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Karl Gouabé’s journey to Concordia

Gouabé is currently in his first season with the Stingers. Photo by Ana Hernandez

Karl Gouabé enjoys the sensation of stopping a speeding soccer ball. The Concordia Stingers men’s soccer goalie admits that one must be a bit crazy to be a goalkeeper.

“For some reason I like getting balls kicked at me,” said Gouabé, a first-year communications student.

Unlike most athletes playing in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), Gouabé hasn’t been playing soccer his whole life. Gouabé grew up in Yaoundé, Cameroon part of a family of six children, and he didn’t have the opportunity to play soccer growing up.

“We had [other] priorities. My mom had six kids and all of us were [working],” Gouabé said. “There was no time for soccer.”

At the age of 10, Gouabé’s life changed when he was adopted by a Canadian humanitarian visiting Cameroon.

“My [adoptive] mother used to work for UNICEF, so she picked up a Cameroonian on her way back. Luckily it was me,” Gouabé said with a smile.

In his new hometown of Chelsea, Que., a small town of about 7,000 people located just north of Ottawa, Gouabé became friends with kids who played soccer. Whenever they went to practice or to play in the park, Gouabé felt left out because he didn’t know how to play.

When Gouabé’s mother noticed he had an interest in sports, she signed him up for soccer, football and basketball. He fell in love with soccer right away.

“Soccer just took over everything,” Gouabé said.

An interesting part about Gouabé’s journey to protecting the Concordia net is that it didn’t start with him stopping the ball—Gouabé started out as a defender. That all changed during a game when Gouabé was 15 years old. His team’s goalie got injured. Without a back-up keeper, Gouabé’s coach turned to him.

“[Their reaction was to] send the biggest guy in there, and sadly that was me,” Gouabé said. “I think, until now, that was the best game of my life.”

Gouabé has earned himself two Stingers “Male Athlete of the Week” honours this year. Photo by Ana Hernandez.

Gouabé played the rest of that season as keeper while the original goalkeeper recovered from his injury. The coach gave Gouabé the option to return as a defender the following season, but Gouabé refused. Balls have been kicked his way ever since.

Two years later, Gouabé made Outremont’s AAA team, and a year after that, at 18-years-old, he played semi-pro soccer in Ottawa. Gouabé’s career really took off when Toronto FC signed him to their youth academy. He spent a year training there before an injury forced him out of Toronto and brought him back to Montreal. He joined the Impact academy, but after a year, injury once again put his professional dreams on hold. He left the team and took a year off.

During that time off, Stingers head coach Greg Sutton let Gouabé work out with the team and offered him a spot on the squad. In his first season, he is displaying the skills he learned at both academies, and has been named the Stingers “Male Athlete of the Week” for the past two weeks.

Gouabé’s recurring knee injury has followed him throughout his career. Gouabé has patellar tendonitis, known as “jumper’s knee,” which affects the tendons between the kneecap and the shinbone. This condition weakens the knee’s ability to extend outwards.

“I can’t generate power without pain,” Gouabé said, while looking at his wrapped up left knee.

Gouabé, an energetic person who always has a smile on his face, does find it tough to be held back by his knee but that doesn’t hinder his motivation.

He draws inspiration from the two most important women in his life: his adoptive mother and his biological mother. His adoptive mother has been with him for most of his soccer career, and he looks to her for encouragement when the going gets tough.

“She’s the first person to tell me to go and practice,” Gouabé said. “She’s the first person to tell me, ‘you’re not injured, now get out of bed.’”

“She’s gone through tough times and I’ve witnessed how she’s bounced back every time, and it’s just phenomenal. She does inspire me to do better,” Gouabé added.

As for his biological mother in Cameroon, Gouabé said she inspires him in different ways.

“My mom raising six kids—you just see the difficulty in that. I couldn’t quite grasp it since I was 10 years old, but now I see it,” Gouabé said.

Gouabé grew up in Yaoundé, Cameroon before moving to Quebec. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

Like any other athlete, Gouabé has a favourite professional player he looks up to—his is Carlos Kameni. Kameni is the goalkeeper for the Cameroonian national team and for the Málaga CF club team in Spain. He has been playing in Spain’s top division since 2004, and has faced off against some of the game’s top players including Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (Ronaldinho) and Samuel Eto’o. He also became the youngest soccer player ever to win an Olympic medal—at the age of 16 when he led Cameroon to gold in 2000. Kameni represented his country twice at the FIFA World Cup.

For Gouabé, Kameni is one of the best keepers in the world and he attempts to draw on his playing style. Gouabé said his YouTube history is often full of videos of Kameni highlights.

“Before games, I look at his videos. When I’m bored, I look at his videos. When I’m sad, I look at his videos,” Gouabé said. “He’s been my idol since I was 15. He’s by far my greatest inspiration in soccer.”

Gouabé has another professional keeper in his life to draw inspiration from and that man is coach Sutton. Sutton played professionally from 1999 to 2012, including two tenures for the Montreal Impact. Sutton has a wealth of knowledge that Gouabé uses in his game.

“Mentally, physically, he knows how to prepare a keeper,” Gouabé said. “I know I have an advantage on the other keeper because my coach has been a pro goalkeeper.”

Sutton was also a former student-athlete, so he knows some of the other challenges Gouabé faces. Since the two share so many similarities, Sutton always has his door open when Gouabé needs someone to talk to.

