York United extended their unbeaten to five matches with a 1-1 draw against Pacific FC on Friday night at Starlight Stadium.
Both of the match’s goals came inside the opening ten minutes, as Pacific’s Thomas Meilleur-Giguère opened the scoring just two minutes into the game, while Brian Wright scored his ninth of the season, in the ninth minute no less.
Just over a minute into the match, Pacific FC ignited the Starlight Stadium crowd. A corner kick from Steffen Yeates found the head of Meilleur-Giguère, who headed the ball past Thomas Vincensini to open the scoring for the Tridents.
That lead didn’t last long, however, Jorge Guzmán found Wright in the box who shifted to his left and smashed a stunning strike past Emil Gazdov. It was Guzmán’s third CPL assist already — a league record for the most a player has managed in their first two matches in the league.
The two sides continued to look for attacking moments, but couldn’t quite get the final touch. Reon Moore tried to round Vincensini in the 28th minute, but couldn’t sort out his feet and put the ball harmlessly out for a goal kick. A similar happenstance thwarted Max Ferrari a few minutes later, as the ball fell to him in the box but he could not get his shot off cleanly.
Tempers flared between the two sides just before the half after a big challenge from Georges Mukumbilwa on Max Ferrari. A number of players flew into tackles in the next few moments, the Pacific’s Marco Dominguez eventually being shown a yellow card, and York’s Josué Martínez going into the box as well minutes later. However, the score remained 1-1 after 45 minutes.
York’s Juan Córdova had the first few half chances of the second half, both from distance shortly after the 50th-minute mark. A player who is known for his ability to score spectacular goals, Córdova didn’t quite get the shape on either of his strikers right and sent them wide of the target.
The hosts seemed to find more of a foothold thereafter, as the introduction of Pierre Lamothe and Dario Zanatta seemed to help the Tridents to hold onto the ball a little bit more. Neither side could really get their final pass right, however, as they struggled to turn promising moments into genuine chances.
Substitute Austin Ricci nearly won the match in stoppage time on another outstanding delivery from Guzmán, but his redirection struck the crossbar. Then it was Kunle Dada-Luke who cleared the ball off the goalline after Mo Babouli had beaten Emil Gazdov.
The draw won’t do much for either team’s position in the table, as York United remain in second place, although now just a single point behind Atlético Ottawa. Pacific, meanwhile, stays in sixth but are now tied on points with provincial rivals Vancouver FC, who they will face in their next match on Sunday, August 11.
BOX SCORE
Lineups
Pacific FC: Gazdov; Dada-Luke, Quintana, Meilleur-Giguère, Mukumbilwa; Yeates (Tircoveanu), Dominguez, Young; O’Hea, Heard (Zanatta 68′), Moore (Lamothe 59′)
York United: Vincensini; Ferrari, Abatneh, Adekugbe (Baldisimo 86′), León, Botello; Martínez (Ricci 72′), Córdova, Guzmán; Babouli, Wright
Goals
2′ — Thomas Meilleur-Giguère (Pacific FC)
9′ — Brian Wright (York United)
Discipline
40 — Yellow: Marco Dominguez (Pacific FC)
43′ — Yellow: Josué Martinez (York United)
55′ — Yellow: Georges Mukumbilwa (Pacific FC)
