One week after an exciting 2-1 victory over league leading York Region Shooters, Milltown FC faced another tough test as they prepared to host Toronto Croatia, a perennial Canadian Soccer League powerhouse, at Milton’s Bishop Reding Field on Friday evening.

MFC entered this game having won their past three games in a row and were undefeated over their previous six matches (4 wins, 2 draws). In fact, this undefeated streak got started on June 6 when Milltown FC earned a 1-1 draw with Toronto Croatia at their home field.

The first half was fairly uneventful, with neither team’s goalkeeper getting severely tested over the first 45 minutes. However, the second half saw the two teams bring a far more attacking mindset to the field of play, and, in the 55th minute, MFC midfielder Martijn Kuijpers was hauled down inside the Toronto Croatia 18 yard box, causing Referee Gianni Facchini to point immediately to the penalty spot. Kuijpers made no mistake, drilling a hard low shot into right corner of the net for his third goal of the season, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead.

Ten minutes later, Toronto Croatia equalized when Hayden Fitzwilliams rose up and got his head onto a well struck corner kick, directing it past Milltown FC keeper Scott Clliff.

MFC had a glorious chance to take the lead late in the 2nd half when Thierry Mangwa headed a ball into the Toronto Croatia 18 yard box which the visitors failed to clear. This resulted in a loose ball at the top of the 6 yard box that MFC midfielder Erick Olazabal was first to get his foot to, forcing a spectacular save by Toronto Croatia goalkeeper Sandi Matika.

The match ended 1-1, extending Milltown FC’s undefeated streak to an impressive 7 games. However, as a result of FC Hamilton Croatia and Toronto FC Academy securing victories this weekend, Milltown has been pushed out of second place and now sits tied with Hamilton for 3rd place in the Canadian Soccer League standings, both teams having earned 19 points.

Milltown FC returns to Bishop Reding Field on Friday, July 16th when they take on FC Hamilton Croatia. This match, between two of the CSL’s newest clubs, kicks off at 8:00pm.

Milltown FC v Toronto Croatia (July 9, 2010)

Scoring Summary:
56th minute – Milltown FC goal scored by #10 Martijn Kuijpers (PK)
66th minute – Toronto Croatia goal scored by #8 Hayden Fitzwilliams

Milltown FC Starting Lineup:
Scott Cliff (c), Eric Batchanou, Thierry Mangwa-Batomen, Chris Suta, Tristan Scott, Jason Morgan, Erick Olazabal, Martijn Kuijpers, Agustin De Medina, Eros Olazabal, Cordell Benjamin

Milltown FC Substitutes:
Daniel Mendez, Chad Fernandez, Jesse Mahal, Romeo Parada, Marco Roberti, Thomas Santibanez, Danilo Richards

Milltown FC Substitution Summary:
72nd Minute – Benjamin out, Richards in
84th Minute – Eros Olazabal out, Roberti in

Milltown FC Disciplinary Summary:
Agustin DeMedina (Yellow Card)
Eros Olazabal (Yellow Card)
Danilo Richards (Yellow Card)
Chris Suta (Yellow Card)

Toronto Croatia Starting Lineup:
Sandi Matika, Robert Fran, Sven Arapovic, Jonathan Bustamante, Halburto Harris, Hayden Fitzwilliams, Ivan Zgela, Alex Arbelo, Braeden Krampert, Tonci Pirija, Tomislav Leko

Toronto Croatia Substitutes:
Antonio Ilic, Hugo Herrera, Federico Vaccaro, Dani Jankovic, Lukas Pesa, Mark Spehar, Ainsley Deer

Toronto Croatia Substitution Summary:
45th Minute – Zgela out, Deer in
56th Minute – Bustamante out, Herrera in
70th Minute – Krampert out, Jankovic in
77th Minute – Fran out, Vaccaro in

Toronto Croatia Disciplinary Summary
Alex Arbelo (Yellow Card)
Tomislav Leko (Yellow Card)
Braeden Krampert (Yellow Card)