AFC Toronto suffered a 2-1 defeat against Vancouver Rise FC at Swangard Stadium on Saturday, as a late goal from Cloey Uddenberg was not enough to spark a comeback.
Vancouver struck twice in the opening half, including a penalty conversion, putting Toronto under pressure early. Despite improving after halftime, AFC Toronto could only find the net deep into stoppage time when Uddenberg buried a corner-kick opportunity for her first goal of the 2026 season.
The result leaves Toronto with a 1-1-2 record and four points, placing the club fourth in the Northern Super League standings.
Toronto captain Nikki Small remained confident the team would respond strongly after back-to-back losses.
“The whole team knows that this is not the standard. This doesn’t happen to us regularly,” Small said. “We’re going to really look to bounce back in Calgary. I think moving forward you’re going to see the AFC Toronto you saw last year and at the beginning of this year.”
Head coach Marko Milanovic admitted his side struggled in the opening stages of the match.
“We’re obviously disappointed with this performance, especially the first 30 minutes,” Milanovic said. “The second half was a lot better, but we got ourselves in too big of a hole and we couldn’t get out.”
He also emphasized patience during the early part of the campaign.
“To put things into perspective, it’s game four of the season. There’s going to be some lows like this. Very confident that this group will still come out on top.”
One bright spot for Toronto was the continued emergence of young talent. Twenty-year-old April Lantaigne earned her first start of the season, while 18-year-old striker Kaylee Hunter continued her strong form, leading the league with 14 shots and ranking second with seven on target.
Meanwhile, Small remains one of the league’s top defensive players, leading the Northern Super League with 25 tackles through four matches.
Toronto now turns its attention to next weekend’s clash against Calgary Wild FC at McMahon Stadium on Saturday, May 31 at 4 p.m. ET.
