Memorable return home for Wolves
Michael Solomon became an instant hero Friday night.
The 20-year-old Niagara Falls native broke a 1-1 tie with a late goal giving the St. Catharines Club Roma Wolves a dramatic 2-1 come-from-behind win over Vaughan Azzurri B before about 500 fans at Club Roma.
It was the Wolves first game at home after splitting a pair on the road in their inaugural season in the League1 Ontario Men’s Premier Division.
“It was great fun, a lot of pressure and a lot of people to impress for our first home game, but it couldn’t have gone any better,” Solomon said after whooping it up on the field with his teammates.
Solomon’s goal was a beauty as he dribbled from the wing towards centre and then buried a shot in the back of the net with less than 10 minutes remaining.
“It felt great,” said Solomon, a graduate of Saint Paul High School who now attends Brock. “Overall, I’m just proud and happy. The boys showed great, the coaching staff, I’m just happy.
“It was a great win.”
It was a splendid reboot for Roma which had been without a semi-pro team since the Wolves dissolved following the 2014 season. The Wolves played in the Canadian Soccer League, which is a non-sanctioned circuit not affiliated with Canada Soccer.
“It was a great night,” Wolves director of operations Carmine Provenzano said. “It was just unbelievable. It was everything we dreamed of from the beginning.”
Provenzano said it was a group effort, on and off he field, to get everything set up after a couple of false starts due to the COVID pandemic and various restrictions.
“The weeks coming up to the game have been unbelievably busy but we’ve all been chipping in,” he said.
Provenzano was also gratified to see the stands packed.
“It helps. The fans were so into it,” he said. “They were cheering, ‘Let’s go Roma.’ We had smoke bombs and everything,” he said. “It was great.
“What an atmosphere.”
Fans were quick to notice a new special VIP patio for corporate sponsors as well as new landscaping done by Element Landscape Services.
Roma general manager Sean Krawchuk was thrilled how the field and park looked for the opener.
“There was a little bit of work bringing everything up from it not being used like it was for the last maybe five years like it was before,” he said. “We did some painting and freshening up.
“For us, the hardest part was dealing with the ups and downs. It would have been easy if it wasn’t for COVID.”
Krawchuk appreciates the history the Wolves have at Roma.
“It brings back some of the identity of Club Roma and its mantra as a community -style based building and property,” he said. “To us, this is huge for the region. These are regional players and it is all about community.”
Vaughan took a 1-0 lead into the half before the Wolves regrouped at intermission. Luca Danesi got Roma on the board with an early goal in the second half, setting the stage of Salomon’s winner.
“We talked about defending properly and kind of bottling up the middle a little bit more than in the first half,” Provenzano said. “They were getting through a little easy so we tightened up and pushed the right buttons with the subs.”
The Wolves host Toronto TFC Academy next Friday at 8:45 p.m.
Dear reader. If you liked this story or one of the 3,400 other stories found on our website, please consider hitting the Support Us button on the right-hand side of our home page and making a PayPal contribution to our website. Your support would be much appreciated. If you are a business owner, please consider advertising on our site. Our rates are reasonable and we provide plenty of exposure for your business. Contact bpotrecz@outlook.com for more information.
