Marie-Yasmine Alidou netted the decisive goal from a penalty kick in the 55th minute as the Montreal Roses secured a 2-0 victory over AFC Toronto in Northern Super League play on Sunday. Elyse Bennett also contributed by scoring her ninth goal of the season to give the Roses (9-4-3), currently in second place, an added cushion. The team, now under the guidance of interim head coach Maryse Bard-Martel, displayed a solid performance.
Although Shelina Zadorsky of Toronto (7-5-4), in third place, seemed to level the score in the 68th minute, her goal was disallowed due to an offside ruling. Montreal Roses’ goalkeeper Anna Karpenko was exceptional, facing a total of 20 shots, with nine on target, to secure a clean sheet.
On the other side, Toronto’s Sabrina D’Angelo, the goalkeeper, faced seven shots, five of which were on target. The Roses bounced back with a strong performance in this match, their first since parting ways with head coach Robert Rositoiu, who was dismissed following a surprising 1-0 defeat to semi-professional outfit Simcoe County in the W Canadian Championship.