By Elliott Meijer
The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold men’s soccer team extended their home unbeaten run in 2024 with a 4-0 triumph over the Laurentian Voyageurs in their penultimate regular season match at Downsview Park on Saturday afternoon.
The 3:15 p.m. kick-off was preceded by a brief ceremony celebrating the team’s graduating players: fifth-year midfielder Chris Campoli; fifth-year defender Colin Gander; and third-year goalkeeper Dante Ferraro—three integral pieces to the Bold’s successes in recent years.
However, of the three, only Campoli started the game, with head coach Filip Prostran fielding a moderately rotated starting XI that saw second-year defender Sam Rankin and second-year goalkeeper Eduard Ambrus fill senior boots at the back.
“The biggest thing was [that] everyone stays healthy. We know we need the whole squad for playoffs, for these games, for everything,” said fourth-year midfielder Justin Santos.
TMU went into the match sitting in third place in the OUA East with a 6-1-3 record on the season. They have not lost since Sept. 6 but were coming off a disappointing 2-2 draw on Wednesday against the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks. Laurentian, on the other hand, arrived sporting a 4-3-3 record, suitable for sixth place in the OUA East following a 6-3 defeat to Trent University on Oct. 5.
Within fifty seconds of kick-off, Rankin—deployed at left-back—set the game’s tone with a strong sliding challenge deep in the Bold’s half, quickly gaining possession for the home side.
Prostran’s men followed the tackle with a strong fifteen minutes, utilizing the width of the field to stretch the play and find outlets. Primarily, that outlet was fifth-year forward Luca Di Marco, who remained a lively presence–cutting through space, firing off shots and popping up defensively when needed.
“I take pride in my defensive work as much as I do offence… Coach [Prostran] understands that and he appreciates that about my game,” said Di Marco.
Despite both teams lining up in a 4-3-3 formation, the Bold’s swift organization forced the Voyageurs into playing a direct style of soccer that allowed the home side to consistently win possession in the middle of the pitch, often through third-year defender Luca Porfiris’ tidy defensive actions.
Fifteen minutes in, the Bold’s control paid off. After breaking into Laurentian’s 18-yard box, Di Marco fizzed a powerful ball across the goal to Santos, who slotted a composed finish into the far corner of third-year goalkeeper Lucas Cidade’s net. The goal—which marked Santos’ fourth of the season and Di Marco’s second assist—gave TMU an early 1-0 lead.
The Voyageurs bounced back shortly after conceding the goal, having some decent spells in possession and a couple of solid chances to equalize in what would be a fairly back-and-forth first half. Third-year forward Jevontae Layne had a striking opportunity to double the Bold’s lead just prior to the half-time whistle but sent his effort well over the bar.
The half-time whistle marked a promising forty-five minutes for both sides. With the Voyageurs able to recoup from a difficult start and the Bold remaining defensively resolute, Santos’ opener was the only difference between the two teams at the break.
First-year defender Noah Pickering was the Bold’s sole substitution ahead of the second half, being replaced by the more offensively-minded first-year defender Aidan Hugo.
With all to play for, Laurentian came out hungry in the second half, pinning the Bold deep and winning a corner in the 47th minute—their fourth of the match.
However threatening, the Voyageurs’ had nothing to show for their efforts. Against a disciplined Bold back-line, the away side only managed two shots in the second half—both of which were saved comfortably by Ambrus in his third start of the season.
At that point, the Bold offence made their push with Hugo leading the way. The North York, Ont., product flirted with greatness in the 55th minute, sending a long-range effort onto the Voyageurs crossbar. In the 68th minute, he flirted again, employing a clever touch just outside of the 18-yard box before firing a powerful shot into the arms of Cidade.
In the 73rd minute, the Bold’s high-press proved too much for the Voyageurs to handle. After intercepting an attempted clearance, Di Marco carved Laurentian’s defensive line open with an outside-of-the-boot through-ball to Santos, who slotted home another comfortable low-finish to make it 2-0 for the home side.
Doubling TMU’s lead with a much-needed cushion, the goal was Di Marco and Santos’ second link-up of the afternoon.
“We’ve played together now for 4 years, so we’ve kind of built something up,” said Santos. “Just another day at the office.”
The 77th minute saw tensions flare between Layne and Cidade when the high-flying striker barged into the keeper following a leaping catch for the second time in the match. Raised voices rang from the Voyageurs bench when Layne walked away from the altercation cardless.
The Bold looked to slow the game’s tempo entering the final ten minutes, consistently recycling possession across the backline.
Unsurprisingly, that slowed tempo allowed Di Marco another opportunity to shine. Gliding through the half-space with plenty of time, the Aurora, Ont., product played an incisive one-two pass with Hugo, freezing the Voyageurs’ defence in their tracks, before firing in his third goal involvement of the night with a powerful finish. 3-0 Bold in the 84th minute.
“[I’ve made] that run a million times in my career. My coach at North Toronto [in] League 1 prioritized that run from midfield,” said Di Marco, explaining his thought process. “I felt the need to shoot just because I already had two assists and it was later in the game, so I’m glad it went in.”
A double-substitution in the 85th minute saw Di Marco and Santos replaced with the fresh legs of second-year midfielder Daniel Prieto and first-year midfielder Sufyan Fraj, respectively.
Two minutes later, further substitutions by Prostran allowed first-year midfielders Juchan Kim and Alex Liber some valuable playing time in the final minutes.
In the 88th minute of the match, the Voyageurs’ defensive woes came to haunt them yet again. With the ball deep in the away side’s half, Layne slung a cross to Campoli on the edge of the area, who slipped a smart ball in behind for Hugo to neatly seal his first goal of the season. Nevertheless, the Bold’s fourth goal of the match and second in four minutes came with subdued celebrations.
With a showing of depth and quality across the field and a 4-0 victory, the Bold claimed their fourth clean sheet of the season, Ambrus’ second in goal. They now look to carry momentum into a regular-season finale against the fourth-place Nipissing Lakers on Sunday.
“At the end of the day, all we care about is the win. We just want to get those three points, move on and go to the finals,” said Santos.
UP NEXT: The Bold’s final regular season match of 2024 will take place Sunday at Downsview Park against the Nipissing Lakers. TMU will have a chance to claim a top-spot finish in the OUA East in a 3:15 p.m. kick-off.
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