Plus, Top Matches this weekend, Muskoka United FC and Huntsville SC updates

Not going to go too crazy this week on Toronto FC, but with the home stretch beginning Saturday night in Houston, it’s a good reason to lead the column with the Reds.

TFC starts the home stretch in eighth place (the first wild card spot) with 30 points from 26 games played. They have eight matches left on the calendar, five at home and three away.

They’ll likely need about 15 more points (five wins) to confirm one of the playoff spots – be it directly to the first round or one of the two wild card entries. With five games remaining at home and at least four beatable opponents, they have an excellent chance to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2020 (which wasn’t even a real season).

After Houston comes a home game on Tuesday against Forge FC in their second leg of the Canadian Championship Semi-final. The team from Hamilton is up 2-1.

But unlike UEFA’s recent rule changes, this tournament still counts away goals as the first tiebreaker should the aggregate be equal after two matches are played. That means a 1-0 win sends TFC through to the final as well as any two-goal victory.

A 2-1 TFC win means extra time followed by PKs (if necessary). Any other one-goal TFC result would see Forge FC complete the upset on the away goals rule.

On August 31, the MLS regular season returns to BMO Field as DC United visits and that match has to be considered a must-win for the Reds (but we’ll get into that next week after we see how the next two games play out).

This is show time for the team and while the DPs need to be at their top level, so does the rest of the team if they want to get a taste of post-season play in 2024.

Time Change: Happy to see the Inter Miami game on October 5 moved to a 4 p.m. start. Hope that Lionel Messi is going to play that game so the many rabid football supporters in the GTA and surrounding areas who have tickets get to see him play.

SIDE NOTE: TFC tickets to either home game this coming week gets you free entry into the CNE.

And with that all mentioned, C’mon You Reds!

Top Matches in Europe This Weekend

Serie A: Napoli vs. Bologna, Sunday at 2:45 p.m. ET. Not too many other Italian league match-ups in Week 2 stick out (maybe Torino vs. Atalanta), so this is kind of a default pick. But, it’s got plenty of intrigue as Bologna finished fifth last year, lost some big players and their manager this summer, and started with a draw. Napoli finished 10th last year after winning the title two years ago and their first match under their hyper-fiery new coach Antonio Conte got off to an awful start – they fell 3-0 to Hellas Verona last weekend. This is probably a must-win (yeah, already) for Napoli, though a draw may be well-received after the Week 1 debacle.

English Premier League (EPL): Aston Villa vs. Arsenal, Saturday at 12:30 p.m. Both teams picked up wins in their season openers. Arsenal has their eyes set on the Premier League title after finishing second two years in a row and they’re well positioned roster-wise to make that happen. Aston Villa, who surprised everyone last year to finish fourth and earn a Champions League spot, is looking to at least match that effort this year. A nice early season tilt between a pair of Champions League contestants with Arsenal needing the three points more than the hosts. Other interesting matches include Brighton vs. Man United (Saturday at 7:30 a.m.) and Wolves vs. Chelsea (Sunday at 9 a.m.).

Bundesliga: Wolfsburg vs. Bayern Munich, Sunday at 9:30 a.m. Bayern isn’t used to not winning anything and after coming up empty last season in the league, Champions League, and DFB-Pokal (German Cup), they’re coming in hot. New manager Vincent Kompany is a household name amongst football fans and their deep, star-studded line-up knows the league title is a minimum must this year. Other interesting matches include Dortmund vs. Eintracht Frankfurt (Saturday at 12:30 p.m.).

La Liga: Atletico Madrid vs. Girona, Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Two teams who finished top four last year and will be both playing in the Champions League this season. Both drew in the first week and will be going full out for three points this weekend. Not too many other matches are overly interesting, however it’s always intriguing to see how Barcelona and Real Madrid do on any given weekend.

TV viewing: Serie A and EPL matches are available on FuboTV Canada, Bundesliga matches are on DAZN, and La Liga matches are on TSN.

