DJT Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Montreal Impact (4-3-0) vs. Toronto Lynx (0-3-6) Kickoff 7:30 PM EDT Television RDS Radio/Audio Webcast English - CJAD 800 AM Montreal French - CKAC 730 AM Montreal Impact preview: IMPACT HOST THE TORONTO LYNX FRIDAY MONTREAL, June 2, 2005 - The Montreal Impact (4-0-3) host the Toronto Lynx (0-6-3)on Friday, at Claude-Robillard Sports Complex, at 7:30 pm (RDS, CJAD 800, CKAC 730). CONTEXT > The Impact hosts the Toronto Lynx on Friday, Montreal’s 8th game of the season. > After seven games played, the Impact has yet to be defeated (4-0-3). > Last Sunday, the Impact tied the Rochester Raging Rhinos 0-0 in the official home opener at the Claude-Robillard Sports Complex, in front of 12 086 spectators, a record crowd for home openers in Montreal and the second largest crowd in team history. > The Impact is undefeated in seven consecutive games. Montreal’s longest undefeated streak is 12 games. The Impact went 8-0-4 last season in their first 12 games. > Goalkeeper Greg Sutton has earned five shutouts in seven starts this season. The 0-0 tie last Sunday represented his 48th career shutout with the Impact (regular season). Last year, Sutton finished with 16 shutouts, a team record. IMPACT VS LYNX > Since 1993, the Impact has a record of 22-12-3 against Toronto. > Montreal blanked the Lynx in their first meeting this season 1-0 on May 15th, at Centennial Stadium. Kevin Wilson scored the lone goal in the 50th minute, on a header. Mauro Biello had the assist. > Many players from both teams have played for their rivals at one time. Striker Ali Gerba will play his first game against his former team, since being traded to Montreal on May 19th in exchange for defender Abraham François and forward Sita-Taty Matondo. Defender Mauricio Vincello was with the Lynx from 2000-2003. Last year, he scored two goals against his former team. Impact assistant coach Peter Pinizzotto coached the Lynx, while Lloyd Barker, also an assistant in Montreal, played for the Lynx in 1999 and 2000. > In Toronto, aside from François and Matondo, former members of the Montreal Impact include young defender Andres Arrango, who was traded to Toronto for Vincello, veteran defender Carl Fletcher and Montreal native Josué Mayard. Toronto head coach Hubert “Junior” Busby and his assistant Lyndon Hooper were also members of the Impact. COMMENTS > Ali Gerba: " It will be a special game for me, facing my former team mates. I will prepare for the game just like any other. My objective is to play well and to score if I have chances. It will be a physical game with a lot of intensity because the Lynx will want to beat us at home. In the last game, while I was playing for the Lynx, we didn’t like to be shutout in front of our fans. Even if Toronto doesn’t have a good record, we will have to be cautious because they have many talented players that I know very well." > Greg Sutton: "Everything seems to be positive for us this season. Defensively, we are impeccable. Once again this season, we are doing the little things on defense that led us to the championship last year. When you play like that it's always easier to get the wins. And I have to say that players in front of me are doing a great job. We have been playing together for a couple seasons and we developed a good relationship. We know our weaknesses so we are counting on each other, which help us to be the best defense in the league. But against Toronto we never know what to expect. They are always dangerous and they can play a good game anytime." NOTES > Defender Nevio Pizzolitto was selected to the USL D1 Team of the Week. Pizzolitto played a solid game defensively in the Impact’s home opener, a 0-0 tie against Rochester last Sunday. > Defender Gabriel Gervais has recovered from a bruised thigh he suffered in Rochester on May 21st, and will be available for Friday’s game. > Midfielder Sandro Grande, who is suffering from a groin injury, is expected to be back for the next home game against Charleston, June 22nd. > David Fronimadis and Jason Di Tullio are now training with the team. The two defenders have been out of action since the beginning of the season, after suffering serious knee injuries last year. > Team Canada head coach Frank Yallop named his roster for the upcoming training camp to be held in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, from June 4-9. Six Impact players were selected to the team: goalkeeper Andrew Olivieri, defenders Adam Braz and Gabriel Gervais, midfielders Mesut Mert and Patrick Leduc and forward Ali Gerba. > The Vachon Public Practices are back. The Montreal Impact will be in training in different parts of the city and province throughout the summer, starting with a public practice which will be held Tuesday, June 7th, at 7:00 pm, at Concordia’s Loyola Campus in NDG. The Impact will also be in Vaudreuil-Dorion (June 13 at 7 pm), in Blainville (July 