2017 Match Reports

Match Report: FC Cincinnati- Toronto FC II-

By Brad Weigel

Posted on May 28, 2017

Matchday #11 FC Cincinnati vs. Toronto FC II

Nippert Stadium – Attendance: 18,214

FC Cincinnati collected their 2nd straight USL victory in a row as Danni König’s 18th minute goal was the difference in a tough match against Toronto FC II. The last place team in the East proved to be a much better test than what their record would indicate but in the end the Orange & Blue came away with a 1-0 result.

Saturday night started off as a warm one with temperatures over 82 degrees. The heat was magnified by the field turf and played a major factor for both teams all evening.

The 1st half started strongly for FCC as their 4-3-3 was able to control the majority of the possession early on.

FC Cincinnati was able to get on the board first in the 18th minute as forward Danni Konig headed in a Tyler Polak cross. Jimmy McLaughlin had a great driving run towards the left corner and then passed it out to Polak at the top left corner of the box. He hit a great ball to the back right post as König put it past the Toronto keeper.

What made the play more special was König’s ability to get involved in the play after being sent off moments before with a cut to his forehead. After getting bandaged up, the forward made his way on the pitch to connect with Polak for the goal.

Polak commented on his assist “It felt good to get the confidence that came with that assist, but credit to Danni for him securing the goal. It’s about right positioning and right time. It’s also important to have depth in the group and Danni was a great addition.”

The second half was a much different affair as Toronto put more pressure on FC Cincinnati and held a possession advantage of 53%-47%.

Midway into the 2nd period, you could see both sides starting to fatigue and some sloppy defending led to the best chance of the night for Toronto. In the 63rd minute, Shaan Hundal had a great opportunity to get behind the FCC backline ending in a 1 on 1 opportunity with Mitch Hildebrandt forcing the shot wide just off the right post.

Minutes later Austin Berry found himself in a dangerous possession that found himself 1v1 with the Toronto goalkeeper. After some nifty footwork the centerback was stopped but the chance breathed some life back into the home team. Coach Koch shortly after inserted Marco Dominguez into the match where the young central midfielder impressed once again. He was able to help unify the midfield and get the club closer to the final whistle.

Toronto did not go quietly into the night. The FC Cincinnati goal was under attack throughout stoppage time. The visiting team was able to get one last free kick before the final whistle but it went wanting and Mitch Hildebrandt and crew were able to hold on for the 1-0 win and the Widmer’s Clean Sheet.

Even with the clean sheet, Coach Alan Koch has this to say about his team “We made the game a bit more difficult than we would have liked it to be. We’re glad to take the three points and we also give Toronto credit as they have a lot of good, young players on their squad. That’s three wins in a row for us so we’ll keep rolling from here. If we had taken more chances earlier on, I think we could have put away the game sooner than we did. I’m proud of our players in the end.”

He admitted after the match that the conditions on the field were “boiling” and that both teams were suffering from fatigue. It will be interesting to see how the team recovers for Wednesday night’s US Open Cup match vs Louisville at Nippert with the winner scheduled to host the Columbus Crew on June 14. Louisville was off this weekend but begins a stretch run of 4 matches in 12 days Wednesday night.

Box Score

FC Cincinnati Starting XI (4-3-3): Hildebrandt (GK); (R-L) Bahner, Berry, Delbridge, Polak; Quinn (70′), Bone, Fordyce (62′); Dacres (89′), König, McLaughlin

Subs: Jaye (GK), Hoyte, Dominguez (70+), Martinez, Nicholson (89+), Mansaray, Wiedeman (62’+)

Toronto FC II Starting XI (3-4-3): Pais (GK), Onkony (33′), Aubrey, Taintor (68′); Telfer, Pereira, James, Alseth; Camargo Johnson (62′), Hundal

Subs: Cavalluzzo (GK), Boskovic (33’+), McCrary (68’+), Fraser, Uccello, Andrews, Daniels (62’+)

Scoring
18′ – FC Cincinnati – Danni König, (Polak)

Discipline

27′ – FC Cincinnati – Harrison Delbridge- Yellow

36′ – FC Cincinnati – Aodhan Quinn- Yellow

84′ – Toronto FC II – Oyvind Alseth- Yellow

PLAYER RATINGS

Make sure to vote on the performance of for favorite FC Cincinnati players from Saturday’s match. VOTE HERE or https://goo.gl/forms/3DQy5nCt0lMwWvtp1

3 Things to Know

The Number 9 Strikes Again: Forward Danni König netted for his second match in a row for his 3rd with the club. Djiby Fall and König have accounted for 9 of the clubs 12 goals on the season. No question these two have been extremely valuable for the club but at what point does the inability of the rest of the team to score regularly become cause for concern?

On to Louisville: After the match, König mentioned that the “team owner” talked to the team recently how badly he wanted to beat Louisville in the open cup. While Djiby Fall is still under suspension for USL play, he is eligible for Wednesday night’s match. Will Coach Koch employ a 2 forward formation and get FC Cincinnati 2 hottest players on the pitch at the same time? It remains to be seen but most assuredly you can expect the club to put out a strong starting XI.

Weigel Paint Streak?: Thank you to everybody who donated to the Sports Games for Kids. With your help we raised over $700 and as promised Bryan & Yosief painted up. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support. If you’d like to benefit SGFK please visit their site here and make sure to look out for more details this week for the 2nd Annual CST FootGolf Classic.