Muskoka united fc

The U12 girls had an up and down week this week as a team, but Savannah Loates was on fire with two goals in two games for Muskoka. The team lost 3-1 to Orillia at Gostick Park in Bracebridge on Wednesday in a game where they probably deserved a draw, then bounced back with a solid effort in a 1-1 draw in Barrie on Thursday night.

Paulina Juszczak and Piper Heffernen were solid in net in Barrie, while those two and Sophia Earl split the duties against Orillia – with all three doing their best to keep the score close.

The other game on Wednesday night at Gostick Park was a match between two MUFC teams in the U14 Girls Division of the HDSL. The U14 Girls avenged an earlier loss to the U13 Girls, topping them by a score of 5-1. Andi Stevenson scored twice with Esperanza Coulson, Claire Nicholson, and Olivea O’Halloran adding the others for the U14s, while Claire Feltis scored for the U13s.

Also on Wednesday, but at McCulley Robertson North Field in Huntsville, the U10 Boys team came out flying against visiting Orilla. An early goal by Sam Melson staked our boys an early lead that we held for most the game. Unfortunately, we were snake bitten in the final third and managed to hit posts and crossbar, but never could add to our lead. Eventually Orillia completed the comeback with a final score of 2-1. 

On Thursday night, the U16 Boys topped North Simcoe 7-2 at Gostick Park.

Also on Thursday night, the U10 Girls beat North Simcoe 8-0 to improve to 8-7 on the season in all competitions. Mackenna Gibbons, Emma Lapp and Anna Innis had 2 goals each while Lily Burgess and Chloe Boyes also netted one for MUFC.

And in case you hadn’t heard, last Sunday in Orillia both the U16 Boys and U14 Boys won their respective HDSL Cup finals! Well done to both teams!

In a fun note, brothers Henry and Will Sansom both won a Cup on the same day. Their dad Rob unfortunately could not make it a hat trick on Sunday as the O45s lost to Nottawasaga in their HDSL Cup final.

MUFC Fall Assessments

Children and teens interested in being part of an MUFC Rep team next season – either development or competitive – should note that assessments (formerly known as “tryouts”) are occurring at Gostick Park in Bracebridge on September 24, 25, and 26, and at Conroy Park in Huntsville on October 5.

The club would like all parents and players to note that for the technical committee to accurately assess each players skill level, which may influence their team placement, attendance at all assessments for their age group is highly recommended. 

These are the teams they are assessing players for (birth year in parentheses): Development Teams for U9 (2016), U10 (2015), U11 (2014), and U12 (2013). As well as Rep/Competitive Teams for U13 (2012), U14 (2011), U15 (2010), U16 (2009), and U17 (2008).

Registration is required to confirm attendance: https://muskokaunitedfc.sportngin.com/register/form/037508540

*All players are asked to join BOTH of their assessment dates to ensure proper grading and team placement. 

*Players are only subject to cuts in U13 + divisions.

*Confirmation of teams being played for the 2024/2025 season will depend on the turn out at assessments. 

Currently the MUFC Board and Admin are working on a potential player registration for assessments. This will aid in collecting proper information and numbers prior to the dates which assists in planning efforts. If this is the case, stay tuned.

For more information, visit www.muskokaunitedfc.com or email muskokaunitedfc@gmail.com

In the meantime, please see the graphic below to determine whether your player is more suited for the MUFC Development Program or the BSC or HSC House League programs.

Huntsville Soccer Club Updates

The Huntsville Soccer Club has opened registration for its fall youth program that includes fun games, skills development and scrimmages.

The program runs from September 8 to October 13 weekly on Sundays from noon to 2 p.m. and is for youth born from 2009 to 2018.

To find out more or register for the program visit: https://www.huntsvillesoccer.ca/

We’re also looking for volunteers to help with the fall program, fall clean-up and organizing, and more!

Email administrator@huntsvillesoccer.ca to find out how you can help!

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