“It’s so easy for me to go talk with him,” Gouabé said. “He makes it so much easier for me to connect with him. I’m still learning some things from him.”

Despite facing setbacks in his young soccer career, Gouabé has persevered so that he can continue do what he loves: getting balls kicked his way.

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Stingers drop two games to the Rouge et Or

The men’s team lost in a close game by a score of 2-1. Photos by Ana Hernandez.

Both the men’s and women’s soccer teams were unable to beat the powerful teams from Laval

The Concordia Stingers soccer teams dropped a pair of games against the Laval Rouge et Or on Sept. 30 at Concordia Stadium. The men lost 2-1 and the women lost 4-0.

Men’s Soccer

The loss was heartbreaking for the men’s team — the game was destined for a draw until Laval stole the win in the 89th minute.

“There wasn’t any flow to the game, so it was difficult. A draw probably would have been fair,” said Stingers head coach Greg Sutton.

Eleven minutes in, Laval forward Marc-Olivier Kouo Dibongue redirected a cross just past the fingertips of Stingers keeper Michael Pelcar.

Pelcar played in place of an injured Karl Gouabé. Gouabé got injured last game, and Pelcar found out about his start only 90 minutes before game time.

“I had to be mentally focused all week in practice, and just come in and do my job,” said Pelcar, a fourth-year veteran.

The Stingers responded well to the early goal. In the 25th minute, the Stingers had a free kick 25 yards out. Two Stingers ran over the ball, faking a shot, before left back Amadou Lam blasted the shot past the Laval keeper to tie the game.

Concordia created most of the chances for the rest half, a positive for Sutton.

“The last 30 minutes of the [first] half, we probably dominated the play,” Sutton said. “I was happy to see that.”

Most of the second half passed without much action. Pelcar made a handful of key stops, but the Stingers created minimal offensive chances.

The Rouge et Or stripped away the draw when Laval striker Nicolas Hernandez volleyed the ball over Pelcar. There wasn’t much Pelcar could do about it.

“It sucks to lose in the last two minutes,” Pelcar said.

Sutton saw the late-game goal as an avoidable lapse of focus.

“Mentally it comes down to just being switched on in those moments, especially late in the game,” Sutton said.

Women’s Soccer

The women’s team held their own against the number one team in the country, but Laval’s offense was firing on all cylinders and simply outclassed them.

Stingers head coach Jorge Sanchez called Laval a “quality team.”

The Stingers played well in the first half, limiting Laval’s chances. Stingers centre backs Bella Corbeil and Alyssa Ruscio were constantly frustrating the Rouge et Or attack, and goalkeeper Carmen Milne stood tall in the net.

The women’s team was blown out by the number one ranked Rouge et Or, 4-0.

About 15 minutes in, Milne was forced to make two quick stops before a defender cleared a third shot off the line. She added many key saves throughout the game.

“Our goalie, as a rookie, is fantastic. She just got herself big and came out strong,” Sanchez said. Milne faced 19 shots, nine of which were on target.

Laval opened the scoring when forward Joelle Gosselin jumped higher than everybody to head a free kick into the net. With only two players of the starting 11 over 5 feet 6 inches tall, the Stingers certainly had a height disadvantage on the goal.

The Stingers conceded three goals in first 11 minutes of the second half, and Laval had a stranglehold. The head coach attributed the defensive collapse to a lack of concentration.

“I think we just fell asleep for ten minutes in the second half,” Sanchez said. “That hurt us.”

11th Annual Erica Cadieux Memorial Game

The women’s team played their game in memory of Erica Cadieux, a former Stinger who played on the women’s soccer team from 1992 to 1994. The Stingers have held this game every year since her tragic death in 2006.

Prior to the game, the Stingers presented Cadieux’s two daughters and her widower with gifts to be donated to the Montreal Children’s Hospital.

Sanchez has cached all 11 games, and appreciated how the tradition continues with his team.

“It’s good to see they all contributed money to the gifts, and all participated,” Sanchez said. “They recognized there’s something bigger than soccer.”

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Stingers split doubleheader with Sherbrooke

Despite their chances, the women’s team was unable to comeback.

The men’s soccer team picked up a win while the women lost to the Vert et Or

The Concordia Stingers men’s and women’s soccer teams split a doubleheader with the Université de Sherbrooke Vert et Or on Sept. 23 at Concordia Stadium. The men’s team won their match 6-0 while the women lost 2-1.

Men’s Soccer

The Stingers made a statement with the win, putting up the largest margin of victory in the Réseau du Sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) division this season. They improved to 2-2-0, moving into a playoff spot.

The Stingers created chances right from the get-go. Vert et Or goalkeeper Guillaume Proulx made a few key stops in the opening half hour, frustrating the Stingers offence.

The men’s team now has a record of 2-2 this season. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

The Stingers forwards pressed hard on Sherbrooke, and midfielder Omar Abdelfadel created a turnover deep in the attacking half. The ball found its way to forward Mitchell O’Brien in the box, who spun around and took a shot towards the far side of the goal. Proulx could do nothing to stop the sensational goal.

Midfielder Amadou Lam scored on a penalty five minutes later, and the Stingers were up at the half 2-0.

