It was a draw that felt like a win at McMahon Stadium. Read More
Scoreless draw with visiting Ottawa Rapid can’t sour mood of McMahon Stadium in Northern Soccer League tilt on Mother’s Day
Scoreless draw with visiting Ottawa Rapid can’t sour mood of McMahon Stadium in Northern Soccer League tilt on Mother’s Day
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It was a draw that felt like a win at McMahon Stadium.
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Yes … the scoreless result was simply secondary to what it meant for Calgary Wild FC to finally take the pitch — on Mother’s Day yet — in the debut of professional women’s soccer in the city.
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“Surreal,” said Wild star Grace Stordy, still overwhelmed moments after the nil-nil draw with Ottawa Rapid FC on a day that saw a whopping 8,556 fans — all seated in the east-side stands — show up for the historic match.
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“I think Calgary did what Calgary does best, and that’s show up to support our sports teams in this city, so I’m just very grateful that I represent this city and this crest.”
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The crowd, paced by the Wild Roses Supporters Group with its drum beating and chanting, was certainly loud and proud.
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Many were friends and family on hand cheering on locals Stordy, Caleigh Boeckx, Sarah Keilty-Dilling and twins Keelyn and Taegan Stewart.
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But in general, they whooped it up for the win for female soccer in the city.
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“It was a long time coming,” said 23-year-old Stordy. “It means a lot for us, the girls. You know … I think we have really good group of girls who are very willing and able to inspire the younger generation. And I think that there’s a lot of girls — me included — that 10 years ago that would have told you that this would never happen.
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“So just sweet to be a role model for those girls and let them know that it is quite literally possible to play at this high level now here.”
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Sweeter yet was the opener being played on Mother’s Day.
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“My mom called me ‘Kitten’ growing up,” Stordy said. “And so when I was running down the line very early on the game, I heard, ‘Go, Kitten, go.’ And then that was the end of that.
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“My mom has always been super supportive,” continued Stordy, fighting back tears. “Both my parents flew to Portugal to watch me play. When I was at (NCAA) Tennessee in college, they quite literally travelled everywhere for me, so having the stability of them just driving 25 minutes to the stadium is sweet. And a bunch of friends, like two of my best friends, who have never seen me play here, they brought their moms, and that just means the world to me.”
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Many of the players’ moms made the trek to Calgary — flown in courtesy of sponsors Cenovus and The Dorian.
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“Yeah, a few moms have travelled across the world to see this game,” said Wild forward Ally Green. “I can’t even put that into words, but that means the world to us.
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“Obviously walking out with them at the start of the game (onto the pitch), those moments you don’t come by very often. So it’s really, really cool.
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“It just makes the day even better.”
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The only thing that would have put the cherry on top was three points earned from a victory.
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Such a milestone moment looked possible at times, with Wild getting as many chances as Rapid and perhaps creating the best opportunity late when a Christie Gray cross into the box was one-timed just over the net by Taegan Stewart.
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It was an oh-so-close miss that was tough to swallow for the young Calgarian.
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“It would have been pretty sweet for a 17-year-old Calgarian to win us the game,” said Wild manager Lydia Bedford. “I think Taegen took that really hard. She’s a young player, and she’s got a ton of potential, and the fact that she’s even getting on the ball in those areas is really important to us.
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“Every one of us would have wanted to land on that ball and have that opportunity. It landed to her, and unfortunately, it went over.
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“She’ll learn and grow from that, and she’s an unbelievable talent. So … yeah … it would have been nice if it went in. But it’s a long, long season, and I’m sure that chance will come again for her. And for us, we created that opportunity, so that’s a team effort that got us that.”
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Indeed, it’s less about the result — and more about the process — for the upstart team that now sports a 1W-1L-2D record on the Northern Super League season.
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“One hundred per cent,” Bedford said. “It’s really important to take something away from every game, and I think for either a team to have lost the game in the last 10 minutes would’ve been painful for either side.
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“And I think in previous roles I’ve been in, those points, as you go through the season are really critical to finishing in the top half the table. So it’s very important that you get wins and points, and (Sunday), we got point and something for us to build on.”
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They also take away many moments of a debut that they’ll never forget — historic and memorable, to be sure.
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The attendance Sunday is the third highest in the short life of the six-team league — now just four weeks old. Only AFC Toronto, jamming BMO Field with 14,518 fans on April 19, and Vancouver Rise in the league opener — a 1-0 win over Wild — at BC Place with 14,018 fans on April 16, topped this crowd count … Veteran goalkeeper Stephanie Bukovec earned the clean sheet for Wild in the draw … Wild is back on the home pitch next Sunday against first-place Montréal Roses FC (3-0-1) at McMahon Stadium (3 p.m., TSN+).
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