Royals soccer confident as provincials approach
By Michael Sopow, Sports Reporter
On October 12, the Douglas College Royals headed up to Squamish to take on the Quest Kermodes. Both the men’s and women’s teams had come away triumphant the previous day and were looking to build off of that momentum—the women beat Kwantlen 1-0 and the men won 2-0.
The women started the day’s game with equal pressure coming from b0th sides of the field. In the ninth minute Quest was able to sneak a shot by Douglas’ keeper to take the lead. The game continued with Quest applying vigorous pressure on Douglas’ defence, though the Royals remained firm and kept the score within reach. In the beginning of the second half, the Royals began to pick up the pressure and were able to create several offensive opportunities in the Kermodes’ half, earning themselves some shot opportunities and set pieces.
Although the Royals pushed hard until the last whistle, they were unsuccessful in levelling the score, and the game ended 1-0.
“Today I thought we played alright,” said Chris Laxton, coach of the women’s team, “I just don’t think we created enough chances.”
With the PACWEST provincials just around the corner, Laxton believes the team has what it takes to be successful. He told the Other Press, “Regardless we’ll play a tough team … I think we’re going to bring some belief; we see the road ahead of us; we realize there are a lot of challenges, and I think they’re ready to overcome them. Having played each team three times, we have an idea of the teams we’re going to play, and also we can devise a good game plan.”
The men’s game began in a similar fashion. As the whistle blew and the ball was kicked off, both teams appeared focussed and prepared for a tough match. Douglas immediately took control of the game early on with a tenacious offensive presence. Clearly motivated, they were reaching the ball first and demonstrating that they wanted to win the game. Throughout the first half, it was mostly a Royals-oriented show with the ball consistently in the Kermodes’ end. Opportunities were there for both teams, but ultimately the Royals were able to capitalize on more of theirs, winning 3-1.
