Last Saturday, the Impact teams playing in the Development Academy hosted Oakwood Soccer Club at Centre Nutrilait. Both Bleu-blanc-noir teams were well positioned for the playoffs before the games and wanted to strengthen their spot, with eight games to play.
The Impact U18 loses
In the first half, the Impact U18s controlled the game and created many good attacking chances, but the first 45 minutes ended 0-0.
Back from the locker rooms, Oakwood took the lead on a free kick played directly to the goal. The team from Connecticut held its lead until the final whistle.
“There are lessons to take from a game like this one,” said defender Marques Antoine. “It was a tough game that we should have won at home. We need to learn from this for the next game. It starts during the week, when we have to work seriously and put in the effort to be ready for the game.”
The Impact U16 wins 2-0
The stake in this game was even higher for the younger players, as the U16s had the chance to overtake Oakwood in the table with a win. The team succeeded with a 2-0 win and remains unbeaten after six games in 2017.
In the first half, after putting pressure on the last defender, Tristan Resendes got the ball and chipped the goalkeeper from 25 metres to open the score.
In the second half, the Impact played well defensively and doubled its lead. On a free kick just outside the box, Resendes scored his second goal of the game with a beautiful free kick in the top right corner.
“It was a good game where we applied our principles, pressing on the full-backs and recovering the ball often,” said Tristan Resendes, who scored both goals. “It helped me take my chance and score my first goal, while the second came on a free kick. We won this game and we are now ahead of them.”
Next games
The Montreal Development Academy teams won’t have competitive games this weekend and will be back in action on Saturday, May 6, in Somerset, New Jersey, facing the teams from Players Development Academy, starting at noon.
