FREDERICTON – Milad Mehrabi had the eventual winner as the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds scored three unanswered goals for a 3-1 win over the Laval Rouge et Or on Sunday to repeat as Canada’s men’s university soccer champions.
The Thunderbirds end the season with a 17-1 overall mark (conference and post-season play) and on a 16-game winning streak since a 1-0 home loss to Fraser Valley back on Sept. 8.
It was the 13th Sam Davidson Memorial Trophy triumph for UBC — nine more than any other Canadian Interuniversity Sport program. The Thunderbirds blanked Cape Breton 1-0 in last year’s title match.
"It feels tremendous; it’s a special group of players," said UBC head coach Mike Mosher, the CIS coach of the year. "We’ve been fortunate to play for a number of national titles, but the opportunity is rare and you have to seize the moment because you don’t know when you’re going to get that next chance."
UBC and Laval had also met in the 2007 final in Vancouver, with the Thunderbirds prevailing 2-1 on home turf. The Rouge et Or claimed their lone CIS banner two years later with a 3-2 victory over rival McGill.
"You don’t want to walk off that field saying ‘what if’? and ‘geez, we allowed them to outwork us,"’ said Mosher, who has now claimed eight CIS titles with UBC, including three as a player, one as an assistant coach and four as head coach. "We should have a lot of these guys back, so I think we will be strong again next year."
As was the case in their semifinal win over York, the T-Birds saw their opponents to take the lead in the final.
Amaury Fauvergue put Laval on the board in the 33rd minute thanks to one of the prettier goals of the championship, on a superb mid-air volley from 30 yards out.
Niall Cousens tied the game in the 51st minute on a strike from the right side of the box which left no chance for Laval goalkeeper Jean-Francois Desrosiers.
The T-Birds then sealed the victory with two markers in just over a minute.
Mehrabi gave UBC the lead in the 62nd. Left all alone on the left side of the box, the third-year midfielder sent a low shot past Desrosiers, who got a hand on the ball but couldn’t stop it from rolling to the back of the net.
It was the second winner in as many contests for Mehrabi. Cousens, who would be named UBC player of the game and tournament MVP, picked up an assist on the play.
Moments later, Navid Mashinchi, a fourth-year midfielder also beat Desrosiers from up close and the celebrations began on the UBC sidelines.
"Even though we are rebuilding our team I am extremely proud of the guys," said Laval coach Samir Ghrib. "It’s part of the learning process. Life goes on."
Fauvergue earned game MVP honours for Laval. Desrosiers was solid in a losing effort with six saves, including one on a point-blank header in the 61st minute, just moments before UBC’s two quick goals.
Mehrabi and defender Paul Clerc accompanied Cousens on the tournament all-star team for the T-Birds, while Fauvergue and fullback Nafi Dicko-Reynauld merited a spot for the Rouge et Or.
The 2014 CIS championship is set for Nov. 6 to 9 at the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown.
Ealier Sunday, Yassin Shehab El Din scored the shootout winner as the New Brunswick Varsity Reds edged the York Lions in the bronze-medal match.
It marks the fifth top-three finish in program history for the Varsity Reds, who claimed their lone national title in 1980, the only previous time the event was held in Fredericton. UNB had also tied for third in 1982, 1986 and 1987, when no bronze-medal games were played.