01/19/15 1 2 Final Goal Scorers Canada

1

0

1

De Rosario 30'



Iceland

0

1

1

Fridjonsson 65'

Canada play to 1-1 stalemate with Iceland

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Steve Bottjer ,

January 19, 2015 Email

Steve Bottjer

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Canada Head Coach Benito Floro made only three changes to his starting eleven, with Maxim Tissot, Issey Nakajima-Farran and Dwayne De Rosario getting starts in place of Russell Teibert, Jonathan Osorio and Iain Hume respectively.



Very nice result for #CanMNT against Iceland. Iceland recently beat Netherlands in Euro 2016 qualifiers, and sit behind CzechR in division. — Ken MacLean (@KenMacLean17) January 20, 2015



The Opening 45



Compared to Friday’s match, Canada got off to a much better start and looked very solid defensively in the early going.



Kenny Stamatopoulos came up with a big save for Canada on a dangerous effort by Iceland’s Holmbert Fridjonsson in the 13th minute, as the two teams traded punches and looked to quickly transition from defense to offense.



Iceland came close again in the 25th minute when they sent in ball that a Canadian defender deflected off his own crossbar.



Canada’s breakthrough came in the 29th minute when Iceland defender Hordur Arnason fouled Karl Ouimette in the Iceland penalty area. De Rosario stepped up and blasted the resulting penalty kick into the back of the Iceland net in an assured fashion.



Overall, whilelegitimate scoring chances for both teams were limited, Canada delivered a solid and organized first half performance, with Stamatopoulos in particular standing tall in the Canadian net.



The Second Half



Canada came close to doubling their lead early in the second half when Julian de Guzman delivered an excellent pass to release De Rosario, with Canada’s all-time leading scorer ultimately scuffing his shot.



With Iceland pushing for an equalizer, Canada’s defense held strong for the most part, with Stamatopoulos continually coming up strong when needed.



Iceland were able to take advantage of Canada’s high back line in the 64th minute when Manjrekar James was caught out and then pulled down an Iceland defender in the penalty area. Forward Holmbert Fridjonsson then calmly stepped up and put away the resulting penalty kick to equalize the scoreline.



Canada responded well to conceded goal and immediately pushed forward in search of a goal of their own, with De Guzman seeing his one-time shot sail just wide of the post in the 67th minute.



Some industrious play from second half sub Iain Hume saw Canada with several other decent chances.



On the other side of that equation, Iceland were unable to capitalize on a couple decent chances late in the second half that they probably should have done better with.



Ultimately, a 1-1draw was a scoreline that was fair to both teams, as neither side dominated the match nor was either team able to score from open play.



Man of the Match



Adam Straith



The 24 year old Victoria, British Colombia native was a defensive lynchpin for Canada in this game. He expertly shielded the back four as a defensive midfielder while reading the game intelligently and distributing the ball in a clean and tidy fashion. Later in the match he moved to central defense and continued to play a near perfect defensive game until the final whistle.



Honourable Mention



Veteran Julian de Guzman delivered a fine two-way performance while not looking like very much like a player who has been without a club for some time now. De Guzman came within inches of scoring and also delivered a couple of excellent balls to set up scoring chances for his teammates.



Keeper Kenny Stamatopoulos also had a fine game between the sticks, controlling his box well and making a number of quality saves to prevent Iceland from scoring from open play.



Canada Line-up



Kenny Stamatopoulos

Karl Ouimette

Dejan Jakovic

Manjrekar James

Nana Attakora

Adam Straith

Julian de Guzman

Maxim Tissot

Samuel Piette Issey

Nakajima-Farran

Dwayne De Rosario



After falling 2-1 to Iceland in a neutral ground friendly played in Orlando, Florida on Friday, the Canadian Men’s National Team was back in action on Monday for a second straight fixture against the Iceland National Team.Canada Head Coach Benito Floro made only three changes to his starting eleven, with Maxim Tissot, Issey Nakajima-Farran and Dwayne De Rosario getting starts in place of Russell Teibert, Jonathan Osorio and Iain Hume respectively.Compared to Friday’s match, Canada got off to a much better start and looked very solid defensively in the early going.Kenny Stamatopoulos came up with a big save for Canada on a dangerous effort by Iceland’s Holmbert Fridjonsson in the 13th minute, as the two teams traded punches and looked to quickly transition from defense to offense.Iceland came close again in the 25th minute when they sent in ball that a Canadian defender deflected off his own crossbar.Canada’s breakthrough came in the 29th minute when Iceland defender Hordur Arnason fouled Karl Ouimette in the Iceland penalty area. De Rosario stepped up and blasted the resulting penalty kick into the back of the Iceland net in an assured fashion.Overall, whilelegitimate scoring chances for both teams were limited, Canada delivered a solid and organized first half performance, with Stamatopoulos in particular standing tall in the Canadian net.Canada came close to doubling their lead early in the second half when Julian de Guzman delivered an excellent pass to release De Rosario, with Canada’s all-time leading scorer ultimately scuffing his shot.With Iceland pushing for an equalizer, Canada’s defense held strong for the most part, with Stamatopoulos continually coming up strong when needed.Iceland were able to take advantage of Canada’s high back line in the 64th minute when Manjrekar James was caught out and then pulled down an Iceland defender in the penalty area. Forward Holmbert Fridjonsson then calmly stepped up and put away the resulting penalty kick to equalize the scoreline.Canada responded well to conceded goal and immediately pushed forward in search of a goal of their own, with De Guzman seeing his one-time shot sail just wide of the post in the 67th minute.Some industrious play from second half sub Iain Hume saw Canada with several other decent chances.On the other side of that equation, Iceland were unable to capitalize on a couple decent chances late in the second half that they probably should have done better with.Ultimately, a 1-1draw was a scoreline that was fair to both teams, as neither side dominated the match nor was either team able to score from open play.The 24 year old Victoria, British Colombia native was a defensive lynchpin for Canada in this game. He expertly shielded the back four as a defensive midfielder while reading the game intelligently and distributing the ball in a clean and tidy fashion. Later in the match he moved to central defense and continued to play a near perfect defensive game until the final whistle.Veteran Julian de Guzman delivered a fine two-way performance while not looking like very much like a player who has been without a club for some time now. De Guzman came within inches of scoring and also delivered a couple of excellent balls to set up scoring chances for his teammates.Keeper Kenny Stamatopoulos also had a fine game between the sticks, controlling his box well and making a number of quality saves to prevent Iceland from scoring from open play.Kenny StamatopoulosKarl OuimetteDejan JakovicManjrekar JamesNana AttakoraAdam StraithJulian de GuzmanMaxim TissotSamuel Piette IsseyNakajima-FarranDwayne De Rosario Substitutions: Iain Hume for Dwayne De Rosario (57); Patrice Bernier for Maxim Tissot (62); Russell Teibert for Manjrekar James (68); Chris Mannella for Julian de Guzman (75); Ashtone Morgan for Issey Nakajima-Farran (76); Daniel Stanese for Samuel Piette (85). Who is your Man of the Match?

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