Laval 3, Concordia 0: Stingers Women’s Soccer Looking Ahead After Disappointing Night

Rouge et Or Capitalize On Defensive Lapses To Win 3-0

SportsOlivier Cadotte — Published September 16, 2017

The mood after the game was over very much reflected their desire to forget this result.

“Bouncing back is not an option, it’s a requirement” said third-year goalkeeper Olivia Desgroseilliers. “We have so many close games, we can’t get discouraged by one mistake. […] It’s important to always keep fighting.”

Laval started the game putting plenty of offensive pressure on the Stingers’ defence. The pressure immediately payed off for them, as striker Joëlle Gosselin found the space between the defenders to beat Concordia’s keeper just over a minute into the game.

After sustained offensive pressure from the Rouge et Or and lopsided time of possession kept Concordia pinned in their own zone for most of the half, the Stingers somehow only escaped the half down by one.

The maroon and gold started the second half looking like a rejuvenated team, only for Laval to take advantage of another costly defensive lapse in the early goings of the second half to double their lead, courtesy of an Alex Lafrenière goal.

Lafrenière added another in the 72nd minute to put the game away for good despite a much better showing and a renewed effort and from the Stingers during second half of the game.

Concordia’s offensive chances were few and far between, but one player who was a part of these chances was first-year forward Despina Politakis, who used her explosive speed to outhustle opposing defenders to create some scoring chances.

Even speed sometimes isn’t enough to get into an offensive rhythm. Politakis recognized how continued pressure from Laval severely hampered Concordia’s ability to get anything done on offense.

‘’As soon as our defense had the ball, they were pretty much on us, so that meant we had to think fast and already know what we were going to do, and pressure like that can sometimes throw [a gameplan] into shambles,” said Politakis.

Acknowledging how difficult games like these are for teams, Stingers head coach Jorge Sanchez nevertheless had many positive things to say about the team’s efforts on the pitch against the best team of the RSEQ.

“It’s hard enough to play against a team like this, even up,” said Sanchez. “The first ten minutes we were in trouble, but then we fought our way back, we had chances.”

“We had our opportunities, you don’t get a lot of them and if you don’t score on those opportunities, you’re in trouble,” said Politakis.

Moving on is exactly what the still winless Stingers have to do if they hope to get a much coveted playoff spot this year. Thanks to their two ties, they’re are still very much in contention for the playoffs, being only three points back of the second place Université de Montréal Carabins before Friday’s game.

The Stingers will be back in action this Sunday as they visit those very same Carabins at the CEPSUM, hoping to gain some precious points on route to a possible playoff berth.

“[Laval is] one of the best teams, we can’t hide that,” says Desgroseilliers. “But bouncing back is something we have to do. If we don’t bounce back it can be dangerous for our playoff spot.’’