Montréal - August 31, 2005 - The Montreal Impact (16-2-7) clinched the United Soccer Leagues Division 1 regular season title for the fifth time in franchise history as Antonio Ribeiro's early marker was enough for a 1-0 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps before 8,917 spectators at Claude-Robillard Stadium.
The Impact crown is the second for the team this decade, which shared the best record with the Milwaukee Wave United in 2003. The club also took three in a row from 1995 to 1997, giving the Impact five in the last ten seasons they have played (sitting out in 1999 as the club was on hiatus).
"It's not me against Lilley, it's the Impact against Vancouver - there was always a rivalry." explained Impact head coach Nick De Santis, who played under former head man and current Whitecaps head coach Bob Lilley in 2002 and 2003 before retiring and taking over the club's reigns last year.
The Impact opened the scoring early in the fifth minute as Ribeiro took a harmless pass from defender David Frominadis, and with no blue shirts around him, promptly blasted the ball 25 metres into the top-left corner of the net past keeper Josh Wicks for his second marker of the campaign. Wicks was starting in place of first-string Mike Franks, out with an injury.
Despite controlling the play the rest of the half, especially in the midfield, the Whitecaps could not solve the Impact wall around their net. The visitors' best chance occurred in the 31st minute as Martin Nash - well-known by now to be the brother of Steve Nash, the National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player - forced 6'6" Impact netminder Greg Sutton to dive to his right, double-punching the ball out of bounds. It was one of three saves for Sutton in the first 45 minutes, while Wicks was forced to make but one. Alfredo Valente also had a chance for the 'Caps nine minutes later, but his kick from 25 metres out failed to hit the mark, going harmlessly out of bounds to the right of Sutton.
What was a conservative first half for both clubs opened up considerably in the second frame with both clubs pressing more in the offensive zone. The Impact had a chance early on a 49th-minute corner, but the ball was cleared away by Steve Klein. Ribeiro also had an opportunity to make the score 2-0 three minutes later with another long-distance boot. Despite totally fooling Wicks with a high curl away from the goalkeeper, the ball, hit with the power of a Mack truck, made a hard sharp sound off the crossbar before bouncing out of bounds.
The Whitecaps also had a couple of chances in the half, but failed to even come close. The 'Caps were plagued throughout with giving up turnovers, which forced them to chase after the ball, tiring itself out physically and mentally.
"They're hard to break down", explained Whitecaps head coach Bob Lilley, who although disappointed from the outcome, took nothing away from the club he led in 2002 and 2003. "When they get a lead, they're certainly the toughest in our league to beat, and maybe anywhere in North America… Our energy was very good in the first half. Ultimately, if you give the ball away a lot, under no pressure, you have to chase. And as the game wore on, they took over the midfield and they possessed the ball better than us. That was the final say in the game."
And as seems customary in Impact land, the team always seems to come alive in the late going, this after bottling up the opposition. Mashiro Fukusawa did most of the work to free himself from the midfielders in the 76th minute, feeding a tight pass to Charles Gbeke. The Ivory Coast native found himself with only a split second to make his move, chipping the ball to the right of the net. However, Wicks had made the right play by challenging the Impact forward, getting his left hand out in time to deflect it out of bounds. Wicks also had to be vigilant in injury time, stopping Mauro Biello's point-blank blast, which would have been his ninth goal of the year. This was either team's best chance of the half.
Fukusawa, who had come in during a 71st-minute substitution for Mesut Mert, made the defensive play of the game for the home side less than a minute later when he outraced a tired Joseph Gjertsen to the ball, just outside the Impact box. Gjertsen would not be confused for Donavan Bailey as he was totally outraced for the ball, despite having a good 5-yard head start. The Japanese import simply ran past the tired forward before tapping the ball to Sutton, preserving his 13th shutout of the campaign.
"Two teams well disciplined defensively. After we scored the goal, they pressured us. We were lucky to play well under that pressure situation," added De Santis. "But in the second half, again, we regrouped, we started to pressure more, and then, as we had possession of the ball, they couldn't play with (the pressure they had) and the game started to open up. We started finding room and started creating chances."
"I think the consistency that we are playing with right now is important" commented Sutton on the team's recent play in which the Impact has shut out the opposition in the last 297 minutes of play. "We could use that to our benefit going into the playoffs."
Lilley also had great things to say about the players who were on his roster when he passed through town, "I'm really happy for those guys and I think they've worked hard and they showed their class. They're the measuring stick."
Corner Kicks: The Impact, which has already clinched a bye into the semi-final round, will only know a few days before their first playoff match who their opponent will be. Should the Impact finish atop the standings in the regular season, the club will face the winner of the quarter-final between the fourth- and fifth-place clubs. However, if Nick De Santis's boys fall to second place, either the third- or sixth-place club will be their opposition… By the way, the USL D1 championship game will be played on Saturday, October 1… Tickets for the semi-final match have already gone on sale and can be purchased by calling the Impact at (514) 328-FOOT (328-3668) or at any Admission outlet (790-1245)…
The match against the Whitecaps marked the return of former Impact head coach Bob Lilley to Montréal for the first time since his departure following the 2003 campaign. Lilley, who was named the A-League Coach of the Year with the Impact in 2003, compiled a 32-15-9 record with the club in his two seasons, including a 16-9-3 mark in 2002 and a 16-6-6 record in 2003… Defender Adam Braz was not in the lineup against the visitors as he had already left for Spain on Monday for Saturday's friendly in Madrid (on September 3) against the Spaniards… Also missing were defender Jason DiTullio, out for the rest of 2005 due to a knee injury suffered in the club's 1-0 victory over the Virginia Beach Mariners on August 26, as well as midfielder Zé Roberto. The Brazilian has been missing since a knee sprain has forced him out of the lineup in a 2-1 road loss to the Atlanta Silverbacks at DeKalb Memorial Stadium on July 29, the club's sole loss away from Claude-Robillard this season… The Impact suffered their only other loss against the visiting Portland Timbers on August 10, by a 1-0 score…
The Vancouver Whitecaps still has a shot to finish the season with an undefeated record at home. The club has 9 wins and 4 ties after having played 13 of 14 home games this season. Their sole remaining match at Swangard Stadium will be, in fact, against the Impact on September 11, the regular season finale for both clubs… Should the Impact not lose their only remaining home game, September 4 against the Minnesota Thunder, the team would tie the franchise record with for fewest losses at home with one, set in 1996… The Impact has a clear advantage in head-to-head matches between the two premier Canadian clubs. The team has dominated the West Coast club with 16 wins, 7 losses, and 2 ties. Furthermore, the Impact came into the match with a six-game undefeated string against the former 86ers, with 4 wins and 2 ties…
The attendance figure of 8,917 was the lowest this season. It is surprising that many showed up for the match as Montréal was plagued by a heavy downpour all day, remnants of what was Hurricane Katrina… Finally, in the Black Hole department: the light tower at the southeast corner of Centre Claude-Robillard (or the lower right side of the screen for those watching the game on television), was not turned on until the 20th minute of play, creating a darker patch of play in the early going.
