TORONTO - After waiting for over ten months, the No. 4 Ryerson Rams finally got a little bit of revenge against the No. 8 Toronto Varsity Blues with a 1-0 victory in OUA men's regular season soccer action Sunday afternoon. The last time these two cross-town rivals met, the Varsity Blues defeated the Rams 3-0 in the OUA Bronze Medal match. The victory booked Toronto a ticket to the 2015 CIS Championship and ended Ryerson's campaign.
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It appeared that the memory of that game was still fresh in the minds of the Rams as many of their veterans put together strong performances at the Varsity Centre. In the early stages of the match, Ryerson dominated possession and used their speed to create numerous chances. The Varsity Blues stood tall defensively though and didn't allow the Rams to penetrate the middle of the pitch.
However, Toronto was only able to hold off Ryerson's offensive weapons for so long. In the 35th minute, Raheem Rose (Toronto) won the ball off the foot of an opposing fullback and sprinted into the heart of the Varsity Blues' zone. With a couple defenders charging towards him, Rose fired a shot from just outside the 18-yard box into the bottom right corner of the net.
The goal simultaneously gave Ryerson a 1-0 advantage and woke up Toronto's offence. Early in the second half, Nikolay Saveliev of the Varsity Blues stole the ball deep in the Rams' defensive zone. His ensuing shot rattled off the crossbar and out of play to keep the Rams' lead intact. Toronto continued to push for the tying marker late in the match but couldn't find it.
With his two saves, Ryerson's goalkeeper Praveen Ahilan (Unionville, Ont.) secured his fourth clean sheet of the season. His 0.20 GAA is best in the OUA. At the other end of the field, the Varsity Blues' Mark Rogal surrendered one goal on three shots.
The victory boosts Ryerson's record to 6-0-0 to begin the season while Toronto falls to 3-1-2. The Rams currently sit atop of OUA East standings with 18 points, two up on Carleton with a game in hand. Meanwhile, the loss combined with a few other results around the league drops the Varsity Blues to fifth in the division.
Ryerson will try to make it seven straight wins when they battle the Queen's Gaels (4-1-1) on Saturday, September 24th. Kick off at Miklas-McCarney Field in Kingston is scheduled for 3:15 p.m.
NOTES: Rose's goal puts him in the team lead with five. His skill and creativity made him a thorn in the side of Toronto's backline all afternoon (pun intended)… Captain Adam Hemati (Vaughan, Ont.) had the Rams' best opportunity to make it 2-0 when he rocketed a free kick off the post in the 76th minute… As the intensity picked up late in the game, Ryerson's Robert Boskovic (Mississauga, Ont.), Rose and Jackson Tooke (North York, Ont.) all picked up yellow cards.
