Key Experience

By Davie Wong

The PACWEST men's soccer season is in full swing, and the Royals found themselves in action last week. A rivalry-filled home opener saw the Royals take on the Langara Falcons last Wednesday. It was a messy affair played in sub-par conditions, but at the end of 90 minutes, it was the Royals that came out on top with forward Mateo Serka putting away the game-winner just before the end whistle blew. The final score was 2-1 for the Royals.  

              The team had a bit of a rest before they took on the VIU Mariners on Saturday. They used their extra rest well but couldn't hold off the Mariners. It was a game where the referee blew the whistle more times to dictate fouls and give out yellow cards, than he did for the ball going out of play. In the end, it was the Mariners who would end up victorious.  Taking a lead in the first half of the game, the Mariners never let their foot off the gas pedal and would end up scoring an insurance goal before closing out the game, 2-0.

            Hard-pressed to bounce back, the team took on the visiting Quest Kermodes. Looking to lead his team by example, Royals captain, Tony McCullough, scored the opening goal off a wonderful give and go play with fifth-year forward Isaac Kyei. 

            Later on in the game, Kyei would also find a way to snatch the ball off a pass from the Quest goalkeeper and slide it into the net for an easy goal. From there, it was a test of good defense, which the Royals had an abundance of, to hold on to the end. The Royals would shut out the Quest forwards, and seal the game with a score of 2-0.

            After the game, Isaac Kyei spoke about his team's performance. "I feel we did really well today. I'm proud of my teammates for being able to come together and bounce back from yesterday". He also touched upon what it was like for him to be entering his fifth and final year with the team. "It's a lot on me, and I rely on my teammates. My teammates always push me through and have trust in me so that helps me a lot. It's inspiring to have so many of them look up to me. As a player, I always looked up to players that were older than me, and now for them to look up to me, it's really inspiring".

            While the mayhem of opening weekend is over, the trials still continue for the Royals. It seems like an easy week coming up for the squad, as they only play one game, but that couldn't be further from the truth.

            Their one game next week just happens to be against the second best team in the entirety of the CCAA. The Capilano Blues have started the season on a tear, and the Royals will need to be in top form to take points off them. The defending CCAA National Championship silver medalists made sure they got off to a good start this year with a dominating first week performance. They capped their opening week with a 5-0 rout against the Langara Falcons, whom the Royals worked so hard to clip earlier on in the week.

            The Blues look defensively strong and offensively loaded. With a nearly full team of returning players from last year green team, the Capilano team is older and wiser this year, which bodes bad news for the rest of the teams in the PACWEST.

            For the Royals, this game will really be a test of National standing. The Douglas squad, which missed out on Nationals last year, will be eager to prove themselves against a high National ranked opponent. While it is still early in the season, the Blues are the favorite to take the entirety of the PACWEST. If the Royals can claw a point off of them, or grab a win against them, it will go far to showcase the strength of the team, and likely send them shooting up the National Power Rankings.

            The Royals will play the Blues on their home field, at Lillooet Field, on Sunday at 2:30pm. Go Royals!