The Stingers continued pressing for goals throughout the second half. Eight minutes into the frame, Stingers forward Sebastien Boucley took a pass from forward Gabriel Quinn in the box and tucked the shot away to make it 3-0.

In the 73rd minute, Stingers defender Antonio Bruzzese crossed the ball into the scoring area, and after the keeper mishandled it, Boucley was right on the doorstep to put it away.

The Stingers added two late goals from Quinn and Boucley, who got a hat-trick.

Goalkeeper Karl Gouabé, who has been named the Male Athlete of the Week the past two weeks, made four stops. This was his first shutout off the season, which was important for head coach Greg Sutton.

“The biggest thing was that defensively, we kept the zero on the scoreboard,” Sutton said.

Women’s Soccer

The women’s team followed up the men’s game with a heartbreaking loss at the hands of the Vert et Or. The team had their chances but came up short in the 2-1 loss.

The start was not optimal for Concordia, as the official awarded the Vert et Or a penalty shot nine minutes in. The Vert et Or capitalized on their opportunity and took an early 1-0 lead.

The rest of the first half was rather stagnate, with little chances from either side. The Stingers did build up some attack, but were often called offside.

The second half did not start ideally for the Stingers. Under two minutes in, Sherbrooke forward Christina Arès-St-Onge blasted a shot from outside the box into the top corner. It was a deflating goal that would have taken the life from most teams, but not the Stingers.

The women kept their heads held high, and their spirits were lifted when forward Mélisane Lafrenaye—a former Shebrooke player—airmailed the ball 30 yards into the back of the net. It was a goal of pure class that kept the Stingers in the game.

“We got the goal and it just gave us life,” Stingers head coach Jorge Sanchez said.

The Vert et Or attempted to regain their two-goal lead, but their offensive chances were shut down by the stellar Stingers defence. Stingers goalkeeper Olivia Desgroseilliers made a fantastic save in the 66th minute that kept them alive.

The Stingers had multiple chances from the 80th minute onwards, but did not get any goals out of it.

“I really appreciate the way they fought,” Sanchez said. “You saw them puff up a little bit and start playing, and we had chances.”

Both teams play at the Universite de Québec a Montréal on Sept. 25 before hosting Laval next Friday on Sept. 30.

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The possible dangers of an artificial soccer field

Parents and professionals alike are concerned about the risks and injuries that come with playing on turf fields. Photo by Ana Hernandez.

How turf soccer fields are causing devastating injuries to unsuspecting athletes

Injuries are not uncommon for athletes and are especially frequent for soccer players. It seems as though every player has had to endure one type of injury or another during their career. For some, it may be a concussion from an opponent’s heavy hit, for others, it may be a sprained ankle from being stepped on or landing awkwardly.

For other players, however, severe injuries seem to occur at random: a player collapses on the field without anyone or anything around them, leaving referees, coaches, parents and fellow players concerned. This was the case for 23-year-old Vanessa Bianchi.

In August, 2010, the first-year CEGEP student attended a tryout for the John Abbott College soccer team. During a scrimmage on the second day of tryouts, Bianchi tried to turn with the ball to avoid her opponent. It was a simple move she had done hundreds of times before. However, this time, it was different.

“I had no idea what happened,” Bianchi said. “I’d never felt pain like that in my entire life.”

Bianchi had placed her right foot on top of the ball and planted her left foot onto the artificial field for balance. As she turned, the right half of her body pivoted, while her left leg stayed stuck in the field.

“As soon as I moved, I felt that my entire foot was stuck— and then I heard the pop,” Bianchi said.

For Bianchi, the turf was the only possible culprit. “The other girl wasn’t close to me at all, and I didn’t trip over the ball,” Bianchi said. “I never thought I could have injured myself that badly just by playing.”

After undergoing an MRI on her left knee, doctors concluded she had torn her ACL and needed surgery if she ever wanted to play again — which she did.

Parents and players alike are concerned about the frequency and severity of injuries occurring on the turf fields.

“Every time I went for physiotherapy, there was some other player there with the same injury as me— some were even worse,” Bianchi said. The medical community has slowly started listening to the public’s comments and concerns.

Dr. Raoul Daoust, a surgeon at the Jewish General Hospital, said links can be drawn between artificial turf and the injuries that have been happening.

“Playing on turf is very different than playing on grass,” Daoust said. “Grass is much more forgiving on the body, and is a lot softer to land on.”

Pivoting, turning and making quick movements is difficult on turf because of how stiff it is, according to Daoust, and can ultimately lead to severe muscle and ligament damage.

As the parent of a soccer player, he too is concerned about his daughter potentially hurting herself during games and practices.

“Turf, as we know, is very rigid. So not only do I worry about her tearing ligaments and muscles, I also get nervous when she comes home after games all bloody and scratched from sliding on it,” Daoust said. “It can be very painful and lead to some serious infections.”

The turf can be especially unforgiving to players attempting to make post-recovery comebacks. Following surgery on her ACL, Bianchi took the required six month rest. As she regained the strength in her leg, she gradually began practicing and playing again. It took less than three months before history repeated itself. A similar incident occurred when, during a game, she attempted to make a quick turn to catch opponent with the ball.

“I guess I moved too quickly and my knee just totally gave out again,” Bianchi said, shaking her head. “That was the end of my soccer career.”

