Heading past silver
By Davie Wong, Sports Editor
It’s going to be an exciting week for the men’s soccer team. Heading into week four of PACWEST soccer action, the men are coming off an exhilarating win against the VIU Mariners. Well, actually, they’re coming off a tough blowout against the Quest Kermodes, but I think the team would like to forget that game.
Other than the Kermodes bump, the men have looked fantastic in the second quarter of the season. The team has gone 1–1–1 in the last two weeks of play, and has scored their way into the win column. Offensively, the year has been quite explosive for the men. The team has scored five goals in three games, which is quite the benchmark.
In particular, the men have had great success scoring off set pieces and scoring early. Three of their last five goals have come off of set pieces, with two off of direct free kicks. The last time the Royals clashed against the Blues, it was a tight game all the way until the end, and the Blues gave the Royals very little to work with. However, one of the two goals the Royals did score was off of a free kick, so that will be a key for them for sure. Going into the game, the team will have to be ready for an intense physical match.
Defensively, the team has been rather lackluster. Perhaps that’s just the Quest game dragging the stat line down, but no matter the case, defence is something they will have to address. It’s unlikely that coaching staff will allow Sunday’s breakdown against Quest to go unaddressed, but it’s likely that every team in the PACWEST will be looking over that game footage and dissecting the Royals’ defensive mistakes. The team will need to patch up their holes, and they’ll need to patch them up quickly.
The Blues have been on a hot streak to start the season. Their last game against the Langara Falcons resulted in a 4–0 score for the Blues. The team just has everything clicking. They’ve scored 14 goals in 5 games and have only allowed goals in 2 of them. They are statistically the best team in the league, and the Royals will need to be in top form once again to challenge them.
However, the Royals do already have a foot up on them. The Douglas College squad is the only team the Blues have yet to beat, and that may be something the team can leverage if they get ahead of them early. It can also be a double-edged sword, as the Blues will likely be hungry to take three points off of the Royals. Either way, the game will be an epic clash with National contentions definitely in sight.
