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Posted by
Mat Rooney,
September 3, 2017 |
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@rooney_matthew
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In front of a record Toronto crowd, Canada served up some sweet revenge on Gold Cup runner-up Jamaica. While it wasn’t pretty, it definitely showed Canada’s rebuild is further along than many might have thought and raised some important issues.
In a rumble, tumble first half, Jamaica seemed to have an early edge, with Dane Kelly and Ricardo Morris looking dangerous early on, but it quickly faded after Anthony Jackson-Hamel scored, with a wonderful assist from Junior Hoilett, giving Canada the lead.
Following Jackson-Hamel's goal, Canada continued to press, with strong performances from Hoilett, Samuel Piette, and Atiba Hutchinson, until Piette and Jackson-Hamel we’re able to get the ball to Jonathan Osorio who took advantage of a confused Jamaican defense (seemingly thinking Osorio was offside) and made it 2-0. Romario Williams seemed poised to make up for Jamaica’s weak first half but Jayson Leutwiler shut down his great chance just before the half.
Jamaica recovered form in the second half, with some strong subs who were able to pounce on a pair of Canadian emergencies: Samuel Adekugbe exiting the game with injury after 7 minutes and Alphonso Davies being shown a red card 6 minutes after entering the game, after kicking at Damion Lowe following a tackle. An underwhelming Cyle Larin didn’t help matters.
Vishinuel Harris and Jermaine Taylor both came close to putting Jamaica on the board but Leutwiler and Dejan Jakovic put on a stop on that. Canada would hold on for the win.
The crowd of 21,724 was the highest the Canadian Men’s National Team has seen at a friendly since 1994 and it earned praise from both sides.
Jamaica’s Theodore Whitmore was highly pleased with the Jamaican turn out: “We've been through the gold cup and I think it's the most Jamaican I’ve seen for all the games we played in America (Continental).”
Jayson Leutwiler, who made his first ever start, was taken aback by the crowd: “So many supporters. I couldn't believe it. It makes your motivation much bigger.”
He also was proud to get to get here: “It's a proud moment for me. I work hard every year to get to those towns. Playing in Toronto in front of a Canadian crowd, in front of my family. It's amazing.”
The game, which it was in competition with the EX, FanExpo and a pair of high profile concerts at ACC and Budweiser Stage, is hopefully a sign that this team can draw and will lead to the CSA’s continued booking of friendlies for both teams in Canada.
Despite the win and the crowd, a few things hung over the game.
The first being the red card taken by Alphonso Davies. The rising star’s kick out was uncalled for and highly unprofessional, but at 16 mistakes like this do happen and right after he seemed to realize his mistake and appeared embarrassed by his actions.
Cyle Larin, who seems out of form when with the men’s national team. While he’s club performances are still strong, he’s national team performances are becoming concerning and leaving many to wonder if his assumed status as top striker should actually be going to Anthony Jackson-Hamel, whose recent performances with the national team and Montreal Impact have been stellar.
The question of Atiba Hutchinson’s future was also hanging over the game. The five time (including 2016) Canadian Player of the Year is 34 and he’s starting to hurt, a recurring leg issue kept him out of the Gold Cup. Many, including Iain Hume, have speculated that this game might be his last and many wonder if Canada is ready to go forward without him. While the midfield seems capable, the question of leadership remains a mystery.
Lastly is the question at centre-back, Canada’s current weakest position. While Manjrekar James looked decent, it usually takes a pair to hold the back. Fingers crossed Zambrano and co. can convince Ricardo Ferreira soon.
All things considered, this was a great game for Canada. Players like Samuel Piette, Jonathan Osorio, Anthony Jackson-Hamel and, man of the match, Junior Hoilett performances and Octavio Zambrano’s tactics selling many on the future of this team.
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