Thankfully, recent innovations in footwear are beginning to make their way onto players’ feet—aiming to keep them on the turf as opposed to on the sidelines.

Turf cleats are designed more like running shoes, rather than regular soccer cleats, and offer athletes a more stable landing on the stiff, yet spongy surface.

Mario Buttino, former owner of the soccer specialty store Evangelista Sports West Island, said recent sales of turf cleats have risen as players become more aware of the benefits they hold.

Graphic by Thom Bell

“Injuries on turf have been becoming more and more frequent, it seems,” Buttino said. “I think players realize that maybe wearing a simpler-looking, safer cleat holds more value than wearing the cleats that the pros do.”

The studs found on the base of the cleat are always rounded when designed for turf. This allows players to pivot without getting caught in the stiff surface, helping evade severe injuries like ACL and MCL tears. For soccer players that play on artificial turf, investing in a specialized pair of cleats is well worth it, according to Buttino.

Despite objections from various sport and medical communities, artificial turf seems to be the best way to practice and play games for some athletes.

Julia Bianchi, a first-year soccer player for the Concordia women’s soccer team and younger sister of Vanessa Bianchi, trains on artificial turf fields five to six times a week, and hasn’t stepped foot on a grass field in years.

In terms of the quality of playing surface, the younger  Bianchi prefers turf over grass, since grass fields are often not well-maintained and are easily damaged by aggressive weather. Additionally, she said she finds that turf provides a more stable and even surface for the ball to travel on.

With regards to injuries in past seasons, the younger Bianchi has had her fair share—but none, to her knowledge, were related to playing on turf. However, some recent unexplained pains have made her question this belief.

“This summer, I had some ankle problems, but I can’t be sure if they are necessarily related to playing on artificial turf or not,” Bianchi said.

Despite certain concerns, artificial fields are becoming more and more common. According to the Montreal Gazette, Pierrefonds-Roxboro made a deal with the Lester B. Pearson School Board to install a second artificial turf field at Pierrefonds Comprehensive High School.

The field will be accessible to both local children’s teams and students. The project will cost approximately $2.5 million, and is the most recent project in a series of new artificial turf installations being built on the West Island. Other projects include a field at Terra Cotta Park in Pointe-Claire and a field at Grier Park in Pierrefonds.

The current trend is to go artificial—and it doesn’t seem like that is about to change.

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Soccer: Stingers split doubleheader with UQTR

The men’s team suffered their second loss of the season. Photos by Ana Hernandez.

The Concordia women’s soccer team picked up their first win, while the men lost

Men’s Soccer:

The Concordia Stingers men’s soccer team lost 2-0 to the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivières Patriotes on Sept. 16 at Concordia Stadium. The Stingers failed to build off of a win last week and suffered their second loss of the season.

The first half passed without any goals, but it wasn’t due to a lack of chances. The Patriotes attacked early on. Stingers goalkeeper Karl Gouabé stopped a UQTR partial breakaway in the fourth minute and then parried away the rebound shot.

The Stingers first real opportunity came on a two-on-one between forwards Mustapha Medouni and Sebastien Boucley. A Patriotes defender got in the way of the two, and cleared the ball.

In the 23rd minute, Boucley was brought down in the box, but no call was made, prompting some shouts from the Stingers. Two minutes later, a Patriotes player was given a yellow card for diving in the Stingers box, much to the dismay of the visitors.

In the final moments of the half, Abdallah Medouni collided violently outside the box with Patriotes keeper Dominic Provost. Both teams surrounded the referee, demanding punishment to the opponent, but the Stingers were called for a foul.

The Patriotes opened the second half with force, scoring two goals in the 58th and 60th minutes, securing the victory. The first goal came off the head of Louis-Thomas Fortier on a corner from Simon Lagarde. Two minutes later, the Patriotes controlled the ball in the 18-yard box, and Billal Qsiyer finished a passing play with a shot to the top corner.

A disappointed head coach Greg Sutton said he believes his team had two lapses of concentration that led to the goals.

“We lost our concentration on the set piece,” Sutton said. “Then on the second one we were still disappointed and we were not concentrated. We knew we could have had some opportunities later in the game, but we were our own enemy.”

The Stingers did create some scoring chances late in the second half, but it just wasn’t enough.

The Stingers host the Sherbrooke Vert et Or next week, a team currently last in the Réseau du Sport étudiant du Québec.

“[We have to learn] from what we did, and learn from those mistakes that happened in this game, and continue to improve,” Sutton said.

Women’s Soccer:

The women’s team went out on the pitch right after the men’s game and produced a much better result than their counterparts, as they beat the Patriotes 3-1, earning their first win of the season.

The Patriotes sit last in the province, but this was no easy task for the hosts. The Stingers struggled to find their rhythm early on, and the Patriotes countered with a few scoring chances. Rookie goalie Carmen Milne made some key saves for the Stingers in the first half hour.

The women’s team picked up their first win of the season against UQTR by a score of 3-1.

The Stingers started to create chances 35 minutes into the game. They had a shot cleared off the line, a few good shots just missed wide and a breakaway stopped. The breakthrough came in the 41st minute when rookie Chama Sedki blasted a free kick from 30 yards out into the far corner, taking the keeper by surprise.

