Viens, Ward lead Canada past Haiti before rowdy crowd in women's soccer friendly

Evelyne Viens scored twice in front of her home crowd on Tuesday night.

Only it didn't quite feel like a home game for Canada.

Viens had two first-half goals as Canada rolled to a two-game sweep over Haiti with a 3-1 win in a women's international soccer friendly. The vast majority of the 18,321 rowdy spectators on hand at Stade Saputo, however, supported the visiting side.

"It was between pleasant and strange," said Viens, a 28-year-old from L'Ancienne-Lorette, Que. "It was a good crowd, and we hoped we'd get a better fan base for us, but still a good atmosphere."

Fans from Montreal's large Haitian community decked the stands in the country's blue, red and white colours, chanted "Haiti! Haiti!" and cheered loudly at every touch of the ball — even a routine clearance.

When Haitian captain Melchie Dumornay scored on a penalty kick during first-half stoppage time, the building erupted.

"I thought it was brilliant in terms of the atmosphere, what the fans brought," Canada coach Casey Stoney said. "It was not in our favour, but at the same time, it just shows how beautifully diverse this country is."

The Haitian women's national team does not play games or practise in Haiti after security concerns forced the team to close its training centre years ago.

Tuesday's match was a taste of what it would feel like.

"We knew that in Montreal, we'd be playing at home," Haiti coach Malou Quignette said. "It was `magnifique.' We played with 13, I don't even know how many — 18,000."

One fan invaded the pitch in the 88th minute and briefly hugged Haiti's Roseline Eloissaint before security rushed in to escort him off the pitch.

Many more jumped over the barrier around the field while players applauded the crowd after the match. One fan