lynott then sealed the victory for Lightning with a late goal. The game ended 4-2 for Lightning.

**There were lots of talking points for this game: controversial calls, players running off the field for no apparent reason, big saves from both keepers. Subscribe to Premium Pass for full match report, expert analysis, player interviews. First 5 subscribers gets a free signed T-shirt from any of the players.

Markos

Red Bulls vs Direwolves

While the bookies had this as a high scoring affair – the game turned out to be much tighter than expected. It was the Red Bulls who opened the scoring 10 minutes into the match as John Altinian and Mily Chen put pressure on Direwolves defense who coughed up the ball in front of Bonner.  It was Mily who pounced like a cat on a mouse and slotted the ball on the bottom left corner.

A second goal followed soon after when Di Re found Ivan G open on the right side. Ivan fired a shot that was redirected off a defender and into the back of the net.  They say that fortune favours the brave and the Red Bulls felt that they earned their luck.

John Altinian’s frustration was growing throughout the game as he failed to capitalize on a few opportunities. He did come good though and scored a third goal for Red Bulls.  Direwolves committed a turnover in the midfield and a quick pass to Altinian followed by a powerful shot and the game was 3-0.  Direwolves didn’t quit though and this game was a battle right until the final whistle blew.

Ivan G

Vaders v. Nightmares

The Vegas bookmakers favoured Vaders early on, but that would change closer to the kickoff. Almost a third of the Vaders team was not available due to purported OTPP off-site event. James Sharman of Sportsnet later revealed that certain players may have been sent down to the Vaders’ minor league affiliate, Vaders-905. Captain Fernando declined to comment.

The game itself began with heavy pressure from Nightmares. Crisp passes between Metin controlling the middle and Hans flying down the right wing side terrorized the opposing team. Vaders opted for the tried-and-true counter attack methods, with Andrew Winnett dangerously exploiting the Nightmares D on several occasions. Alas, both teams lacked the ability to finish. 0:0 at the half.

The second half continued with pressure from the team in green. Nightmares – hungry for their first win of the season – established a blitzkrieg in the Vaders zone, pelleting the opposing net with all the artillery they were able to sneak into the Hangar. Frankie stood tall, denying several opportunities, and displaying miracles, even at point-blank range. It was Vaders who would strike first: on a rare corner in the Nightmares zone, Mohammad delivered the ball on a silver platter for Fernando, who literally walked the ball into the Nightmares net. A tic-tac-toe, just like they practiced it earlier in the week.

Vaders defended heavily from that point on, clinging to the narrow margin by the skin of their teeth. Yet, it was not meant to be – with less than 2 min left in stoppage time, Natasha sneaked behind the Vaders defense and smashed the equalizer into the back of the net. Final score: 1:1

Vlad

 

The first five minutes of the Emeralds versus Red Bulls game was like being transported from the Hangar to the streets of Pamplona Spain, as the Red Bulls ran a relentless attack. Red Bull mid Mohit Talwar led the attack moving the ball up the left wing and threaded the needed to an awaiting John Di Re who fired a low hard shot on net…right into the bread basket of keeper Frank Alimena.  To the shock of all in attendance, it would be the Emeralds who would open the scoring first on a beautiful counter from Faiz Moosfaur, first of his young career. If you listened carefully, you could actually hear the sound of the floodgates bursting. A few minutes later, Emerald on a corner, the ball somehow trickled by every player on the field except the sprawling Paul Callahan who managed to get a toe on the ball as trickled into the net.  2-0 Emeralds at half!

The second half went from soccer match to track meet as both teams opened up.  Emerald did Sam Modarresi controlled the midfield setting up a pair of cheeky goals from Victor Cristiano and Mario Vega despite a diving effort from Murat Cokgezen.  Seeing red, Ivan Gojmerac pushed forward creating space and making runs into the Emeralds box. A strong header from Ivan went just over the net. David Ashton noted that Frankie probably would have stopped it anyway though.  In the end, Red Bulls would not be denied as a late goal from John Altinian lassoed the shut-out!

