It was a crucial rebound weekend for the men’s soccer team. The Gaels snapped a three-game losing streak and earned their third and fourth wins of the season, beating the Royal Military College Paladins 5-0 Saturday at RMC and defeating the Trent Excalibur 2-0 Sunday in Peterborough.
Goalkeeper Tyler Lewis recorded both shutouts for the Gaels. After Saturday’s game, he said it was vital for the team to win both matches this weekend to get back on track in the standings.
“We’re starting to realize the situation we’re in, so it’s a real must-win weekend,” he said. “We were creating chances and finishing chances, which was quite nice to see.”
The Gaels improved their record to 4-4-2, good for 14 points and fourth place in the OUA East.
Lewis said the team’s defence also improved against RMC.
“We haven’t been playing terribly; it’s just that in the close games we’re conceding too many opportunities for them,” he said. “We weren’t too bad with conceding today.”
The Gaels dominated the play against the Paladins right from the start and their offensive efforts were soon rewarded with a goal from midfielder Dan McBride.
Striker Andrew Colosimo then notched his first tally of the day with a 35-yard blast into the top-left corner, and further goals from Jordan Brooks and Colosimo made the score 4-0 by halftime. Substitute Dylan Haber rounded out the scoring with a late goal.
Head coach Carlo Cannovan said he was happy to see the Gaels’ offence finally kick into gear. The team scored just three goals in their previous five games combined.
“We got breaks today,” he said. “The ball just wasn’t going into the net but the ball went into the net today. ”
Cannovan said the Gaels went to a less-complicated offensive game plan and it paid off.
“We decided just to keep things simple. Less is more,” he said. “They’re good players, and when they keep things simple, they perform well.”
Defender Andrew Nador said he was happy to see the team start to make use of their chances.
“We’ve been trying to put the ball in the net all week at practice, so it’s nice to see it happen in a game,” he said.
The Gaels finished the weekend with a 2-0 win over Trent thanks to goals from Patrick Zanetti and Mike Arnold.
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