It was a day of threes for the Halifax Wanderers on Saturday, as three points from a 3-0 victory over Valour FC put them up to third in the Canadian Premier League standings on a rainy afternoon on the east coast.
After the beginning of the match was mostly he first good chance of the match belonged to the visitors, in the eleventh minute. The ball fell to the young attacker from about 12 yards out, but he failed to make clean contact with his volley, and he sliced the ball wide of Yann Fillion’s net.
The first big chance for the Wanderers came in the 24th minute, on a quick counter-attack. With Klaidi Cela in the rear view mirror after an unsuccessful slide tackle, the home side charged up the pitch, with Massimo Ferrin leading the way. At the edge of the penalty area he played the ball to Callum Watson, whose shot across goal hit the target, but was claimed by Rayane Yesli.
Ferrin beat Yesli with an effort from close distance a few minutes later, taking a shot with his first touch after a low cross from Aidan Daniels, but it struck the post — inches away from opening the scoring. With time running out in the first half, Ferrin had another opportunity to put the ball on target after a cutback from Watson. His shot had the out-of-position Yesli beat, but Marcello Polisi was there on the line to keep the ball out of the back of the net.
Valour’s best opportunity of the first half came in the 35th minute, after Walter Ponce did well to create an opportunity for himself to shoot at the edge of the penalty area. Fillion was able to make the important stop on the Chilean attacker. Jordan Perruzza also tested Rayane Yesli with a shot from outside the box in stoppage time, but despite the chances for both sides, it would be scoreless after 45 minutes.
Perruzza also had the first chance of the second half, moments after play resumed. The Wanderers striker, on loan from Toronto FC, got his head on a cross from Ferrin, but Yesli made an acrobatic save to push the ball out for a corner and deny what looked to be a sure goal.
Halifax scored the first goal of the match a few minutes later, from another header. After receiving the ball from Aidan Daniels following a short corner by Lorenzo Callegari, Wesley Timoteo floated a cross into the box. Dan Nimick rose above everyone to head the ball low and on target, before it bounced over the arms of the diving Valour goalkeeper.
Ahinga Selemani, who had a quiet hour to start the match, hit the target with a powerful near-post shot in the 58th minute, but Fillion was able to make a big stop to push the ball out of harm’s way.
Ten minutes after coming off the bench, João Morelli doubled the lead for the Wanderers. The Brazilian attacker, playing in just his seventh match after an injury kept him off the pitch for over a year, scored his fourth goal of the season, running onto a through ball from Callegari and calmly slotting it past the Valour goalkeeper to make it 2-0.
Tomas Giraldo put the game, and likely Valour’s chances to make the playoffs, to bed in the 87th minute, making it 3-0 with his first goal of the season. Morelli played a low cross to the back post, and Giraldo was there to meet it, redirecting it into the back of the net.
It was a big home victory for the Wanderers, who celebrated another huge three points in front of their home fans, moving them up to third place in the CPL table.
BOX SCORE
Goals
49′ — Dan Nimick (Halifax Wanderers)
75′ — João Morelli (Halifax Wanderers)
87′ — Tomas Giraldo (Halifax Wanderers)
Discipline
5′ — Yellow: Abdou Samaké (Valour FC)
10′ — Yellow: Cale Loughrey (Halifax Wanderers)
31′ — Yellow: Klaidi Cela (Valour FC)
39′ — Yellow: Matteo de Brienne (Valour FC)
54′ — Yellow: Wesley Timoteo (Halifax Wanderers)
76′ — Yellow: João Morelli (Halifax Wanderers)
78′ — Yellow: Diego Gutiérrez (Valour FC)
88′ — Yellow: Tomas Giraldo (Halifax Wanderers)
