Valour bumps Atletico Ottawa from Canadian Championship
After waiting such a long time to play just a single home game, let alone a homestand of any sort, Atletico Ottawa has to be somewhat pleased with their first extended stay at TD Place.
The once-struggling Atletico went .500 on their three-game stint at home after losing 3-2 to Valour FC of Winnipeg in a feisty affair in the preliminary round of the Canadian Championship on the pitch at TD Place on a steamy Saturday evening.
Valour forward Austin Ricci, the CPL's leading scorer, broke open a 1-1 draw with a pair of goals three minutes apart in the 60th and 63rd minute and Atletico couldn't mount the comeback they needed, despite outshooting the visitors 20-15.
Ottawa's Victor Martinez made it close with a goal in the 90th minute but the team couldn't get the equalizer.
“I'm very proud of our team,” Atletico head coach Mista said. “I know the result is not good. But I love my team.
“I know we are better than a few weeks ago. I know we played better than we did a few weeks ago.
“Maybe our trouble is we tried so hard to get the second goal and win the game, maybe we forgot to defend. But the players gave everything. (Winnipeg) is a very good team.”
Valour FC moves on to face Forge FC (Hamilton) in the Canadian Championship semifinal while Atletico is eliminated from the domestic tournament.
That said, Atletico has far more work to do within the CPL, as it heads to Hamilton to face the Forge before returning for what might be a make-or-break fourgame homestand that could determine whether they can crack the top four and qualify for the league playoffs.
Atletico is still tied for seventh with the Halifax Wanderers and seven points behind fourth-place Forge with 16 regular-season games to play.
Under the three points for a win and one for a tie, that's 48 potential points still on the table and Atletico needs to make a move. The loss to Winnipeg doesn't count on the table and Atletico gets to regroup in a hurry.
Heading into Saturday 's contest, Valour FC has been up and down all season.
They sat atop the CPL table while hosting the entire league in the Winnipeg bubble to start the season.
Atletico certainly got things off on the right foot against Valour FC with Brian Wright standing his ground in the box and sending Ottawa up 1-0 in the 16th minute.
That stood for only 14 minutes, however, when Valour's Sean Rea found the corner of the Atletico net past Teodor Obadal.