Colin Gander’s last minute free kick qualifies Guelph United to playoffs
In the last match of the regular season, at the Centennial Bowl against ProStars FC, Guelph United needed the win, in order to clinch a playoff spot.
With a 2-2 scoreline heading into a 7-minute injury time, it was looking like we were going to miss a second consecutive chance to clinch.
Up stepped Colin Gander. With what was literally the last kick of the match, in the 97th minute, he converted a free kick, to give us the much-needed 3-2 win.
Before that magical game winner, the match against ProStars FC turned out more difficult than the League1 Ontario standings made it seem. Our team started well, and converted a penalty kick through Jared Agyemang, in the 22nd minute. Shortly after, Mahmoud Mehdi brought the equalizer for ProStars, after a well executed counter. Guelph took the lead again shortly after the half, again through Jared Agyemang, but the rest of the second half turned out to be quite difficult, with our guests controlling possession and creating multiple chances to score. Their well earned equalizer came in the 77th minute, from Dominic Parris.
The remaining 13 minutes saw our team press more and more for the all-important winning goal, but it wasn’t until the 97th minute that we managed to break the deadlock.
Our first playoff opponent, 2022 champions Vaughan Azzurri
A couple of hours later, Burlington SC surprisingly managed to win their game against Vaughan Azzurri, clinching their own spot, and leaving Electric City outside of the playoffs. The upset meant Guelph finished the season as the 6th seed, and will be heading to #3 seed Vaughan Azzurri in the first round.
The match will be played on Wednesday August 23, at 8 PM, in Vaughan. Details about ticket pricing for Guelph fans who will want to travel to support our team will be posted here and on our social media over the coming days.