Ottawa beat Halifax 2:1 in the Canadian Premier League group stage on Friday. The hosts took all three points at home, extending their unbeaten run at the stadium.
M. Arilla opened the scoring in the 39th minute after a period of sustained pressure. Ottawa controlled the tempo, and here's the thing — they created three big chances while Halifax managed just one. J. Alphonse collected a yellow card in the 35th minute before the break.
Halifax responded after the interval. E. Garcia pulled them level in the 62nd minute, and to be fair, the visitors had been the better side in patches. S. Zitman came off for a substitution in the 64th minute, and L. Olguin picked up another booking in the 56th minute.
B. Tabla restored Ottawa's lead in the 79th minute. The game tightened after that, and by then Halifax were throwing everything at it. N. Fleuriau Chateau missed a penalty in the 90+4th minute — one mistake ends it. B. Tabla was then substituted in the 88th minute, which suggests the manager was managing his man.
Ottawa dominated the numbers. They held 62 per cent possession and registered 14 shots — eight on target, six off. Halifax managed just four shots with only one on target. The visitors made 17 clearances to Ottawa's 11, which tells you where the pressure sat.
Ottawa sit third with 34 points from 21 games. Halifax are sixth on 20 points. The gap between them is now 14 points, and the hosts have seven wins from their last five matches against the visitors — this result extended their dominance in the fixture.