Valour find new way to lose

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/06/2019 (2617 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Somehow, Valour FC keeps finding new, creative ways to lose games.

But Thursday night’s 2-1 loss at IG Field in front of 6,117 fans against Pacific FC might take the cake.

With the game tied 1-1 in the second half, Valour FC midfielder Glenn Muenkat was standing on the sideline waiting to sub into the game for an injured Diego Gutiérrez.

Muenkat entered the game as Gutiérrez exited on the other side of the field, but for some reason, the official called him back to the sideline. But with Gutiérrez already out, Valour was down to 10 players on the field as there was no break in play.

Pacific FC wasted no time taking advantage of having an extra player as Terran Campbell drilled a shot outside of the box in the 67th minute past Valour keeper Mathias Janssens to score the game-winning goal.

“The thing was, the assistant ref that was on the sideline told me to go on the field when Diego had walked off. I ran on the field, apparently she didn’t let the ref know,” Muenkat explained after the game.

“The ref sees me on the field, tells me to come back out again. It was a miscommunication between the refs, which cost us. We were playing with 10 men and they score. If I was in, maybe it would be different.”

Valour head coach Rob Gale said he was never given an explanation for what happened.

“We have to play to win. Stop talking about possession. Talk about winning games and not attractive football. That’s it.”–Valour midfielder Louis Beland-Goyette

“I’ve never seen a sub go and then get told to come back off and go again,” he said.

It was one of several plays in the second half that were called against Valour. Midfielder Raphael Ohin was called for a hand ball when he had a shot blocked by a defender in the box in the 74th minute. In extra time, Valour attacker Calum Ferguson scored but was called offside in what was another controversial call.

After the game, Valour assistant coach Damian Rocke was screaming about the missed calls and slammed the locker-room door.

But Rocke, obviously, wasn’t the only one upset, as frustration seemed to be at an all-time high in Valour’s locker room after the game. The club is now 3-5-0 in Canadian Premier League action and has lost four straight, including back-to-back losses in the Canadian Championship qualifier to HFX Wanderers FC. The win was Pacific’s first since April 28, and they’re now 2-4-2.

“To be honest, I’m fed up talking about it. We talk about (being a) possession team, possession team, but we don’t win games,” said Valour midfielder Louis Beland-Goyette, who was given his fourth yellow card of the season and will be suspended for the next match.

“I don’t know when we’re gonna wake up and just win the game. Maybe if we have to play along, then that’s how we’re going to play. We have to play to win. Stop talking about possession. Talk about winning games and not attractive football. That’s it.”

Veteran 26-year-old defender Adam Mitter was in no mood to blame the officiating or anything else after the game. He believes the team needs to look at itself if it’s going to get back on track in the final two games of the spring season.

“No matter how many players are on the pitch, we’ve got to do better,” Mitter said. “I’m sick of making excuses and I’m sick of hearing excuses. It’s just not good enough.”

Gale gave 17-year-old Tyler Attardo and 20-year-old Federico Pena — both Winnipeg natives — their first starts of the CPL season. They were joined by 23-year-old Ali Musse to form an all-Winnipeg forward trio for Valour.

The highlight of the match for Valour came in the 45th minute, as Attardo tied the game at the end of the first half at 1-1 off a header from a brilliant pass from Gutiérrez. With the goal, Attardo, who just finished Grade 12 at River East Collegiate, became the youngest player to score in the CPL’s inaugural season.

“I’m sick of making excuses and I’m sick of hearing excuses. It’s just not good enough.”–Valour defender Adam Mitter

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

The Warm-Up

Winnipeg Jets Game Days

On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.

Sign up for The Warm-Up

Sign Up

I consent to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies.

I consent to CASL agreement.

“Yeah, I mean, it’s great,” Attardo said about making history. “I wanted to come out here, obviously it’s my first start for the team, so it was an incredible feeling.

“I wanted to, you know, get everything I could and to get the goal was great, but I mean, it wasn’t enough. We just got to keep working hard and finish more goals.”

Valour’s next game is June 26 in Halifax against HFX Wanderers FC.

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca  

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31

Taylor Allen
Reporter

Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.

Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.