Both the men and women’s teams failed to gain momentum this season
Since sweater weather is here, and it’s getting harder and harder to endure Concordia’s cold bleachers, it’s only fitting that the Concordia Stingers soccer regular season is coming to an end. On Friday, both the men and women squads had their final home games of the season.
Women’s soccer
The Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Citadins visited Loyola on Friday to square off against the Stingers. The women’s squad entered the game with a 3-3-4 record, but they have been playing consistently for the past month. Heading into Friday’s matchup, in their previous four games, the Stingers were 1-0-3. Although they have yet to lose in the past month, all their ties have hurt the Stingers in the standings.
Concordia is currently tied for the last playoff position with the McGill Redmen in the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) division. Both teams have 14 points, but the Redmen have the advantage with one more regular season win than the Stingers. If it comes down to a tiebreaker, the Redmen would go on to the playoffs, while Concordia’s season would be finished.
Appropriately, the Stingers tied on Friday against the Citadins, 1-1. After the game, the senior members of the team were presented with flowers and scarves as small tokens of appreciation for all their hard work. However, with playoff implications on the line next weekend, their work in a Stingers uniform is not over yet.
Men’s soccer
Like the women’s team, the men’s side also hosted the Citadins at Loyola on Friday night’s double-header. The men’s team has had a frustrating season this year and Friday was no different. The Stingers lost 3-0 to the Citadins and have yet to record a win this season. After Friday’s match, their record stood at 0-4-5.
You have to be lucky to be good, and this year it seemed that the Stingers always got the short end of the stick. On multiple occasions this season, close games have come down to the final minutes where a bad bounce or an unlucky break went against Concordia. Officiating is never an excuse, but even untimely calls have led to penalty shots and red cards going against the Stingers.
On the pitch, offence has been an obvious problem for Concordia. While their defence has been the backbone of their team all year, the offence has only been able to score five goals all season.
This coming weekend will be the final weekend and road trip for both squads. The two teams travel to l’Université de Montréal on Friday night to play against the Carabins, and then they both make the long trip up to Quebec City to play against the Laval Rouge et Or. Both the men and women’s teams for Laval are first in the RSEQ.
