MONTREAL – Maxime Fillion converted a corner kick with a header the game-winner in the 34th minute of play and goaltender Joakim Mill registered a shutout as the defending first-place Montreal Carabins edged McGill 1-0 to open the RSEQ regular season in men's soccer, Thursday, before a lively crowd of 811 at Percival Molson Stadium.
 
The Redbirds missed a glorious chance to score in the dying seconds of the first half on a free kick that results in a nifty three-way passing play but newly-appointed team captain Yannick Laurent, a sophomore midfielder from Terrebonne, Que., hit the top left crossbar on what appeared to be a sure goal..
 
"Our team didn't perform at the level that we were at during our preseason games," said Marc Mounicot, a former team captain now in his 12th year as a head coach of the men's program after 15 seasons behind the bench of the women's team. "I think that we showed them too much respect tonight. Montreal has a beautiful team, for sure. But the game is all about small details, like that corner kick that resulted in the goal. We had a few chances, on a free kick late in the first half and on a few corner kicks near the end of the game where we had a chance to tie the score but we didn't convert. It's a little painful because a tie was possible, and we ended up with a loss. That said, the result was quite fair. We gave them a good fight and our kids can be proud of that. Now we have to bounce back and win our next game on Sunday.
 
The Carabins had a 7-1 advantage in shots on net and goalkeeper Joakim Mill collected the win. Redbirds starter Ludovyck Ciociola made six saves in a losing cause.
 
The game that featured 18 fouls (10 by Montreal) and five yellow cards, three of them issued to the Carabins. The visitors also had a 3-2 advantage in corner kicks.
 
Both teams have a couple of days off before resuming play on Sunday, Sept 1. Montreal (1-0) will host Sherbrooke in a 1 p.m. start, while McGill (0-1) will host UQAM at 7 p.m.
 
REDBIRDS RAP: Two McGill freshman started in their first-ever league game… Ibrahim Chami, a native of Laval from College Montmorency was in at defender and Maher Fares of Brossard, Que., started at striker… Another new face was Mujtaba Mirhasan of Carignan, Que., who transferred from Vermont in the NCAA and started in the second half…  The Redbirds team roster features nine freshmen, nine sophomores, five juniors and five seniors… The geographical breakdown includes eight players from Quebec, four from British Columbia, three from Ontario, and quite an international flavour, with two apiece from France, Brazil and Taiwan, plus one apiece from the USA, Spain, Algeria, Switzerland, Scotland and Egypt.
 
BOXSCORE
 
2024 REDBIRDS TEAM ROSTER
 
RSEQ STATS & STANDINGS

SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
McGill University - Athletics & Recreation
CELL: 514-983-7012
TWITTER: @EarlZukerman
E-MAIL: earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca