AFC Toronto Take Control of Semifinal with 2-0 Road Win in Montréal
NSL AFC Toronto

AFC Toronto Take Control of Semifinal with 2-0 Road Win in Montréal

Published on November 2, 2025 under Northern Super League (NSL)
AFC Toronto News Release


Laval, QC - AFC Toronto opened their first-ever Northern Super League playoff campaign with a composed 2-0 victory over Montréal Roses FC on Saturday afternoon at Stade Boréale. The result gives Toronto a crucial advantage in the two-leg semifinal series, and extends their perfect record in Montréal this season.

Toronto wasted no time setting the tone, striking inside seven minutes when Esther Okoronkwo slipped a clever ball into the box for midfielder Nikki Small, who redirected it in for her first postseason goal. Montreal generated pressure of their own, but goalkeeper Sierra Cota-Yarde stood tall, preserving Toronto's lead with confident play between the posts.

After a tense defensive battle to open the second half, the breakthrough arrived in the 70th minute. NSL's Rookie of the Year Kaylee Hunter showcased her signature composure in 1v1 space, carving through defenders before slotting home her first playoff goal to double the lead. Toronto's defensive unit held strong to secure the clean sheet and now return home with momentum firmly on their side.

Head coach Marko Milanović: "[The first goal] had a positive impact on our performance - it settled us down. I actually love how we came out in a very tough environment against a good team. The first 20 minutes, we played with such confidence. I was really proud of that. That's something that we will carry into the second game and, hopefully, also into the finals."

AFC Toronto will host Leg 2 of the semifinal on Sunday, November 9 at 2 p.m. ET at York Lions Stadium, with a spot in the inaugural NSL Final presented by Toyota on the line.

SMALL BUT MIGHTY: Midfielder Nikki Small opened the scoring with her first goal of the postseason and officially recorded the inaugural goal of the Northern Super League Playoffs.

ON THE HUNT: Entering in the second half, forward Kaylee Hunter scored her first goal of the postseason.

COTA-YARDE'S WALL: AFC Toronto's goalkeeper Sierra Cota-Yarde secured her first clean sheet of the postseason.

MATCH SUMMARY

AFC Toronto - 2 Montréal Roses FC - 0

Venue: Stade Boréale

Referee: Marie-Soleil Beaudoin

Assistants: Melissa Snedden, Camille Raymond

Fourth Official: Salma Flores-Desrochers

Referee Observer: Daniel Belleau

SCORING SUMMARY

AFC Toronto: Nikki Small (7'), Kaylee Hunter (70')

Montréal Roses FC: 0

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

Yellow: Nikki Small (AFC Toronto)

STARTING LINEUP & STATS

AFC Toronto Starting Lineup:

GK Sierra Cota-Yarde (Toronto, ON)

DF Ashley Cathro (Victoria, BC), DF Sarah Rollins (Toronto, ON), DF Zoe Burns (Canada)

MF Colby Barnett (USA), MF Victoria Pickett (Newmarket, ON), MF Emma Regan (Burnaby, BC), MF Nikayla Small (Pickering, ON), MF Sarah Stratigakis (Toronto, ON)

FW Lauren Rowe (Conception Bay South, NL), FW Esther Okoronkwo (Nigeria)

Substitutes: Sofia Manner (GK), Danielle Krzyzaniak (GK), Cloey Uddenberg (MF), April Lantaigne (MF), Aoi Kizaki (MF), Nyota Katembo (MF), Kaylee Hunter (FW)

Total Shots: 3

Shots on Goal: 2

Offsides: 3

Corner-Kicks: 0

Saves: 1

Video Highlights of Game

Media can access video highlights from the match on the Northern Super League YouTube

Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@NorthernSuperLeague

Match Summary

A complete summary of the match facts and stats can be viewed at: https://www.nsl.ca/games/montreal-toronto-2025-11-01

More from the locker room:

Midfielder Nikki Small on their road performance: "The league knows, we are road warriors. We do well away from home, clearly, and we want to keep that up. Obviously just coming here, it's a hard environment, the turf is a little bouncy too, so it's a different surface to play on. I think we always want to come out strong and like we did in the game, we showed that."

Milanović on the team's performance: "I thought both teams had had their chances. We were fortunate enough to finish two of ours and come away with the win. Montréal had a few chances as well that they could have capitalized. [Sierra Cota-Yarde] had a phenomenal game in goal, and the rest of our backline also did really well, considering it was their first game playing together this year. Another thing that I wanna point out - we've had so many injuries, it's credit to our medical team that did so well throughout the week to get them ready. I would say that they're just as responsible for this win as all of us."

Small on her goal: "I'm happy we scored early because the conditions weren't the greatest. It was cold, it was windy, the wind wasn't in our favor. To get that early goal and settle our nerves, it was really important for us to settle down."

Defender Sarah Rollins on the backline: "We worked really well together. We were communicating the whole time. Ashley [Cathro] and [Victoria Pickett] did an excellent job, [Pickett's] first time in the back line. She kept composure and we all followed our jobs and remembered everything that Marko taught us and kept us in the game."

Milanović on prep for the next match: "It's exactly the same - we're going to look to win that game as well. Nothing really can change in terms of our prep. We've approached it the same way from game one in preseason up until this game right now. Hopefully, moving forward, absolutely the same. I like to feel that we're actually enjoying that preparation - I know I do as a coach. I try to relay that same message to the players, we're so grateful. I'm so fortunate to be where we are and we're gonna enjoy preparing for the game and hopefully enjoy the game as well."

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Northern Super League Stories from November 2, 2025


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