MONTREAL – Goalkeeper
Chris Cinelli-Faia made five saves and sniper
Mehdi Ibn-Brahim struck for the game-winning tally in the 74th minute as the McGill University men's soccer team made a statement with a stunning 3-2 upset over division-leading UQTR, in their home-opener, Friday, at Percival Molson Stadium.
It was the first loss of the season for the Pats -- who dropped to 3-1 -- and the inaugural win for McGill, which improved to 1-2 in RSEQ conference play. Coupled with the Martlets 2-1 conquest in the women's game, it marked McGill's first doubleheader sweep over UQTR since Oct. 4, 2015, at Molson Stadium.
Despite a 14-10 edge in shots toward the net, the high-octane Patriotes -- who lead the league in scoring with 11 goals in four games -- were thwarted by Cinelli-Faia, a 5-foot-8, 160-pound physical education sophomore from Montreal. At the other end of the pitch, UQTR's
Felix Clapin was beaten three times on eight shots and took the loss.
"It was a great team performance against a very strong and well-organized UQTR team," said McGill head coach
Marc Mounicot. "Our young players showed grit, a high technical level and team cohesiveness. Even after two difficult losses to start the season, we knew that the potential is there. The boys believe in their abilities, followed the game plan and worked hard for 90 minutes. Our conference is strong in parity and quality but it is important for our players believe they can be close to the top and we proved that today. We have to show the same commitment to details and performance and things will work out."
McGill midfielder
Michael Makepeace, a political science senior from the UK, opened the scoring on a penalty kick in the 15th minute. However, the visitors responded next with UQTR's
Amine Bensouda finding the back of the net 10 minutes later.
Florian Bettelli, a sophomore from France, put McGill back in front in the 49th minute, setting the stage for Ibn-Brahim's marker, which gave McGill a crucial two-goal cushion. It was the first game back for Ibn-Brahim, a high-scoring striker from Casablanca, who sat out the last game against UQAM after being red-carded in the previous contest.
The Patriotes clawed back when
Felix Bouchard connected on a nifty header in the final minute to make things tense for the home crowd.
The game featured five yellow cards, including three issued towards the home side.
Up next, McGill (1-2-0) will make the short trip across town to face Concordia (1-1-1) on Sunday Sept. 14 at 1 p.m. UQTR (3-1-0) returns home on Sunday to play the undefeated Montréal Carabins (3-0) at 1 p.m. at Stade Gilles-Doucet.
Pro Game DataSoccerMeter
| UQTR |
Game Total |
McGill |
| 2 |
Goals |
3 |
| 7 |
Shots On Goal |
8 |
| 7 |
Missed Shot Attempts |
2 |
| 50 |
% Shot Attempts On Goal |
80 |
| 14 |
% Shot Attempts Scored |
30 |
| 43:12 |
Time of Possession |
46:48 |
| 48% |
Time of Possession % |
52% |
| 539 |
First Touches |
531 |
| 7.5 |
Average Time of a Possession (sec) |
8.0 |
| 302 |
Passes |
294 |
| 56% |
Pass Completion % |
55% |
| 44 |
Number of Pass Strings |
47 |
| 4.3 |
Average Pass String Length |
4.5 |
| 8 |
Longest Pass String |
13 |
| 14 |
Corner Kicks |
3 |
| 17 |
Fouls Committed |
11 |
| 5 |
Goalkeeper Saves |
5 |
| 62 |
Goalkeeper Save % |
71 |
| 0 |
Offsides |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Scoring Summary
| UQTR 2 |
McGill 3 |
28' Amine Bensouda (unassisted)
90' Felix Bouchard (unassisted) |
15' Michael Makepeace (unassisted)
49' Florian Betteli (unassisted)
73' Mehdi Ibn-Brahim (unassisted) |
Cards
Players of the Game
Goalkeepers
| UQTR |
McGill |
| Felix Clapin (L, 3 GA, 5 SVS, 90:00) |
Chris Cinelli-Faia (W, 2 GA, 5 SVS, 90:00) |
2019 RSEQ MEN'S SOCCER STANDINGS
