CPL Classics: An Eventful, Eight-Goal Afternoon in York
CPL Classics covers notable matches from the first two seasons in the Canadian Premier League.
The York Lions Stadium on the afternoon of July 27th 2019 - this was to be the setting for the most eventful and exciting game in the first season of the Canadian Premier League.
Still early in the fall season, York9 FC (Now York United) came into this game off of two home wins while their opponents, the Halifax Wanderers, had suffered three straight losses. These recent events all seemed to indicate at the eventual outcome of their July 27th match, but few could have predicted the extraordinary scenes that were about to unfold in northern Toronto.
York's Ryan Telfer got the scoring off the mark after eleven minutes scooping up a misdirected ball in the Wanderer's defence left him unmarked and able to slot it between the legs of the goalkeeper. Ten minutes later, Telfer's team mate Kyle Porter headed the ball directly to Rodrigo Gattas for York's second goal with less than half and hour played.
As the first half started to wind down Gattas added to his tally with a wild shot from far outside the box that put York up 3-0. Halifax's best attempt at goal in the first half was caught by keeper Nathan Ingham and booted down field to York's two-time goal scorer. Three passes later, Gattas had completed a hat trick - the first in CPL history - before half time, leaving the Wanderers trailing by four with forty-five more minutes to play.
It was at the hour mark when Halifax finally broke their deadlock: a lapse in concentration from the York defence allowed Tomasz Skublak intercepted a weak pass by Morey Donar back to Ingham in goal. The Wanderers' forward then sprinted past the goalkeeper and was able to simply tap the ball in for the his team's opener.
Not long afterwards Telfer was on hand to take York's mind off the loss of their clean sheet. Receiving a cross in the right hand corner of the box, he found the narrow gap between the keeper and the post for his second goal and York's fifth of the match.
With fifteen minutes left and the score standing at 5-1, there was still plenty of action still to be had in this one. Marking Halifax's Skublak as he made a run on the wing for goal, York's Roger Thompson deflected a pass from the Halifax striker which ended up in the back of his own net.
This mistake was made up for five minutes from time: after his point-blank shot was deflected by Jan Michael-Williams in the Halifax goal, Emilio Estevez Tsai got a second chance that was again denied - but his third attempt at goal went over the line. At the rate the scoring had come there still seemed time for another goal, but at the final whistle York celebrated an astonishing 6-2 win.
Buoyed with victories like this, York went on to finish third in the fall season and in the overall standings, while the Wanderers ended 2019 at the bottom of both tables. Forge and Cavlary both advanced to the CPL final, with Forge becoming the first champions with a 2-0 scoreline over two legs.
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