5-1 Emeralds Win!

Paul C

Nightmare FC took the field against Direwolves in the other 6 pm game. Things looked good up until half-time where Nightmare held a lead of 3-2.  If the game ended then they’d have the 3 points but the second half had to be played.  Direwolves lived up to their tag of heavy favourites by scoring 3 unanswered goals to win 5-3.

Ivan G

The primetime game lived up to the hype, as those who stayed behind will attest (shout out to Faiz). Lightning strike came out early and Dillon scored a header which would have made Lebron jealous, hops gallor! The rest of the half was back and forth but at halftime it was 1-0 for Lightning strike.

2^nd half opened up with Andrew Winnett making a run up the wing and scoring. Later on in that half Vaders FC got caught on a counter by Dillon and he blew by two defenders and mauled Frankie for the goal. Not to be outdone Vaders came back late in the half as Andrew Winnett scored a second from the wing again!

2-2 draw was the result in a highly competitive game!

Fernando

Cobra Kai are the 2016/17 TCL Champions after outlasting the Spartans in a memorable final.  The game started late as Ronalduy was held up by fans demanding his autograph.  His security detail had to pull him away to get him to the game.  Cobra Kai had a full squad while the Spartans were without Nico, Hossein, Dylan and Alex, all suffering from the Cobra flu.  In particular it was the absence of Nico Ress that bolstered Cobra Kai’s confidence.  Nico has been the Marshall of the Spartan defense and without him there, Cobra Kai knew that even if they didn’t leave with the championship, they’d leave with all their teeth in tact.

The Spartans started the game well and put early pressure on Cobra Kai, who had Murat minding the net.  Chances were hard to come by though, which has been the story in these playoffs.  Ted Guo has been a stalwart in the Cobra defense and made life hard for the Spartans.  About 10 minutes into the half, Cobra Kai started finding their own rhythm and began knocking the ball around.  It was shortly thereafter that the first goal game.  After a corner kick, Metinho got the ball back right at the touch line and sent a low cross towards the middle of the penalty area.  It was Sam Shareski who stretched to get a foot on it at the near post to redirect it past Kevin Bonner.  It was quick thinking by Shareski as Bonner expected the ball to go to the middle and was caught flat footed by Sam’s touch.

The second half was a classic 1-0 battle.  Spartans were obviously trying to even the match but Cobra Kai knew that they couldn’t sit back.  They were pushing just as hard to make it 2-0 so they could get some breathing room.  That’s exactly what happened 5 minutes in a shot came in that was blocked by Bonner, but the rebound was put home by Metinho.  What a warrior this man is and has been all season.  He took a hard knock in the semi-final and was not in shape to play, but he did anyway.  He couldn’t let his team down nor could he could let himself down after battling all season long only to miss the final.

It was beginning to look like the Spartans were a defeated team.  They weren’t able to get back into a rhythm for 10 minutes.  Then it all changed when they remembered how talented they were.  They started hitting some impressive passing combinations that Cobra Kai had no answer for.  Without about 10 minutes left it was JJ who beat 2 Cobra Kai players and found YiNan to the right of the keeper who finished like a pro.  YiNan has established himself as a top striker in the league, with nerves of steel in front of goal.  At 2-1 it meant the final 10 minutes would be intense.  The Spartans kept up their pressure and Arsalan had a couple of great chances that just narrowly missed.  Cobra Kai had to work even harder and nobody stopped running at any point.  All that running and effort paid off as they prevented the Spartans from scoring to even the match.  For the first time in 3 season, the final was won in regulation time.

Congratulations to Cobra Kai on becoming the 2016/17 TCL Champions!  Kudos to the Spartans as well.  They played a great match and were graceful in defeat.

For this writer, the 2016/17 season was the best one yet.  The new venue made the games more open, the new players brought up the quality and every single player and team made this a memorable season.  See you in 2017/18!

