This first home game was expected for a long time and the Montreal roses did not disappoint when returning from the back to win 2 to 1 against the fast Ottawa on Saturday afternoon.
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Head coach Robert Rositoiu had spoken of resilience this week and he had another proof that his players were combative.
“We were rewarded for our efforts,” he said after the third victory of his troop in as many outings. “But above all, they grow. We score a goal and we want to go and score the next one. ”
Allie Hess, Tanya Boychuk and their teammates celebrated the victory of the Montreal roses on Saturday afternoon.
PHOTO AGENCE QMI, MARIO BEAUREGARD
The knife between the teeth
After giving in the first net for the first time in the season, the new professional soccer training in the province began the second half the knife between the teeth.
In a few minutes, a saved mega shot hit the horizontal bar, another barely missed the cage, then Tanya Boychuk and Noémi Paquin were frustrated by the Ottavian goalkeeper Mollie Eriksson.
Until Latifah Abdu made the 5,581 spectators come to attend this historic match at the Boréale stadium, in Laval, despite a gloomy weather. The 23 -year -old Montrealer hit the target for the second time in the campaign in the 51e Minute of play by setting a shot in the upper right corner, a little before the penalty area. She thus provoked a wave in the tarrades occupied by several families and young girls.
“I’m just happy to have won,” said Abdu humbly. “A beautiful goal or not, it remains a goal. I am happy that my teammates can always put me in good positions to mark. It is thanks to them that I score. We have a good connection and they find me. ”
A Salto before
Just less than twenty minutes later, Boychuck gave the lead to the roses by redirecting a center of Hailey Whitaker from the head. The Cocapitaine celebrated its second success of spring with a few acrobatics, punctuated by a salto before in memory of its diver career.
“I hadn’t done this for four years. I almost did it this season, but I would have kicked Mégane, so I held myself. I told myself that if I succeeded in the first goal at home, I was going to do it. My friends from diving were in the stands, so I did it for them. ”
Pioneers
The roses started the match a little on the heels, but quickly resumed by controlling the ball for 62% of the first half.
The feverishness was present long before the meeting. The presentation of pioneers from here (players, coaches and referee), including Josée Bélanger, Marie-Ève Nault, Andréanne Gagné, Amy, Cindy and Sarah Walsh, as well as Sonia Denoncourt, put the table for this first match of the new “Northern Super League” on Quebec.
The roses had a few chances to attack, but it was the visitors who opened the score. Delaney Baie Pridham took advantage of an error in the Jodi Smith defender to take goalkeeper Anna Karpenko on the other hand.
Nothing to annoy the players of Rositoiu, who looked at each other in half-time.
“We had never been in this situation,” said Boychuk. “The coaches did a good job to keep us calm. We made tactical changes to find space. [La milieu de terrain] Charlotte [Bilbault] told us that the important thing was our reaction to [ce] challenge and that the best team was going to win. ”
“It was then that we left them too many initiatives, without taking it on our side. We were unable to find our rhythm, ”analyzed the rapidly, Katrine Pedersen coach.
▶ Next Saturday, the roses, leaders in the standings, will receive the Halifax TIDES.
