John Kelsey

Playing in the pouring rain, the McGill Redmen were unable to find the back of the net, losing 1-0 to the Laval Rouge et Or on Thursday night. Despite many chances in the second half, the third-ranked Redmen could not score against top-ranked Laval.

“I’m not displeased with our performance. There were some very good things. Except the one huge difference is that we do not have the killer instinct,” said David Simon, McGill’s frustrated Head Coach. “We generated a lot in the second half after they scored, but we were not able to capitalize. And that’s the difference between a champion and a team that is second.”

For the first half, scoring chances were few and far between as heavy rain slowed the pace of the game. The rain lightened after halftime, however, and the game quickened, resulting in more scoring chances for both teams.

Laval broke the deadlock in the 58th minute when midfielder Samuel Georget took advantage of a loose ball in the box. Redmen goalkeeper Jean-Lou Gosselin punched away a Rouge et Or free kick, but as the McGill defence frantically tried to clear, Georget found the loose ball and slipped it in.

Following the goal, McGill pushed more players forward in search of the equalizer. The Redmen dominated the final 30 minutes of the game but couldn’t manage a goal.

Despite a disappointing result, Simon said that his team was still capable of beating Laval. “I do not think that [they were] quite dangerous, [but] they capitalized on our mistake,” Simon said. “So we need to be more efficient in front of the net and have the killer instinct and then we will be able to beat them. Hopefully.”

McGill’s defence, led by Graeme Tingey, quickly dealt with almost all of Laval’s attacks. They only failed to clear the loose ball that became Georget’s goal.

It was not a great night for soccer. It rained all day and continued to pour throughout the night, creating puddles all over the field that made passing extremely difficult.

But Coach Simon would not use the weather as an excuse for the result. “I didn’t think we had to make any adjustments, with respect to rain,” Simon said. “In the first half it was more of a factor because the field was wet and [it was] hard for players to get the ball out of their feet. But I wouldn’t consider it a major factor … it was a standard game.”

The loss was McGill’s first of the season, and it dropped their record to 1-1. Laval (3-0) remains in first place. The Redmen will look for revenge when the teams meet again in Quebec City on October 22.

Earlier Thursday night, the fifth-ranked Martlets dominated Laval with an impressive 4-2 win. Junior Anna Smith scored twice, leading McGill over the previously undefeated Rouge et Or. With the win, the Martlets remain in first place in the QUSL standings with a 3-0 record.

The Redmen and Martlets will take on UQTR this Friday night at 7 p.m. in a doubleheader at Molson Stadium. They will travel across town to play the University of Montreal on Sunday morning. The Martlets will look to stay undefeated, while the Redmen will try to put Thursday’s lost behind them.