The three Impact Academy teams in the Development Academy were playing their first road games last Sunday against Empire United Soccer Academy, in West Henrietta, in the State of New York.
The Bleu-blanc-noir came back home with six points out of nine, as the U15 and U19 teams won against the hosts, while the U17s lost.
The Impact U15 wins in the last minutes
Head coach Serge Dinkota’s team traveled for the first time in the Development Academy and just like in their first home game, they won, this time by a 4-1 score.
After a scoreless first half, the Bleu-blanc-noir found its pace in the second half, especially in the last 10 minutes of the game.
Midfielder Matthew Catavolo scored a hat trick. In the 60th minute, Rida Zouhir initiated the counterattack and dribbled over 30 metres before passing to Keesean Ferdinand on the right flank. Ferdinand found Catavolo in front of goal, who scored with his first touch. He scored his second and third goals near the end of the game.
Hugo Spinola scored the other goal for the Impact U15, also assisted by Ferdinand, who finished the game with three points.
“We dominated the game overall,” said Catavolo. “We couldn’t score in the first half, but in the last 10 minutes of the game we found the back of the net. It was a good game in general.”
The Impact U17 loses its first game
Despite having control of the ball for most of the game, the Bleu-blanc-noir lost to Empire United 1-0.
The Impact had many chances to score, but never found the back of the net. Despite a good performance from goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois, Empire United scored the only goal of the game in the 79th minute.
“We started the game well, with many chances, but we were not able to finish,” said Sirois. “We gave up a preventable goal and were not able to come back after. We now have to focus on the next game.”
The Impact U19 dictates the rhythm
Head coach Philippe Eullaffroy’s team won 5-1 in a dominant performance.
Montreal scored three quick goals in the beginning of the game. In the 13th minute, midfielder Luca Piccioli took advantage of a pocket of space in midfield to move forward and take a strong and accurate shot to the left of the opposing goalkeeper.
In the following minute, defender Raphaël Garcia scored the second goal, burying forward Vincent Lamy’s rebound.
The Impact U19 did not stop there. In the 17th minute, defender Daniel Kinumbe added his name to the score sheet with a goal from outside the box.
Empire United made sure to keep Montreal focused by scoring their only goal in the 21st minute, from a corner.
Still, winger Clément Bayiha scored just before the end of the first half on a low shot following a pass in the box from Tristano Fasulo.
Back from the locker room, Kinumbe added his second goal of the game, this time being found by Protais Mutambala, and made it 5-1.
“We started strong with a shot from a distance with high pressure, it gave us momentum and we kept scoring after,” said Luca Piccioli.
Next games
The Impact will host New England Revolution’s team this Saturday at Centre Nutrilait. The U15s will play at 10am, the U17s at noon and the U19s at 2:30pm. The games are free and open to the public.