Two minutes later, Stingers midfielder Laura Lamontagne took a through ball on the wing, broke in and hit the crossbar. Forward Sophie Beaudry was on the doorstep to give them a 2-0 lead heading into halftime.

The Patriotes scored a goal just four minutes into the second half. The Stingers defended well against UQTR’s pressure, and Milne was a big reason for that. She made a number of big stops, including back-to-back close-range shots in the 70th minute.

Head coach Jorge Sanchez was impressed by her play.

“There’s an adage that says, don’t be happy when the goalie makes a save, that’s their job,” Sanchez said. “Be happy when a goalie makes the big save. And she made the big save.”

The Stingers put the game to bed with a third goal in the 75th minute. Lamontagne collected a rebound off the crossbar, and had two shots stopped before Stingers mid-fielder Julia Bianchi helped her put the ball away.

“The team just works hard. We’re around the ball. We’re not assuming the ball is going to go in or not go in,” Sanchez said.

Both Stingers soccer teams will take on the Université de Sherbrooke Vert et Or on Sept. 23 at Concordia Stadium. The men’s game is at 6:30 p.m. while the women’s game is at 8:30 p.m.

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Proud to be a part of the Stingers

Laura Lamontagne talks about her inspirations and her time with Concordia

When Laura Lamontagne first got to Concordia University, she did not want to play on the soccer team. After excelling at the AA and AAA levels in high school and then in Division 2 for Collège Bois-de-Boulogne, she decided to focus on her education.

“In my first year [at Concordia], I did not play because I was scared a bit with school. I did not know how university was, so I was a bit anxious,” said Lamontagne.

After a year of settling into school as an exercise science student, Lamontagne said she felt she was ready to take on the challenge of being a student-athlete, and has since adapted to the taxing lifestyle.

“It’s going well. In CEGEP I did not have to work as hard, but now I really have to study a lot,” Lamontagne said. “I have to make time—my schedule is very busy. I’m doing pretty well, and it’s not that hard if you put the effort in.”

Lamontagne would not be playing for Concordia University, or possibly even soccer for that matter, if it had not been for some inspirational people in her life, such as her family and other professional players.

Her mother coached her as a young player, but as a Concordia alumna herself, Lamontagne’s mother suggested that she play for the school, and play with pride.

“I’m very proud. I’m extremely proud of playing for the Stingers. It’s an honour everyday to [wear] the jersey or even the practice gear,” Lamontagne said. “I wear my Stingers [colours] with pride.”

Other inspirations to Lamontagne are American soccer stars Alex Morgan and Abby Wambach. Both are Olympic and FIFA World Cup winners with the U.S. women’s national team and are ambassadors to women’s soccer.

The Canadian women’s national team is also starting to be an inspiration to young girls across the nation. The women now hold back-to-back bronze medal titles at the Olympics, and after beating Brazil 2-1 in the bronze-medal match at the Rio Olympics, they became the only country to repeat a podium appearance in women’s socccer in 2012 and 2016. For Lamontagne, this was important for the game in Canada.

Laura Lamontagne scored four goals with the Stingers last year. Photo by Nicholas Di Giovanni.

“I’m really proud [of their performance],” Lamontagne said. “For young Canadians, it shows us that we can actually play at an international level and we have a chance at winning Olympic medals.”

Shortly after the triumph in Rio, national team player Rhian Wilkinson met with the Stingers. Lamontagne said that it was a cool experience to meet the veteran Wilkinson, a Montreal native herself.

Lamontagne certainly has fed off the energy from her inspirations during her time on the soccer team. Last season, she scored four goals as a rookie. She also scored the team’s opening goal of this season in their game against the McGill Martlets on Labour Day weekend.

As a left winger, Lamontagne uses her speed to cover ground on the pitch, both offensively and defensively. She has the ability to create chances on the flanks when given time and space, and is an aggressive player with a never-back-down attitude. Despite her talent of blowing past fullbacks on speed alone, Lamontagne knows there are always areas that need improvement. Dribbling is one of them.

“When I’m one-on-one, I have the speed to run in the space, but I need to find the speed with the ball to be able to clear a player on the sideline,” Lamontagne said.

As for her team, the Stingers have been improving steadily over the past few seasons. The Stingers finished the 2014 season with a record 3-6-5 and slightly improved their record last season of 4-9-1, which meant finishing sixth in the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ), just missing the playoffs.

Even though the Stingers have not made the playoffs since 2009, Lamontagne feels she plays on a team capable of doing some damage in the conference this season.

“I think we are going to accomplish a lot of stuff. We have some really good players, we have a very big potential, and it’s a really good team,” Lamontagne said. She also added that this team is one of the best she’s been on.

“We’re a very hard working team—we always push, we work hard, we have a very good team spirit, and you can tell we have a team fighting to win every game,” Lamontagne added.

Lamontagne and her teammates will be taking on the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivières in their next game, on Sept. 16 at 8:30 p.m.

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Men’s and women’s soccer split in home openers

The men’s soccer team picked up their first win against the Carabins. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

The men’s team picked up their first win while the women lost

Concordia’s men’s and women’s soccer teams split their home openers against the Université de Montréal Carabins on Sept. 9 as the men won their match 2-1, and the women lost theirs 2-0.

Men’s Soccer

Despite being dominated for the better part of the match and being down a goal, the Stingers were able to mount a comeback giving them their 2-1 victory.