9 at 11 am), in St-Hyacinthe (July 12 at 7 pm), in La Prairie (August 3 at 7 pm) and in the Lanaudière region (August 23 at 7 pm). > The registration day for the Montreal Impact - Réno-Dépôt Soccer Schools will take place: Saturday, June 4th, from 11 am to 2 pm at the Réno-Dépôt store in Anjou, located at 10 200 Renaude-Lapointe. Impact players and school directors Patrick Leduc and Darko Kolic will be on hand to meet the young players. There will also be skills demonstrations, autograph signings and giveaways. NEXT GAME The Impact will host the Charleston Battery at 7:30 pm on June 22nd at Claude-Robillard Sports Complex. Until then, Montreal will play two exhibition games against the Vermont Voltage of the Premier Development League of the USL. The first of the home-and-away series will be held at the Catalogna Soccerplexe in Lachine on June 8th. Game time is 11 am. -30- Source: Patrick Vallée Info: 514-328-3668 (ext. 27) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheeta Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Bloody Shaw. Just ordered RDS to watch the Impact kick the crap out of the Lynx and re-ordered SportsNet digital for the WYC. Cheap, cheap. $5 for the pair. Hey, are the Lynx eliminated from the playoffs yet? I kid, I kid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheeta Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Holy ****, they were just showing "Slapshot" highlights. What the Hell is this? Gotta find the Little One and get her to translate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanKeay Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 I did the same thing.... it was worth the 5 bucks eh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJT Posted June 4, 2005 Author Share Posted June 4, 2005 Halftime: 0-0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJT Posted June 4, 2005 Author Share Posted June 4, 2005 Final: Montreal 0Toronto 0 Attendance: 9,864 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gian-Luca Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Something's got to be wrong with Montreal if they can't score at home against the Lynx. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torontosupport Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Something WAS wrong, as they didn't score at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free kick Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 quote:Originally posted by Cheeta Hey, are the Lynx eliminated from the playoffs yet? I kid, I kid. To make the playoffs, they would have to win 14 of their remaining 18 game and lose no more than two games. Thats just an estimate based on the records of the top six clubs from last year. On the one hand a crazy optimist might point to the fact that they will play a ton of home games to make up for the long road trip at the start of the season. But on the other hand, the rules for Overtime/draws have changed, meaning that there will be many more draws/ties this year in the USL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free kick Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 I know it sounds cliche to say that the foundation of a good team is to be solid defensively. Especially, in a minor pro league like the USL where the best offensive talent doesn't stick around for long. Therefore, conceding nine goals in two consecutive games should tell you that your not going anywhere. Looking at the recent results, I have to wonder about the quality of coaching and preparation. At the very least, coaching is likely to have a greater impact on the defensive aspects of the game rather than goal scoring. Furthermore, the inconsistancies of socorelines like 4-4, 5-3, 0-0 makes me wonder what the coaching philosphy is and if everyone is on the same page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberto7 Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 I covered the game tonight for USLfans.com and I must say that the Lynx played very well showing a great deal of spark and energy. Sean Fraser is one speedy forward and with a little better service would have scored. The addition of Aristodemo and Bartolomeu has made a huge difference. I feel like most of you that it is a little late for them though and playing great defensively is fine but you also have to score some... