Match Thread: CONCACAF Champions Cup - Round 1 - Leg 1: Cavalry v Orlando City (USA) - February 21, 2024

[narduch]

Yikes. Carducci let's another bad one in.

2-0 Orlando now

[Cheeta]

14 minutes ago, Big_M said:

mcguire says no europe no problem ill keep scoring here...0-1 21'...carducci comes out badly

I'd argue the 1st one...that one?   Not so much.

[Aird25]

Glad my wife convinced me to save our money for Pacific. It's so stupid to be playing a knockout match at this point in the season 

Edited February 22 by Aird25

[Big_M]

when you see akio defending facundo torres you know its trouble...and again and again you want proof that carducci is not all that? again and again you get the answer

[Cheeta]

Ali off, thank goodness.  Not a night to remember that's for sure.

[SpursFlu]

Am I the only one who thinks Akio is terrible. Not just because that error 

[Cheeta]

Yeesh.  That's going to hurt in the morning.

[jonovision]

What does Cavalry actually gain from playing in this tournament? 2 road games, they're going to lose a pile of money, they'll have to gear down towards a more normal pre-season after this. Kind of a waste.

[Cheeta]

Yeah, assuming the appearance fee doesn't come even close to covering expenses.

Orlando looked good to my eye.  Had their not so good moments as well but mentally, waaay sharper than Cavalry.  No surprise that, given where both teams are into their preseason.

See how things go next week.  Would think as things stand if they can at least win a half Wheeldon and Co. will be happy enough.

[nolando]

1 hour ago, jonovision said:

What does Cavalry actually gain from playing in this tournament? 2 road games, they're going to lose a pile of money, they'll have to gear down towards a more normal pre-season after this. Kind of a waste.

I would imagine this could be a huge selling point for a player hoping to showcase themself on the bigger stage. And in turn something that could draw better players to the club. But surely the numbers dont add up, I agree.

[Ozzie_the_parrot]

1 hour ago, jonovision said:

What does Cavalry actually gain from playing in this tournament? 2 road games, they're going to lose a pile of money, they'll have to gear down towards a more normal pre-season after this. Kind of a waste.

Other than the optics of being designated as Canada's D1 not very much. Acting as not much more than a speed bump is going to grow old very quickly unless an upset happens to give people a reason to believe. I'm still trying to fathom how the Spruce Meadows grounds staff could possibly have believed that they were going to be able to play this game in Calgary.

 

Edited February 22 by Ozzie_the_parrot

[narduch]

Attendance was 2484

[Kingston]

It was for the wrong team but that third goal was pretty.

I hope Calgary can at least score a goal in the second leg for pride if nothing else.

[Ftduck]

Couldn't watch last night so got up early assuming replay would be available on One Soccer. Not loaded yet so I could only watch the highlights. Gutted they couldn't score at least once. Did they have anything positive from the game? Highlights never tell the whole story. Thought Cavs had the better draw against a team also in preseason so I was expecting something positive. Maybe I underestimate MLS since I don't watch that league much since CPL has been around. Obviously financial resources are painfully one sided. Fuck. 

[Obinna]

54 minutes ago, Ftduck said:

Couldn't watch last night so got up early assuming replay would be available on One Soccer. Not loaded yet so I could only watch the highlights. Gutted they couldn't score at least once. Did they have anything positive from the game? Highlights never tell the whole story. Thought Cavs had the better draw against a team also in preseason so I was expecting something positive. Maybe I underestimate MLS since I don't watch that league much since CPL has been around. Obviously financial resources are painfully one sided. Fuck. 

Orlando City were just as good as Tigres or Chivas, to my surprise, given that Liga MX is supposed to be better than MLS.

Cavs seemed a bit flat as well. Some build out from the back was sharp and some nice interplay at times, but other times the Orlando press was too much, so they went long and then couldn't win the knock downs so just gave away possession. When they were brave and played through the press the looked good, but weren't sharp enough to do it consistently.

Orlando played through Cavalry's press with ease. It was a mistake not to start Beven who made things a little less comfortable for Orlando's defense with his pressing. 

The other issue I think was that Cavalry often get joy from Akio and Musse due to their athleticism but the wide players from Orlando were excellent. Angulo and the Icelandic kid, who looked kid of like Liam Millar out there, was particularly impressive.

The tie is done surely, but hopefully Cavs have a better showing and get a goal down in Florida. It's a good experience for them and should only give them an advantage in sharpness heading into April. Only 3 weeks from 2nd leg to start of season, so the boys will be relatively sharp.

[Cheeta]

2 hours ago, Ftduck said:

Couldn't watch last night

...

Gutted they couldn't score at least once. Did they have anything positive from the game? 

....

Anything positive?  Camargo.  Good night, thought a very good night for the man to be in the shop window, as it were.

Ali was a toe away from a monster chance but wasn't happening for him all night.  Few times there Calvary were able to judo the press and counter but ran out of gas, and ideas, as things proceeded.

Orlando came to play and good on them for that but you could really tell who was further into their preseason preparation by the 1/4 hour.

[Cheeta]

So the Three Lions is a legacy badge?  Nice.

[RS]

3 hours ago, Cheeta said:

So the Three Lions is a legacy badge?  Nice.

Yes. It's from their USL days.

[Aird25]

Tough to take anything away from a match like this for either side. It's such a shame our schedule is so out of whack with a lot of Concacaf's. We should start hosting a January tournament in BC each year with qualified CPL teams and a few invited teams from Scandinavia or somewhere out of season. I bet you could get reasonable crowds and it might help encourage Langley and Langford to finish their stadiums.

Edited February 22 by Aird25