Devastating draw for Whitecaps Henry’s own goal in final minute hands Toronto FC a 2-2 tie
VANCOUVER (CP) — Disaster struck for the Vancouver Whitecaps, allowing Toronto FC a 2-2 draw in Wednesday’s opening leg of the Canadian Championship final.
Vancouver defender Doneil Henry headed a ball into his own net late in extra time to give Toronto the tie.
Henry was trying to clear a shot by Toronto’s Justin Morrow. Vancouver goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic laid on the field for several minutes after the goal.
It was a shocking end for the Whitecaps, who looked to have the game in hand after second-half substitute Erik Hurtado gave Vancouver a 2-1 lead in the 84th minute.
With the match tied 1-1, and Vancouver playing a man short, midfielder Russell Teibert fed a long pass to Hurtado, who had got behind the Toronto defence. He settled the ball down, then took a low shot that beat TFC ’keeper Clint Irwin.
Toronto midfielder Jonathan Osorio and Vancouver striker Kei Kamara had exchanged first-half goals less than two minutes apart.
The Whitecaps were forced to play with 10 men when midfielder Felipe was shown a red card in the 46th minute following a tackle on Toronto’s Marco Delgado.
That produced a loud chorus of boos from the crowd of 16,833 at B.C. Place. Kamara opened the scoring in the 24th minute by calmly putting the ball into the upper left-hand corner after Toronto forward Tosaint Ricketts was called for a hand ball in the box off a Cristian Techera corner kick.
Whitecaps winger Alphonso Davies had another strong game, setting up several good chances. In the 73rd minute, he raced down the field and fired a shot that Irwin stopped with a diving save.
The second game of the two-match, total-goal series will be played next Wednesday at BMO Field in Toronto with the Voyageurs Cup at stake.