Tale of two halves as Valour FC downs Atletico Ottawa 1-0

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This article was published 15/07/2021 (1551 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A hazy Thursday afternoon rematch with Atlético Ottawa presented a tale of two halves of football for Valour FC as they looked to earn another three points and remain atop of the Canadian Premier League standings. Nonetheless, the Winnipeg club stood tall, put in a full 90-minute effort and won via a penalty kick with a final score of 1-0 over Ottawa, improving to a league best 5-0-1. Valour head coach Robert Gale was very pleased with another victory.

“I thought we’d find a way to win,” said Gale. “We had more shots, more chances and its continuing to keep our foot on the throttle. The boys stood behind it and I felt the longer the game went, we could turn the screw and find a way to win. It’s game-by-game and day-by-day with very short turnaround.”

With temperatures reaching the mid to high thirties on the field, both teams entered the afternoon riding positive momentum from their Sunday matchups. Valour FC defeated Forge FC 1-0 for a defensively sound win and Atlético Ottawa found some offensive life from 17-year-old Antoine Coupland who scored in a 2-0 win over Cavalry FC.

Going into the matchup, Valour looked toward their success against Ottawa from their first meeting July 3 when they defeated the club from the nation’s capital 2-0.

In the first 10 minutes of action, Jonathan Sirois, lead goalkeeper for Valour FC was tested twice. Five minutes in, an Ottawa counterattack presented a strong shot up the middle of the field that was saved with a clear focus. A few moments later Sirois needed to keep his composure on a shot from the left corner to help right the ship in the tenth minute. Sirois entered the night having set a league record with four consecutive wins to start his first season in the league. Gale continues to have the trust and confidence in his lead ‘keeper.

“What can I say about Jonathan, he’s kept five clean sheets in a row,” said Gale.

“It’s front to back, if you only allow Ottawa three shots on target then it’s a collective effort, absolute credit to Jonathan but also the 10 men in front.”

Despite the even numbers, the majority of the first half found Valour with more of the meaningful possession, which generated some quality scoring chances. Austin Ricci, who scored Sunday, found his best chance to notch another goal on a three-on-none counterattack, resulting in a near miss that tested Ottawa ’keeper Dylon Powley.

Raphael Ohin, a Valour fan favourite, managed to register a few shots on net, but like others lacked power on the shot to truly test Ottawa’s ‘keeper. Valour’s passing accuracy remained a strong positive in the first 45 which looked like it startled Powley in a near collision between the goalie and Valour midfielder Rafael Galhardo. The-40th minute collision in front of the net nearly resulted in a goal for Valour.

A few minutes later before half, Valour striker William Akio received a long stretch pass with another near chance to beat Powley but missed left of the net.

A light rain shower cooled the atmosphere entering the second half as Valour held a total shot advantage of 13-3. Halfway through the second half, Ottawa made some defensive adjustments to hold Valour to midfield and at times, their own end of the pitch.

In the 60th minute, Valour’s defense was tested as some miscommunication between Jonathan Sirois and the three men in front of him led to a great scoring opportunity for Ottawa. Federico Peña and Stefan Cebara, who played a strong game at midfield, negated the chance and the match remained scoreless.

“Cebara’s been excellent, he’s a great example of a player that was overlooked and he feels he has a point to prove,” said Gale.

“He was formerly a Canadian national team player and he looks at some of the other fullbacks in the league and the MLS and he feels he can still play at that level.”

In the 85th minute the Valour faithful who had patiently waited to see the hometown club score were rewarded when their club was awarded penalty kick. Set up by a frontline attack that forced Ottawa’s Miguel Acosta to commit a foul, the stage was set for Valour substitute Moses Dyer. The midfielder who had converted on his previous two PKs this season would not miss as he faked Dylon Powley into diving the wrong way before depositing the ball in the net.

“I don’t really think about it at all, the coach trusts me before the game and I take them, there’s nothing really to it,” said Dyer.

The New Zealand athlete says the club has done a good job of silencing the doubters who were skeptical of Valour FC having success this season and know what they can take away from tonight’s victory.

“That’s how it is, we have great players and we know what we can do,” said Dyer.

“We can take a lot, there was a lot to learn from that game, obviously the three points, but today showed we are the team to chase.”

With a lead of 1-0, Valour locked down defensively in the final ten minutes and into extra time and didn’t let a set piece taken by Ottawa in the 94th minute change the result. The result left Ottawa frustrated as they had the better opportunities to score in the second half bringing the shot totals closer of 18-11 in favour of Valour. Ottawa head coach Mista says he still admires the personality of his team and liked the effort despite the loss.

“We know Valour has very dangerous forwards that can create space, we played great, but unfortunately we had to accept a penalty,” said Mista.

“We need to have patience with every young guy and need our guys to be braver. We have personality, but I’m hungry and I don’t like to lose, we have to prepare for next week in a short period of time.”

Atlético Ottawa now falls to 2-0-4 on the season. Both teams have completed three-quarters of their games in the bubble format to begin the season. Valour FC will look to earn their sixth victory against York United on Sunday evening.

jbernacki@freepress.mb.ca

@JosephBernacki