Pacific opens campaign with draw against HFX
Late penalty denies Islanders the win
The flow was a bit rusty, as to be expected following a delay of four months, but also entertaining as Pacific FC and HFX Wanderers opened their Canadian Premier League accounts with an eventful 2-2 draw in Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Both teams will rue not winning Saturday’s contest, in which posts were hit and balls cleared off the line by both sides. It looked to be the Nova Scotiabased Wanderers’ game to lose for two-thirds of it with a 1-0 lead. Then Island-based PFC scored twice, before a late penalty kick by HFX tied it 2-2.
“I thought we created the most but were not effective enough to punish them,” said PFC head coach Pa-Modou Kah.
Both HFX goals came on bookend penalty kicks through Brazilian and former Middlesbrough player Joao Neto Morelli at 12 minutes and Ibrahima Sanoh at 86 minutes.
“People were a bit rusty and not used to those situations [defensively],” said Kah.
“That causes it. But that is a part of football. Football is about mistakes. Unfortunately, we made them today and it cost us three points.”
Overall, however, the PFC bench boss was pleased, considering the circumstances of the pandemic delaying the start of the season.
“We have not played in 200-odd days, and to perform like that, is incredible,” said Kah.
"Our team performed brilliantly but was just unlucky. The game is about momentum and the early [HFX] penalty goal took a little of that away from us. We stuck together and had the fight to take the lead. Unfortunately, we allowed the late penalty. We will take a lesson out of it.”
Goals by sophomore Zach Verhoven at 67 minutes and six-times Canada-capped Marco Bustos at 75 minutes had given PFC the lead.
“It was a great feeling to play an actual game,” said Bustos, who scored seven goals last season for Valour FC of Winnipeg.
“We want to create chances as a team, which we did, in scoring two goals from open play. And we will only get better as time goes on.”
All games are being played on the University of Prince Edward Island’s FIFA-standard Alumni Field turf facility sans fans amid the CPL’s “bubble” after Charlottetown beat out Langford and Moncton, N.B., to host the CPL season tournament.
"We showed good character the way we clawed back,” said HFX head coach Stephen Hart.
“We showed good mental spirit. The game was fairly balanced. We would have loved to have gotten the three points, but so would they [PFC].”
Hart said his team’s two goals from the spot were earned.
“You only get penalty kicks for attacking,” said the former Canadian national team head coach.
Each of the eight teams will play the other once in the roundrobin portion of the made-for-TV tournament. PFC’s other games are against York9 on Tuesday at 10 a.m., Forge FC of Hamilton next Saturday at 1 p.m., Valour FC of Winnipeg on Aug. 25 at 11 a.m., Cavalry FC of Calgary on Aug. 30 at 9 a.m., Atletico Ottawa on Sept. 2 at 5 p.m. and FC Edmonton on Sept. 6 at noon. All times are PDT.
The top-four teams will advance to a playoff-round robin. The top team from that will go directly into the league championship game while the secondand third-place teams will meet in a semifinal with the winner advancing to the championship final.
All games will be broadcast live over the Web on OneSoccer while CBC is broadcasting doubleheaders nationally on Saturdays.