Cobra Kai squeaked out a 1-0 victory over the D-Mentors in the fist semi-final. The news ahead of the match was that both teams were healthy with the exception of Prem Chattani for D-Mentors and Dan Trojanowski for Cobra Kai.

The first half was a cautious affair for both teams and neither pushed forward with a lot of ambition.  It was in early in the second half when the goal game.  Ivan received a pass on the left side of midfield and hit a quick low pass across the face of goal to find Raghav, who made the ground shake with his thunderous finish.  Like all playoff games, the intensity increased and D-Mentors started piling on the pressure.  There were a lot of blocked shots and a lot of great saves by Mutlu in the Cobra Kai net.  The final whistle blew and Cobra Kai are in the championship game.

Congratulations to the D-Mentors on a great season.  Having finished second place in the regular season and nearly making the finals, they can hold their heads up high.  They had some attendance issues this season, which makes it harder for teams to gel.  Despite this they performed admirably.

In the second semi-final, the Spartans stopped Clubber Lang 3-0.  The Spartans were missing Alex, Dylan and Arsalan while Clubber Lang were without Suleman and Victor.

Clubber Lang started well and had some good chances but couldn’t beat Brad Hughes.  It was the Spartans who struck first against the run of play when JJ made a characteristic run and hammered the ball into the back of the net.  The only thing that would’ve made the goal nicer is if he was wearing his Spartans jersey.  In the second half, Spartans scored 2 more goals.  The first came when Hossein got his foot to a cross and put it past Kevin Bonner.  This was Hossein’s first goal in the league and it was a beauty.  With Clubber Lang pushing forward, Spartans had more space to work with and Yi Nan scored the third goal.  Yi Nan said that he didn’t really need the extra space, but it was nice nonetheless.

Clubber Lang had an interesting season as the second half was much better than the first.  Between players being more available and signing new players, they were a beast in the second half of the season.  Their fast-faced possession style game was a joy to watch.

The championship match will see the Spartans take on Cobra Kai.  Be there on Wednesday at 6 pm to catch the action!

Cobra Kai Upsets Barons

The Barons were coming off a record-setting regular season and were heavy favourites to win the league championship. Cobra Kai had a good season but finished in last place and they knew they were up against it in the quarter-finals.

The entire game was played at a fast pace and neither time had any time to rest. In the first half it was Cobra Kai who took the initiative and pressed the Barons.  They were rewarded for their pressing when Metin struck a powerful shot that got past the Barons keeper.  Cobra Kai continued to press forward looking for a second and came close on a number of occasions.  The front line of the Barons did some of their own pressing and had a few narrow misses.

In the second half it was the Barons who took the game by the throat. They moved more numbers forward and put the Cobra Kai defense under pressure.  The midfield was pegged back but helped the defense immensely.  Victor Cristiano made a run, thought he had a clear shot on goal until Ivan stretched his leg out, made it 15 feet long and hit the ball out for a Barons corner.  With about 15 minutes left, Cobra Kai struck again to take a 2 goal lead.  After that it was all out attack by Barons which saw some good chances fall to the feet of Seamus, John and Mohit.  It was John Di Re who struck to make it 2-1 with 5 minutes left.  The Barons poured it on but it wasn’t to be as Cobra Kai advance to the semi-finals.

Congratulations to the Barons on a great season. Although they won’t finish as champions, they are likely the best team the TCL has ever seen, in the eyes of this writer.

~ Ivan

Clubber Lang Makes Heroic Comeback

The second quarter-final was between D-Mentors and Clubber Lang. On paper it didn’t really sound all that interesting. Season’s worst offense (D-mentors) on season’s worst defense (Clubber Lang), not a lot of excitement was expected. On the pitch, however, was a different story. The game started at a slow pace as both teams did not want to make mistakes that would give the other team the advantage. Midway point of the first half, D-mentors was able to break the deadlock via John Burinski with a perfectly executed header. This was a goal which would’ve made any top teams in the world proud as it lobbed both the defender, and the oncoming keeper. Down 1-0, Clubber pushed for an equalizer, chances were created, but D-mentor’s defense stood strong. Half time 1-0.

