It took nearly 50 minutes longer than the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold men's soccer team would have liked, but by the end of the match, the result was exactly what they were looking for.
The Bold scored four unanswered goals in the second half to defeat the Queen's Gaels 4-1 on Sunday.
With the victory, TMU improves to 3-0-1 to begin its 2026 campaign. Entering the matchup, the Bold were ranked No.6 in the country.
The Gaels didn't let the Bold's national ranking intimidate their side, evident by the certainty with which they played after the first whistle. It was midfielder David Gambrah who opened the scoring in the seventh minute. After getting behind the TMU defence, Gambrah received a pinpoint pass from teammate Jadon Lashley before firing a shot past goaltender
Dante Ferraro.
Despite out-shooting Queen's 7-3 in the first half, TMU trailed 1-0 headed back into the locker room. But just like in the last road game against the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks - during which they also trailed 1-0 - the Bold called on
Taha Ilyas for the quick equalizer. Ilyas produced an early goal of the year candidate when he took a long throw-in off his chest before expertly placing the ball inside the near post.
Ilyas' second goal nearly mirrored his first when a long-distance throw-in bounced off a teammate's head before he guided it into the net with his back turned to the goalkeeper.
Even though TMU got off to a slow start, the score didn't necessarily reflect what was happening on the field. The Bold ultimately outshot the Gaels 15-6. They also generated nine corner kicks, while Queen's finished with two. TMU was eventually rewarded for the high volume of set pieces.
In the 72nd minute, a corner kick resulted in a perfectly placed ball on Ilyas' foot, who then officially notched his first career hat trick with TMU.
Less than 12 minutes later,
Aidan Hugo scored his goal of the season on a penalty kick to make it 4-1.
TMU will now prepare to host the Trent Excalibur on Sept. 19. Kick-off is scheduled for 3:15 p.m. EST. Fans can watch the Bold put their undefeated record on the line in-person at Downsview Park, or watch online on OUA.tv.
