The Varsity Blues men’s soccer team moved up to second place in the OUA East conference standings this Wednesday after a decisive 3-1 win over the Trent Excaliburs.
The Blues are now tied with Carleton, but still behind the undefeated, Ryerson Rams.
Wednesday’s match saw the Blues playing a strong offensive game, taking eight shots to Trent’s two in the first half and four shots to Trent’s one in the second while Trent struggled to create opportunities against Toronto’s defense throughout.
The Blues opened up a lead in the eighteenth minute when midfielder Antonio Ajhert scored his first goal of the season, with a a rising shot sent past Excalibur goalkeeper Dave Ellis from just inside the penalty box.
Trent equalized in the thirty-fourth minute when Carl Deabreu avoided Blues’ defense with some neat footwork and drove the ball past goalkeeper Mark Rogal. Trent’s tight-knit defense kept Toronto at bay for the remainder of the first half.
The second half saw the game intensify as Trent defensemen Riley Brennan received a yellow card in the forty-seventh, which nearly led to another Blues goal.
The booking seemed to set the tone for the rest of the half, as both sides began to play a more aggressive game. In total, Trent received four yellow cards and the Blues gave up seven free kicks during the second half.
Trent’s defense was not enough to stop striker Nirun Sivananthan from scoring his third goal of the season during the seventy-sixth minute with a strike that put the fans on their feet.
Also scoring his third goal that night was forward Dakar Charles, who added to Toronto’s lead in the eighty-first minute, beating the goalkeeper with an impressive header.
The Blues play again this weekend at the welcoming the Queen’s Gael’s on Saturday at 3:15pm, and the Royal Military College’s Paladins on Sunday at 3:15pm.
