TORONTO - The Ryerson men's soccer team dominated the Royal Military College (RMC) Paladins on Saturday afternoon, winning 4-0 at Allan Lamport Stadium.
The Rams [2-0-1], led by a two-goal performance from Adrian Mancini, opened up on Paladins goalkeeper Jhordan Dorrington in the second half, scoring three goals. The Rams were finding their range, scoring on many of their long strike attempts.
"I just wanted to test the goalie from afar," said Mancini. "We've seen him get shaky before ... I just got lucky twice."
Head Coach Ivan Joseph credits the offensive outburst to quicker touches, and a switch to a 4-4-2 formation, as well as his team's heart and ability.
"Everyone was hustling, and technically we were better," said Joseph. "They [RMC] work hard and hustle, but we have more skills."
The win keeps Ryerson's hot start intact, as it remains undefeated. The same cannot be said about RMC [0-2-0] who are winless in their first two games. The Rams record will be put to the test as they face Queens [1-2-0] Sunday afternoon.
Two factors the Rams cited in their win today were preseason training and a small, yet very rowdy pocket of fans.
"I think we are the fittest team in our conference and we're not going to be pushed around," said midfielder Armin Tankovic, who added a top corner goal. "We had a hard preseason, and it showed."
The fans at Lamport Stadium provided the essential home-field advantage, routinely cheering and jeering at the players. While some find the chirping detrimental to the game, the players were happy to get some support from the fans.
"We get it when we're away, so it's nice to have it on our side," said Mancini.
The Rams also introduced a new player today as midfielder Kevin Souter, a former all-American for Coach Joseph at Graceland University, took to the pitch. While he was unable to score in his first game, Joseph feels that Souter had an impact, calling him a spark when he came into the game.
Rookie Viktor Anastasov, with the first of his OUA career, had the other Ryerson goal, while keeper Aaryon Gaeeni recorded his second clean sheet of the season.
Alex Braletic, last year's OUA East MVP, did not suit up for today's game, but will be in the lineup for the Rams next home game against Queens Sunday, at 3:15 pm.
