A total of six Athabasca soccer teams played in provincial competitions throughout Alberta this weekend. There were boys and girls teams representing three age divisions. With some teams winning Tri-County gold, everyone had reasonable expectations do well during the three- day tournament.
U12
The U12 boys and girls teams both participated in the provincial tournament hosted in Vermilion.
The U12 Boys Barcelona Juniors put up a good fight during the tournament. The Juniors lost their first two games 1-0 to Stettler and 3-0 to Carbon. They would, however, defeat the host team from Vermilion 3-1 during the preliminary rounds.
The Juniors won their last match on Sunday 2-0 against Manning, finishing fifth overall.
The U12 Girls Fearless kept up their defensive strategy by and continueding their low- scoring games during the tournament. They defeated Bonnyville 1-0 and tied Whitecourt 0-0.
However, because they were tied with Whitecourt for first place in their group, the two teams went into a shootout. The winner would advance to the gold medal game.
The Fearless lost the shootout, but had advanced to the bronze medal game from being tied for first place in their group.
They faced Camrose for the bronze medal, but ended up losing the match 3-0. The Fearless finished fourth overall in the tournament.
U14
Both the boys and girls U14 teams did not fare as well in the Stettler tournament as they did during the regular season.
The U14 Boys Titans FC, despite having 41 goals for and only four goals against leading up to provincials, did not win a game during the preliminary rounds of the tournament, finishing last in their group.
The Titans lost their first three games 6-1 to Hinton, 3-1 to Stettler, and 4-0 to Red Deer. Red Deer would later go on to win the provincial gold medal.
“With Tri-County being a really easy division, I think that hurt us,” said Glenn Martin, head coach of the team. “If we played stronger teams, we would have learned a lot more. It’s hard to motivate and improve your team when you’re winning 10-0.”
With a tough set of games, the Titans finished seventh overall. They ended their season on a high note with a 8-2 win over Devon.
Much like the Titans FC, the U14 Girls Avengers were not able to win a game during the preliminary rounds of the tournament. They were able to keep the scores close, losing to Stettler 2-1, Thorsby 1-0 and to Olds 3-0.
The Avengers would finish eighth in the tournament after losing to Sherwood Park 2-0 on Sunday.
U16
After a perfect regular season, the U16 Boys Titans FC had lots of confidence going into the St. Paul. They had a strong start to the provincial tournament with a 4-0 win against Olds on Friday.
The Titans would then move on to play against Whitecourt for first place in their grouping. After a close game, the Titans lost to Whitecourt 2-1.
“Our team is an amazing group of young men,” said head coach Shelly Younker. “They played each game with everything they had to give. Sometimes things just don't go in our favour.”
The Titans played their final game against St. Paul, and won 5-2. They finished fifth overall in the tournament.
After playing in the Edmonton Minor Soccer Association for most of the season, the U16 Girls Black Widows were well prepared. They tied St. Paul 0-0 on the first day of tournament followed by a 2-0 victory over Rimbey. They had a tough 4-1 loss against Edson, who would finish first overall in the group.
Finishing second in their group, the Black Widows got the opportunity to play for the bronze medal against Sherwood Park, but lost the game 3-2.
“We dominated the game from the start. They scored their three in the first half on about three or five shots that were amazingly placed,” said head coach Terry Lovelace. “We deserved to win and poured it on in the second half. (We) missed the net too many times to come up with the tie and the win.”
The Black Widows finished the tournament fourth overall.