Second half started at an even slower pace as D-mentors were getting into their rhythm of defend and counter attack. Clubber Lang was caught again on the counter and was down 2-0 within minutes of the restart by an accurate shot by Christy Gnanapragasam from outside the area. However, Clubber Lang pushed hard and were rewarded when Dan Newman’s shot from the left sneaked past D-Mentors’ keeper at his near post. At 2-1, the game became increasingly interesting as Clubber Lang believed they could take the game to penalties. Their persistence was rewarded as in the dying minutes of the game, Dan Newman again was able to find the net via a deflection off D-Mentors’ keeper at the near post. Full Time: 2 -2. To penalties we go.

Clubber captain Alex won the coin toss and chose to shoot second in penalties, therefore, D-Mentors were up first. The pressure of the quarter finals must’ve gotten to D-Mentors as they missed their first two penalties, allowing Clubber Lang to snatch the win via an epic comeback.

~ Markos

Spartans nip Renegades

The Spartans came into the quarter-finals with nearly a full squad while Renegades had to borrow John Di Re just to get them to 6 players. The outlook was bleak and some were expecting a rout.  As the first half progressed, the rout never happened.  In fact, Renegades more than held their own.  They had some chances to go ahead and played disciplined defense.  It was JJ who broke the deadlock when he made a jumping header that got past the Renegades defense.  His celebration was muted because he scores goals as easily as the rest of breathe air.

The second half was similar to the first but it generated a few more scoring chances. The best came when Arsalan took a pass in the penalty area and rifled a shot off the post.  It was so close to being 2-0.  Not to be outdone, the Renegades hit a fast break when Fernando blasted a shot that just missed the top corner of Murat’s net.  It wasn’t to be for the Renegades and the game finished 1-0.

~ Ivan

D-Mentors Win the Wildcard Spot

The D-Mentors suffered pain and then joy. They gave away a 2-0 goal lead with 5 minutes remaining in then they lost in penalties to Clubber Lang.  However, the joy came when both Barons and Renegades lost in regular time which meant that D-Mentors won the wild card spot.

When you flip open a dictionary and look up the definition of Communication, you will find that it says Clubber Lang FC. And when you look up the word Teamwork, it will say “Communication is key.” That is exactly what was showcased when Clubber Lang took on Cobra Kai on Wednesday. This was the last time these two teams would meet during regular season, and they sure didn’t disappoint.

Cobra Kai were at a disadvantage as they were without a keeper and light on the bench (that’s rather odd, seeing how they usually have enough players to play two lines.. what happened?). On the other side of the pitch, it is the first time that the whole Clubber Lang team showed up and was able to play (Wohoo, Subs!). From kickoff, it was clear that Clubber Lang was there to win, they passed with pace and were controlling the tempo. The quick goal from last week’s game was definitely on Cobra Kai’s minds as they played more of a defend and counter style. There was a lot of yelling and screaming.. (not from the fans…we don’t have those) from both teams as they try to communicate with each other to make sure there were no gaps. It was clear that Clubber Lang did a better job at yelling as they were able to break the deadlock midway through first half. The rest of the game was played out in similar fashion with a lot of yelling and screaming from the teams, and a lot of substitutes from Clubber Lang. Final score was Clubber Lang 3- 1 Cobra Kai. Clubber Lang was able to keep their perfect record over Cobra for the regular season.

~ Markos

In other action, D-Mentors downed the Spartans 3-1 while the Renegades fell 3-2 to the Barons.

