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Photo Credit: John Jacques
York United Wins First-Ever Home Playoff Match
By York United’s first-ever home playoff match left the crowd of 2,203 buzzing after the Nine Stripes produced a formidable two-nil victory.
The hosts put on a dazzling second half that saw defender Oswaldo Leon bag his second goal of the season and Mo Babouli wrap things up just before the final whistle, with Pacific procuring just one big chance on what became a long night for them at York Lions Stadium.
Benjamin Mora’s side will now embark on a road trip to the nation’s capital to face Atletico Ottawa in the quarter-final stage, with Pacific FC’s season – despite a late boost in form notching them the final playoff spot – falling at the first postseason hurdle.
The first half proved light on chances for either side as both teams, already well-acquainted with a league match here just two weeks ago, probed for weakness. Pacific produced an early one-on-one for Moses Dyer in the first half that went begging, but it was the hosts who dialed things up right from the get-go in the second half: a scramble in the Pacific box saw Baldisimo play the ball out wide to Juan Cordova, who curled in a nice aerial ball for Oswaldo Leon to head home.
That marked the Mexican defender’s second goal of the season, with his first having giving his side the lead against Pacific on these same grounds just two weeks ago. This time around, however, the hosts would keep ahead of their competition.
Babouli and Cordova both dazzled on the pitch with flair aplenty as the Nine Stripes continued at a high tempo, with the latter striking the post later on. Pacific struggled to get the ball to players like Dario Zanatta and Reon Moore, who had proven crucial in their late-season push, and that came to cost them at the end.
The killing blow came from what was initially a wayward pass from Santiago Marquez. It just happened to bounce off a Pacific player straight towards the visitor’s end, with Marquez taking advantage of the unexpected momentum to tip through Babouli. The veteran forward made no mistake, firing beyond Sean Melvin to seal a two-nil win for the Nine Stripes.
That second half performance carried a confidence that Benjamin Mora will want to see his side retain in the quarter-finals, particularly after Ottleti head coach Carlos Gonzalez said that York was the weakest team to qualify for playoffs following his side’s defeat at York Lions Stadium a few weeks ago.
This was York United’s third-ever playoff match, with the Pasquel brothers enjoying some quick history-making after purchasing the club in November. It’s also a reversal of fortunes from 2023, which saw Pacific come out 2-1 winners over York United at Starlight in last year’s four-versus-five matchup.
Pacific had notched in the final playoff spot for themselves on the final regular season matchday, finishing a challenging campaign in good form after players were apologizing to fans in the summer. It’s not the end head coach James Merriman had dreamt of, but securing a postseason berth in five out of six seasons retains a good status quo for the club overall.
For York United, it’s a new era and uncharted territory for one of the Canadian Premier League’s launch teams. With Benjamin Mora reportedly attracting interest from Chivas Guadalajara, it’ll be interesting to see if his team’s playoff run continues to turn heads.
Fans hoping to tune in to the quarter-final match between Atletico Ottawa and York United can do so on Sunday, October 27 at 1:00PM EST. The match will be streamed lived on OneSoccer and fuboTV, with Telus Optik Channel 980 also carrying the knockout bout.
Header Image Photo Credit: John Jacques