The team struggled in terms of ball possession, but this is something that Stingers assistant coach François Bastien wasn’t too worried about.

“We don’t mind if they have possession in their defensive third of the field,” Bastien said. “This is something we were never really bothered with because we want to keep the team tight and collective to protect the net.”

Stingers goalkeeper Karl Gouabé was a standout in the match and played a large role in the team’s victory. The freshman made ten saves in the game and was able to save his teammates on numerous occasions when the Carabins were pressing in the Stingers zone.

Gouabé said that receiving more shots in a game allows him to improve, however a high amount of shots isn’t always a good thing.

“As a goalkeeper, the best game is a game where you get no shots,” Gouabé said. “As much as I’m getting better with more shots, I’m still hoping for less.”

Known as what Bastien describes as a “slow starting team,” the Stingers stayed true to that description and almost allowed a goal 30 seconds into the first half. The Stingers had a hard time containing the Carabins skilled forwards, who were constantly buzzing around the net.

The Carabins finally capitalized on their opportunities in the 25th minute and took a 1-0 lead with a goal by forward Hugo Chambon. In the entire first half, the Stingers were unable to get a shot on goal.

Concordia stood their ground in the second half and battled back with hard work and a chippy attack. The Stingers got on the board with a goal from forward Gabriel Quinn in the 67th minute to tie the game at one all.

During injury time, the Stingers stole the win after a goal from forward Mustapha Medouni, who had just been substituted into the game.

“I came in and I wanted to score quickly. It happened so fast—I tried and I was able to score,” Medouni said.

The team’s next game is at home against the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivieres on Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m.

Women’s Soccer

On the women’s side, the team was unable to get their first win of the season after being shutout 2-0 by the Carabins.

“I always want to win. I don’t care who I’m playing. My objective, my expectation is that we can win every game,”  said Stingers head coach Jorge Sanchez.

The women’s soccer team failed to get their first win against the Carabins.

Stingers Captain Alyssa Ruscio shared the same sentiments as her coach.

“I knew it was going to be tough going in,” Ruscio said. “[The Carabins] have always been one of the top ranked teams. But our idea coming in was to start from the first whistle and give it all we have and show the whole league that we can compete this year.”

The Carabins dominated the Stingers with constant pressure throughout the match. Aside from a shot that hit the crossbar in the first half, the Stingers were unable to get any offense going and finished the game with only two shots on goal.

The Carabins scored two goals in the first half and were able to keep the Stingers off the scoreboard.

However it was not all negative, as the Stingers were able to slow down their rivals in the second half.

“It’s really positive that we didn’t concede in the second [half] given that we were down 2-0,” Sanchez said. “But we need to work on set pieces. That’s how they scored both goals.”

For Sanchez, another reason why the Stingers allowed the two goals was because they let the Carabins get second chances with the ball. Nonetheless, Sanchez said he was happy with his team’s effort in the second half.

“I thought our second half was much better. I thought our effort was good,” Sanchez said. “We played a little more physical and aggressive, matched them on that side. But we didn’t take opportunities when they presented themselves.”

The Stingers aim for their first win of the season against the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivières on Sept. 16 at 8:30 p.m.

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Sports

From MLS goalkeeper to Stingers head coach

Greg Sutton played for the Montreal Impact before joining the Stingers. Photos by Brianna Thicke.

Greg Sutton draws on his own experience to guide men’s soccer team over the hump

From playing soccer to coaching it at a university level, Greg Sutton knows what it takes to develop a good soccer player and a good student. The head coach of the Concordia Stingers men’s soccer team combines 13 years of experience playing professional soccer with his experience as a student-athlete to help his players both on and off the field.

Sutton played soccer and basketball at St. Lawrence University in the state of New York before becoming a professional soccer player. The former goalkeeper played with the Montreal Impact from 2001 to 2006, when they played in the A-League and the United Soccer League. He played 132 games with Montreal before joining Major League Soccer (MLS) and played 47 games with Toronto FC and the New York Red Bulls from 2007 to 2012. He retired as a member of the Impact.

During his career in Montreal, Sutton helped out the Stingers as an assistant to former head coach and Impact player Lloyd Barker, and returned to the role after retiring. Sutton was soon promoted to head coach, and he is now set to coach his third season.

“I do not do it for any other reason than I enjoy it,” Sutton said. “I like working with these guys because they all want to learn and become better players.” He also admits that he does not miss the travel required of a professional soccer player, and that he enjoys the time he gets to spend with his family.

Having played soccer for most of his life, the 39-year-old felt like he needed to give back to the soccer community, and did so by coaching.

“I always felt like I wanted to give back to the game” Sutton said. “I believe all pro players that are good people should [coach], because they are the most qualified. That’s how our country is going to grow as a soccer country.”

Outside of Concordia, Sutton is a colour commentator for the MLS on TSN, and has appeared on national broadcasts alongside Luke Wileman. He is also a representative for Umbro, a soccer apparel company, throughout Quebec and Eastern Ontario.

As a former student-athlete himself, Sutton draws on a lot of his personal experiences to help his players grow. Both in school and off the field, he knows what his players go through on a daily basis. Sutton maintains that education is important, but the student-athletes also need to work out their schedule so they can excel on the field.