Match day 14 was dubbed to be the game that will form rivalries as the same teams would be playing each other again on match day 15, and it really did not disappoint when it came to Cobra Kai and Clubber Lang. Ivan stated in the match preview that Clubber Lang were not really impressive in their pair of wins against Cobra Kai earlier in the season. This comment most likely angered Clubber Lang as they were 1 up within seconds after kickoff. A sloppy back pass from Cobra’s kickoff gave Clubber Lang the chance to pounce as Markos fed a sly through pass to Alex Wong whose fierce shot was too much for the keeper to handle. After opening the scoring, Clubber Lang continued to press hard with quick passes around Cobra’s defense that left most of the Cobra’s players breathless. However, that didn’t seem to bother Cobra Kai much as they always seem to have enough players to sub on as a new line, just like the hand-football. Clubber Lang’s were finally rewarded for their efforts when Andrew Winnett was able to score off a rebound and some indecisiveness by Cobra’s players. Clubber Lang became over confident in their plays and was caught out by Cobra’s Leon Perelman who pulled one back to go into the break with only a one goal deficit. Half time: Cobra Kai 1 : 2 Clubber Lang.

Second half began with controversy as Cobra Kai, who won the coin toss at the start of the game, once again kicked off from the center line. Many Clubber Lang players noticed this mistake, but kept quiet as well…. Ivan pays the refs. This minor setback was quickly swept from Clubber Lang player’s minds as they restored their 2 goal lead shortly after the restart. Both teams began to tire out as spaces opened up all across the pitch. Cobra Kai came close to scoring on a few occasions, but couldn’t get past the combo of Murat and the goal posts. Clubber Lang was able to score another midway through second half, and the rest of the game was just pure game management for them. Full time Cobra Kai 1 : 4 Clubber Lang.

After the game Clubber Lang captain Alex was overheard warning the team that Cobra Kai will most likely try to come flying out of the gate next week when the teams faces each other again. Luckily for Clubber Lang, they should be able to welcome back striker Dan Newman for that game. Will Cobra Kai finally taste victory against their 80’s rival? Or will Clubber Lang have a clean sweep of the Cobras in regular season?

~Markos

 

The primetime matchup featured the Renegades versus Barons. Like every matchup between these two squads, there would be no shortage of controversy. Before the game, Barons took the field quickly noticing that their superstar striker Seamus was absent. The finger pointing began “I thought you had him?”, “I’m not the team bus!”, Frank replied. It was finally determined that Renegades d-man Tim Zhang had ‘graciously’ offered him lift.  It’s unclear if this was a planned kamikaze or what, but seconds before the whistle both players came running to the field. Game on! (FYI Andrew Winnett was the loan player on notice for Renegades, needless to say he appeared ready, Barons may have dodged a bullet here)

The game began with some early back and forth momentum. The Renegades three headed dragon of Neil Carey, Teddy Blanchard and Fernando Ayala were determined to strike first blood. Brad Hughes had to make some unbelievable stops early keeping the game at nil-nil. Then, in about the 5^th minute, Barons with the corner kick into the Renegades box. You can replace the soccer pitch with a pinball machine, but the last deflection was off Renegades back Alexis Yearwood. Some say she was just jones’ for a goal! But definitely not her fault. 1-0 for the Barons goal credited to rookie Zach Siewart. The second goal had no shortage of controversy either when Seamus drove to the net from the right side taking a quick low short. Mutlu made the initial stop, but the ball seemed to trickle out, Seamus would finish the goal but not without accidently stepping on the keepers hand. Ref would call it goal, but the fans were outraged!  The half-time whistle blew.

In the 2^nd  half, the battle continued, this time with Frank and Fernando mixing it up. I think this storyline had been brewing on the Mezz since Monday, because both players were relentless. Fernando, who was awarded a free kick, shrugged it off and kept his eyes on the prize. Half-way through the 2^nd, the ref blew the whistle, but Seamus proceeded to blast a shot on net. The ref had seen enough, a yellow card was presented with a 2 minute penalty attached. Renegades would capitalize with the man-advantage, coming up the right wing shooting, Brad would make the initial save but the ball rebounded to Teddy who put home the goal. Barons would add a few more to seal the deal. 5-1 final score. Tune in next week as these two squads face off again for the grudge match!

~Paul

The match between Spartans and D-Mentors finished 2-2.  Duy and NIco scored for the Spartans while John Burinski netted a brace for D-Mentors.