The St. Albert Impact played liked men instead of boys in winning the Alberta Soccer Association U18 Tier III championship.
The Tier 4 Virk division team in the Edmonton District Soccer Association outscored the opposition 20-2 in four wins in last weekend’s youth tournament at Millwoods Park in Edmonton.
“It was great preparation for the boys finishing seven and seven (for a third-place tie in the EDSA table). For their first run at it, it was excellent. They’re still 16, 17 and they’re playing 23, 24-year-old men and it helped them prepare in terms for the physical play of the game and just when it came to playing in their age group they were well prepared for it. In some of the games, the possession was excellent,” said head coach Kevin Jones.
Visit www.stalbertgazette.com to view the team picture.
In Sunday’s final, Mario Ruicea scored in the first half and Scott Robson tallied the insurance marker in the 2-0 decision against SW Sting.
Ruicea was the top scorer in the Tier 4 Virk division with 16 goals and Robson shared fifth place with 11 goals.
Kurt Steendam posted the shutout, his second of the tournament.
“It doesn’t sound like we were in control, but we really did manage the game well,” Jones said. “Our defending was outstanding over the course of the tournament. Quinn Smith-Ackrel, the assistant coach, did an outstanding job preparing the boys for this tournament. A lot of credit goes to him.”
Multiple players found the back of the net in the 9-1 rout of the WHU Hurricanes and 6-0 drubbing of the MW Selects to kick-off provincials.
“The scoring was spread around. We didn’t rely on anyone,” Jones said.
The win against the Selects was decided in the second half.
“It was 3-0 for the longest time and then we scored a fourth one with 10 minutes left and then scored two late in the game,” Jones said.
The 3-1 decision against Chestermere United Excelsior booked the Impact’s spot in the final.
“Lots of pressure in that one. We were down 1-0 so that was the first time in the tournament we had been down. We equalized at halftime and then scored one in the second half and then one with about five minutes remaining so that was a tight game,” Jones said of the third match in about 18 hours. “The pace of the game wasn’t that terrific but they were just exhausted with three games in that short amount of time and it was hot.”
The provincial gold medals were the fourth for a handful of players since U12.
“This is 28 years coaching for me and they are an outstanding group of kids, they work and they do what they’re asked. They’re awesome,” Jones said.
The Tier I provincial women’s playdowns kick off today for the St. Albert Impact in the Edmonton District Soccer Association.
The first-place division 1B Impact (9-3-4, 47 GF/13 GA) and Angels Scottish SC (11-0-2, 46 GF/13 GA), the top division 1A team, play at 2 p.m. at the ESA Complex.
The winner advances to provincials and the losing team has one qualifying match remaining for the second Tier I berth at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the ESA Complex.
Meanwhile, the first-place Impact division 2A women (13-3-1, 64 GF/19 GA) dropped a 3-2 decision in 30 minutes of extra time to the Edmonton Warriors (13-1, 69 GF/21 GA) in the Tier II playdowns Thursday at the ESA Complex.
It was 1-1 at the half and 2-2 at full time. Karen Vriens and Kelsey Carter were the goal scorers.
The Impact finished the match with only seven healthy players. Seven were also injured during the contest and others played despite injuries.
The Impact can still qualify for provincials with a victory Sunday against Dreadnought (10-4-2, 58 GF/34 GA for second place in division 2A) or FC Excelsior (11-1-2, 61 GF/7 GA for second place in division 2B) at 2 p.m. at the ESA Complex.
In league play, both Impact teams earned promotions for the 2017 outdoor season. The 1B team will play in premier and the 2A team goes into the 1A division.
The St. Albert Rangers punched their ticket to the Tier I provincials after winning Monday’s playdown match in the Edmonton District Soccer Association.
John Paterson and Will Backhouse scored in the 2-1 grinder of a game against Croatia Hajduk on Monday at the ESA Complex.
The division 1A Rangers (9-4-2, 39 GF/21 GA) trailed 1-0 at the half but pressured division 1B Croatia Hajduk (7-2-6, 20 GF/16 GA) for the majority of the second half.
Paterson’s goal was a tap-in after the keeper made a great save off Noah Boyko’s aerial effort from a corner kick.
Backhouse’s fifth goal in two matches and 14th of the season was a penalty kick after Ben Smith was taken down by two defenders in the box.
Both teams placed second in their respective divisions.
The win also lift the Rangers into the premier division promotional/challenge match Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at the ESA Complex.
Mavericks 09, the St. Albert Women’s Soccer League rep at the Tier III provincials, and the Morinville Ladies hook up Tuesday in division one action at Forest Park field
Kickoff is 7 p.m. between the pennant-winning Mavericks (10-0, 48 GF/2 GA) and second–place Morinville (5-3-2, 20 GF/13 GA).
The SASWL playoffs start Sept. 6 in division one and Sept. 7 in division two. Cosmos FC (12-0, 83 GF/25 GA) is the top division two team.
Meanwhile, in the division one scoring race, Suzanne Schulz of the Mavericks leads with eight goals and her teammates, Jen Bruinsma and Lindsey Hornung, are tied for second with six apiece.
Three Cosmos are the division two leaders with a combined 58 goals.