“I have to be tough on them, I cannot just hold their hand. But at the same time, I want to make sure that I am supporting them in certain way [so] that they are learning,” Sutton said. “Whether it is a mistake on the field or off the field, they are learning from it.”

As a father of two young children, Sutton has not yet dealt with the task of teaching his kids the responsibilities of being a student. As a soccer coach at a university, however, he faces that challenge.

“School is a priority and it is our priority,” Sutton said. “It is a learning curve for me to make [my players] understand the responsibilities of being a student.”

As a goalkeeper, Sutton saw the play differently and is now able to use that knowledge as a Stingers coach. He watched the game unfold in front of him, including when plays were building up or breaking down, and knows the tendencies of both defenders and forwards.

A goalkeeper, like a coach, stands alone most of the game, often barking out orders to the players, so for Sutton, not much has changed.

The former Canadian international soccer player has his own unique way of coaching, but draws on personal experiences from his former coaches on the dos and don’ts.

“You try to create your own identity as a coach,” Sutton said. “I do not try to simulate someone, and I do not try to do what someone did not do.”

Sutton has been growing the university’s soccer program ever since he started. The team improved from a record of 0-7-5 in his first season in 2014 to 3-9-0 last season, scoring four more goals in the process. One of Sutton’s goals was to expand the team’s depth, considering they could play two games per weekend—one on Friday night, and the second on Sunday.

To be a good team in these Friday-Sunday leagues, a team needs depth to carry fresh legs into the second game. Concordia did not win a single game on a Sunday last season, and were beat by a combined score of 7-1 on the three Sundays following their Friday night victories. Sutton believes that may not be the case in 2016.

Sutton expects his team to make the playoffs this season.

“You need to create not just good 11 players, but good 16, 17, 18 players,” Sutton said. “We finally have that [depth] this year. I’ll be able to make 4 to 5 changes on Sunday and our level will stay the same.”

The past year has seen many soccer teams around the world, such as Atlético Madrid, Juventus and Leicester City, defend with 11 men, from the keeper to the striker. Those teams create scoring chances from a strong defensive stance, and at times on the counter-attack.

Sutton has the same principle when it comes to the Stingers, but to say he will employ the same tactics as managers like Diego Simeone, Max Allegri and Claudio Ranieri is a stretch. He still is a defence-first coach.

“I’m a stickler about defence. If we do not get a shutout, I’m not as satisfied,” Sutton said. “Our defence will create opportunities for us offensively. On a whole, every player has a defensive responsibility, but not everybody is responsible on offence.”

Considering the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) hosts two of the top 10 teams in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), UQAM and Montreal, the Stingers play in a tough conference but feel prepared for the challenge. Sutton feels he has a strong team on the field.

“We have a midfielder who is an all-star already, in my opinion,” Sutton said. “We have some quality in all our positions, and now we have some really good quality in certain important positions.”

When asked about the expectations for the Stingers this season, Sutton was not afraid to set the bar high.

“If we do not make the playoffs this year, I’ll be disappointed,” he said.

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Sports

Nearing the end of soccer season

Photo by Briana Thicke.

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

Photo by Briana Thicke.

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

Photo by Briana Thicke.

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.

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Sports

Stingers shut-out Gaiters for first win

Women’s soccer team dominates during Friday night showdown

The Concordia Stingers women’s soccer team began their season on a positive note when they hosted the Bishop’s Gaiters in their home opener at Loyola on Friday night.

The match got off to a good start as the Stingers dominated possession early in the game. At the 10-minute mark, the Stingers got on the scoreboard with a corner kick from midfielder Frédérique Labelle. Labelle gave a solid cross into the box, where it was headed in by Concordia defender Stephanie Liganor. Concordia had the early lead over Bishop’s 1-0. The Gaiters tried to apply pressure and take back the momentum, but couldn’t break Concordia’s solid defense.

Five minutes after Concordia’s first goal, the Stingers scored an identical second goal. Once again, Labelle delivered another corner kick with finesse and power that Liganor finished off for her second goal of the night, giving Concordia a 2-0 lead after 15 minutes of play. The Stingers took over the game from there and dominated possession. The Stingers had more shots on net and did not let the Gaiters get past midfield.

After 20 minutes, unfortunately, Labelle got her leg tangled up with a Bishop’s player and was injured on the play. She was to be substituted by Shauna Zilversmit. The half ended with Concordia leading Bishop’s 2-0.

The second half was much of the same for the Stingers. Even though the score did not change, Concordia kept dominating the play. The Stingers did not allow many chances for Bishop’s to score as their defense continued its strong play. From the first whistle, it was clear that Concordia was the stronger team. Concordia’s complete team effort led to an impressive first win of the season. After the game, Stingers head coach Jorge Sanchez was proud of his team.

“I was content with the game. We got two early goals [and] I was very optimistic even before the match,” said Sanchez. “It was great to win. I liked how we managed the game, and I told [the team] at halftime they weren’t going to score on us and I am happy with the result.”

After her strong game, Liganor had this to say about her stellar play: “I love to be back. This being my last season with the team, I really got into it and I just wanted to play my game, not having played a lot last year.”

It was a great way to start the season for a team who had a disappointing season last year.

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Sports

Stingers men’s soccer team suffers tough loss at home

McGill Redmen score late in the game to spoil Concordia’s homecoming

The season opener for the Concordia Stingers men’s soccer club was spoiled on Sunday afternoon, following a 2-1 loss against the McGill Redmen.