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanKeay Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 The Lynx played a good defencive game, which is insane for the lynx. Nigel Henry was a rock in the back and looked so calm. I think he will help alot, and also push Titus up into a defencive mid role which he likes so much. We just lacked anything upfront as we played defencive all game. Nils Dekker.... was TERRIBLE yet again, i dont understand why he is even on the team. Let alone on the field. He contunially makes bad choices and we had a 2 on 1 last night and could of played it wide but hit it at the defender... man he needs to go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanKeay Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 The Lynx played a good defencive game, which is insane for the lynx. Nigel Henry was a rock in the back and looked so calm. I think he will help alot, and also push Titus up into a defencive mid role which he likes so much. We just lacked anything upfront as we played defencive all game. Nils Dekker.... was TERRIBLE yet again, i dont understand why he is even on the team. Let alone on the field. He contunially makes bad choices and we had a 2 on 1 last night and could of played it wide but hit it at the defender... man he needs to go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Good to see DeTullio back playing for the Impact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Good to see DeTullio back playing for the Impact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 I was at the game and haven't been able to post until now. The Lynx were a better team than I expected and than their record suggests although the new signings were also a factor. The Lynx hardly got out of their own half for the first half but were very effective defending and the Impact were equally ineffective attacking. In the second half the Lynx not only managed to defend but had a fair number of counters and put pressure on the Impact. The Impact seem to be unable to create quality chances and for the second game in a row did not really deserve to win despite having the majority of possession. They seem unable to make the last decisive pass and really need Grande to return from injury. Both Gerba and Wilson seem to be decent strikers but they are not getting any service. I was impressed by Goddard as a very good level for a backup USL keeper. His save on Gerba was probably the Lynx save of the year, anticipating his own defender's error and the pass to a lone striker in front of him to rob Gerba who really should have scored. A little bit shaky on corners and high balls into the box but otherwise quite solid. I think it was Henry who wore number 7 and played central D and was the best Lynx player. A little bit prone to errors but very good speed and technical ability. I was expecting a bit more from Titus but maybe the new position and the fact that everytime he passed the ball to another Lynx player they lost it within 5 seconds reduced his effectiveness. He did seem to be the only Lynx player able to maintain possession for any amount of time. Abraham François, Rumba Munthali, Edgar Bartolomeu, Sean Fraser and Jamie Dodds were all decent but the Lynx definitely need to work on controlling possession. They also need a more dangerous striker. This is the second Impact game I have seen and they seem to have a team with a lot of good USL level players but not too many standouts. I think even the Lynx have more players with potential to play at a higher level even if they are not currently as good as the average Impact player. Only Sutton, Gerba and probably Grande when he returns impress me as being able to play above the current level. Yet the team is very even and has few weak spots including the subs. Like many of the Impact players Fukasawa hasn't impressed me as anything more than a good USL level player. Not that he isn't a good addition to the team but I was expecting a bit more from a J-League veteran. Incidentally, like many other USL teams I think the Impact are padding their numbers by a couple of thousand each game and are also giving away a large amount of tickets (judging by the ease with which one can buy tickets with $0.00 on them from scalpers before the game). They probably count all the $0.00 tickets given away whether they are used or not. However, this is less noticeable when they have 7000 fans and announce close to 10000 than when the Lynx have 800 fans and announce 2500. Still very good attendance for the USL if not quite the astronomical numbers announced probably for marketing purposes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJT Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 quote:Originally posted by Grizzly I was impressed by Goddard as a very good level for a backup USL keeper. Since I've seen him referred to as a backup keeper a few times now, I think it's worth mentioning that Goddard played a full season as a first-choice keeper in the A-League (2002 Charlotte Eagles, who made the playoffs) before running into visa problems that prevented him from playing in the league in 2003. I think it's arguable that he didn't really get a fair shot with the Lynx in 2004. quote:They also need a more dangerous striker.Like Gerba? [] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polish_LYNX_Fan Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 [] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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