AFC Toronto beats Montreal Roses 1-0 to win NSL final

AFC Toronto defeated the Montreal Roses 1-0 from Ottawa’s TD Place in the Northern Super League final on Saturday to win the Diana B. Matheson Cup for the first time in club history.

Midfielder Olivia Chisholm struck in the 39th minute for the lone goal of the match on a tidy assist from Lauren Rowe, while Sabrina D’Angelo made three saves on her way to the clean sheet in the victory.

Rowe found her way on the end of a through ball down the right wing, before sending in an incisive pass to Chisholm in the middle of the box. The Toronto native would make no mistake on the chance, finding the side netting with a right-footed strike just before halftime.

Montreal and Toronto would both trade their fair share of quality chances in the second half, but neither side were able to convert as Chisholm’s goal would stand as the winner.

AFC Toronto now takes home the Diana B. Matheson Cup by knocking off the Supporters’ Shield winners one year after falling short against the Vancouver Rise in last season’s NSL final.

Toronto finished the regular season with a 10-6-9 record, and entered the playoffs as the third seed.

They defeated the Ottawa Rapid in each leg of the semis, advancing to the final with an 8-2 aggregate win over their provincial rivals.

The Star reported that the road to redemption ended on Saturday afternoon at TD Place in Ottawa after a heartbreaking loss a year ago.

More to come.

Sources

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