The Stingers found themselves energized and motivated to succeed against their local rivals, as McGill knocked them out of playoff contention last season.

“We wanted to prepare the team for three points, to start the season at home and we didn’t do that, so we’re highly, highly disappointed,” said Stingers assistant coach Francois Bastien.

The match began with a very defensive, yet aggressive style. The first half displayed minimal chances from both teams due to relentless effort from Concordia and McGill’s defensive units.

During the 22nd minute of play, Concordia’s goalkeeper raced a streaking McGill forward, Valentin Radevich, who managed to get to the ball first and flip it lightly over the goalkeeper’s head for a 1-0 McGill lead. The lead would ultimately stand until the end of the first half.

Although the first half showed very few scoring chances from the Stingers, Bastien said that they wanted to apply what the team practiced and not make any dramatic changes to their strategy.

At the start of the second half, Concordia showed a lot of energy and endurance. Just over five minutes in, Concordia midfielder Karim Haroun placed a perfect corner kick to Nick Sisti who scored to tie the match.

Following the tying goal, both teams set their tempos even higher than before. Efforts from both teams showed no results until late in the match, when a cross from McGill forward, Antoine Chauvel, found fellow striker, Alexander King, for the late 2-1 lead. The lead was just enough for McGill to hang on for a Stingers spoiled homecoming.

“We have a lot of new players especially on the starting eleven so we were preparing for the entire season to get our formation and set plays organized,” said Bastien. “This was the first test and there are things that we obviously want to get better at and work on.”

There was no lack of persistence when it came to Concordia’s effort on the pitch. The defensive unit and goalkeeper played a terrific match, allowing for very few opposing opportunities. Meanwhile, their offensive unit was able to apply a sustainable amount of pressure to the Redmen mid-fielders.

“We wanted to pressure them and that’s what we did. Put pressure on their midfield [and] take over the midfield area, and I think we succeeded in doing that,” Said Bastien. “We didn’t succeed in finishing. We should have, of course, capitalized on some opportunities and we should have minimized those mistakes. We made two mistakes in the back which led to two goals.”

Despite the team’s first loss, coach Bastien can still pick out the positives of the failing effort.

“We started off with I think seven recruits today, so it’s always nerves that make the season hard to get started, especially if they haven’t played in university yet,” said Bastien. “Since we’ve taken care of that, we can really move forward.”

Concordia’s men’s soccer club aims to turn things around on Sept 12. against Laval.

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Opinions

Giving the wrong kind of salute

Soccer players are the best actors. When they score a goal, it’s their cue to play up the cameras. They scream, hug, pull off their shirts and stand in the middle of the field stoically, Balotelli style.

Twenty-year-old Greek soccer player Giorgos Katidis was banned from the Greek Football Federation for life for giving the Nazi salute after scoring a goal during last weekend’s game against Veria.

Katidis is playing innocent. First he claimed he was pointing to an ill teammate in the stands after his victory. His story then switched to a plea of ignorance. He said that he didn’t know the meaning of the gesture and quickly took to his Twitter account to say that he is against fascism.

Fans and political personalities on Twitter and Facebook were fired up and found Katidis’ actions unacceptable. Katidis owned up to the gesture in a statement by saying: “I am totally unacceptable and I feel terrible for those I upset with the stupidity of my act.”

The young midfielder has asked to be dropped from his team, AEK Athens, as he does not want his actions to reflect the club as a whole. A decision on what actions to take against him will be made sometime next week at the Super League’s executive meeting.

Many people, including his coach, are defending Katidis. They say he is young and probably saw the salute somewhere online, not understanding its meaning.

I’m 20 years old and I am educated enough to know that whipping out the Nazi salute is not ok, in any situation, for any reason. I think that is a bogus excuse and if anything just goes to show how really ignorant this young man is.

The Nazi salute is still finding its way into the awareness of younger generations, and Greece is no exception. Greek far right nationalist party, The Golden Dawn, has been criticized for using the gesture. However, members argue they are using the Roman salute. The group still gets away with using a lot of neo-Nazi symbols, branding them as something else.

This past summer, citizens and Jewish organizations put student protesters in Montreal under fire as some protesters were using the salute. Their reason: mocking the police for their brutality.

According to CBC, Quebec’s federation of university students apologized for the use of the gesture, calling it an error in judgment.

When you are trying to get a point across, this probably isn’t the way to go. Using a gesture like this one just leads to your intended message being pushed to the background and is considered offensive by many. It has a negative connotation because of history and therefore gets all the attention.

The issue here is that people tend to cry freedom of speech in these situations. They blame people for perceiving the gesture as disrespectful to the Jewish community and argue that it wasn’t their intended message.

People tend to forget that “freedom of speech” does not mean freedom from the consequences of your actions.

In this case, it’s the consequences of using the arm-outstretched, flat palm gesture so lightly, despite it being synonymous with a dictator responsible for the death of millions of people. I’m sure you can find another way to express yourself without being so ignorant.

As for Katidis, I am not sure what his use of the gesture even had to do with him celebrating a goal. This makes me question whether he may actually just be a young goon who had no idea what he was doing at the time. If that’s the case, someone needs to give him a time-out from the footy and pass him a history book.

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