With only 10 players on the field, due to the ejection of Simon Gatti following his second yellow card of the match, midfielder Tony Donatelli opened the scoring on a penalty kick in the 63rd minute of play. Donatelli beat goalkeeper Evan Bush with a precise shot to score his 6th goal of the season. He is now in fourth place in league scoring with 15 points.
Crystal Palace striker Gary Brooks tied up the match in the 77th minute. Following a corner kick that was weakly headed by the Montreal defense, Brooks headed a cross from Takuro Nishimura, to the opposite corner of the Impact goalkeeper Matt Jordan
Jordan, who was starting his second consecutive match since his return from an injury, notably stopped a 20-meter blast from Gary Brooks by diving to his right, in the 21st minute of play.
“Tonight, the two clubs were battling for a playoff spot so the first half was very even tactically. Both teams did not want to give up the first goal,” said Impact head coach Marc Dos Santos.
“But when you play the last 30 minutes with one less player, it makes things thougher,” added Dos Santos. “Thankfully, we were well organized with 10 players and we were able to score the first goal. Unfortunately, we gave up another goal on a set play. This is our season. During our first 20 matches this season, we have allowed too many goals in similar situations and we have lost important points.”
With a total of 24 points, the Impact is still in third place in the NASL division, fours points in front of Baltimore.
Defender Stephen deRoux (cheek), as well as midfielder David Testo (groin), Rocco Placentino (groin) and Leonardo Di Lorenzo (calf) did not travel with the team to Maryland, due to injuries.
The Impact will play its next game against the Carolina RailHawks, on Saturday, August 7, in Cary. (7pm, Radio-Canada, carolinarailhawks.com).
The Montreal squad will play its next home match on Wednesday, August 11th, against Baltimore (7:30pm, radio-canada.ca/sports, CKAC Sports, The Team 990). For the final time, fans in attendance will be privy to a $1 Lafleur hotdog promotion, starting at 6 pm (when the doors open) until kickoff. Tickets for the game are available through the Admission Network (514-790-1245 / 1-800-361-4595 / admission.com) as well as at the Saputo Stadium ticket office.
THE NEXT 3 GAMES
- Saturday, August 7- IMPACT @ Carolina - WakeMed Park - 7 pm (Radio-Canada, carolinarailhawks.com)
- Wednesday, August 11 - Baltimore @ IMPACT - Saputo Stadium - 7:30pm (radio-canada.ca/sports, CKAC Sports, The TEAM 990)
- Saturday, August 14 – IMPACT @ Rochester – Paetec Park – 7pm (rhinossoccer.com)
MATCH SUMMARY
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Source : Patrick Vallée, Montréal Impact
Info : 514-328-3668 (ext. 227)
