York United bounced back from their worst result of the season with a statement win over Cavalry FC in Toronto Friday night.
A week ago York lost 4-0 to Halifax Wanderers on the east coast.
But with goals from Adonijah Reid, Leonel López, and Max Ferrari, York United beat Cavalry FC 3-0 Friday, to reduce the gap between the clubs to one point as both teams continue to vie for playoff positions.
“I wanted a reaction. I got a perfect reaction,” said York United head coach Mauro Eustáquio post-game. “The boys went out there today, felt the game, knew the responsibility, wanted it, stuck with the game plan, and their quality took over the game.”
Tight and physical opening to the match
The opening stages of the match were marked with fouls from either side. Tossing the body, York was penalized twice in the opening 10 minutes as Nyal Higgins and Reid were both shown yellow cards.
After the early jostling, both sides tried to find an opening through the middle of the pitch. The first shot in the match came in the 24th minute as Orlando Botello’s shot from distance went high over the net. Moments later, Kembo Kibato had a try from distance that also sailed wide.
In the 33rd minute, Cavalry had a brilliant chance to open the tie. Driving down to the byline, Tobias Warschewski cut back a pass into the middle of the box to Michael Baldisimo, whose low shot forced Diego Urtiaga to make a quick diving save to his left.
York found goals on either side of the half
However, it was York who found the breakthrough in the 40th minute. After Frank Sturing made a hard tackle in the middle of the pitch to win the ball, York quickly shifted play to the left onto the feet of Massimo Ferrin. Using his speed to drive down the line past Fraser Aird, he sent a low cross into the box, where a sliding Reid guided the ball into the back of the net to give York the 1-0 lead at halftime.
After stifling pressure from Cavalry after the break, York found its second goal of the match courtesy of a set-piece in the 59th minute. Standing over the free-kick at the edge of the box, López curled his shot around the wall, past an outstretched Marco Carducci, and into the far post netting to double York’s lead.
In the 66th minute, Cavalry had another great opportunity in close as Goteh Ntignee found Baldisimo in tight, but his shot was crucially blocked by Sturing.
In the 84th minute, York closed the game with its third goal of the match. Down the left wing, Botello played a long ball across the box where it lay perfectly into the path of Ferrari. Stepping into the shot, Ferrari’s curling strike found the opposite left corner to seal the three points for the Nine Stripes.
However, Cavalry would find a late consolation goal in the 87th minute to spoil York’s clean sheet. After Luke Singh took down Caniggia Elva at the six-yard box, Aird stepped up to the spot and placed his penalty down the middle to put Cavalry on the scoresheet.
After suffering their largest defeat last weekend, York bounced back with a crucial win and snapped Cavalry’s four-game unbeaten run. On the opposite side, Cavalry failed to build upon their positive momentum after their largest win of the season against Forge FC.
“We went from arguably our best performance of the season to following up with our worst, not good enough,” said Cavalry FC head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr post-game.
This sentiment was also echoed by Aird, “We seemed a step off it, especially after our performance last week. We thought maybe we can kick on and take that momentum into today, but we looked like a totally different team out there today…As a team, collectively, our standards are way better than we showed today.”
Cavalry FC will look to recover as they return home to host Halifax Wanderers on Saturday, September 13. York United’s next match will be at home as they host Atlético Ottawa at York Lions Stadium on Sunday, September 14.
