- Jul. 22, 2010
Vern Faulkner/Courier
Mitchell Arsenau of the Charlotte County under-12 Saints, aims a shot on goal during a Wednesday night game against Saint John.
By Vern Faulkner
editor@stcroixcourier.ca
St. Andrews - Going into Wednesday’s clash of under-12 soccer superpowers, the Charlotte County Saints had been nigh unstoppable.
The league standings chronicled the Saints’ utter dominance of the u-12 division of the Southern Region Soccer League in cold, hard numbers.
In six games played, the Saints had registered five wins and a tie, scoring a league-high 50 goals and surrendering a league-low average of less than one goal per game.
That spectacular run crashed Wednesday night at Harry Mallory field, as the Saints fell to an inspired Fundy squad from Saint John by a 5-1 score in a contest that really could have been much closer.
A number of factors undermined the Saints typical dominance, not the least of which was a lack of substitutes to lend energy to tired legs.
Too, this was one of those contests where the bounces seemed to go Fundy’s way – as evidenced by a pair of Fundy seeing-eye shots that found net, and a handful of Saints’ strikes that clanked harmlessly off of crossbars and goalposts. That, combined with a series of if-the-ball-had-bounced-this-way turnovers and chances, spelled the Saints doom.
Mitchell Arsenau was a near-unstoppable force for the Saints. The talented, multi-sport athlete summarized the outing.
“We just weren’t on our top game, we were missing quite a few players,” he said, adding that “Passes weren’t really that good.”
The Saints showed the potential to dominate, with good flow and chemistry with other strikers, blending speed with agility uncommon among athletes of this age group.
That, explained Arsenau, comes from a long-standing off-field familiarity.
“We’re all friends, and we know each other. It’s pretty easy to tell,” where a player is going, he said.
The team’s first loss did not diminish Coach Carlos Rodriguez’s dreams of the team claiming a berth in the u-12 provincial soccer championships.
“This season, we finally have some very good players,” he said, noting that in the past, the elite-level squad has suffered from numbers challenges, despite drawing from the entire county.
But he’d like more.
“Every year, we have this kind of situation,” he said. “There is talent around. It’s just a matter of finding it, and having the support.”
The Mexican national said he had trouble with players committing to practice, which in turn means he sometimes cannot adequately prepare for games.
He would have liked to have seen a better effort Wednesday, but admitted the Fundy squad played an inspired game.
“There’s a very interesting rush for first place, between us and (Saint John). They were undefeated as well, but they lost Monday and they came (here) hungry.”
Rodriguez explained that he’s not about to alter the team’s clear score-first-and-as-questions-later style.
“As a coach, I never play defending style) It doesn’t matter if it’s 3-0, 4-0 ... I’ll keep sending my players.”
On Wednesday, that almost worked. In the early stages of the second half, the Saints seemed destined to crack a 3-0 Fundy lead, mounting foray after foray into the Fundy end, generating a number of golden scoring opportunities in the process. But a lack of finish, some tenacious Fundy defending and a whole lot of luck prevented the Saints from capitalizing on their chances.
Then the Saints faltered and lost team energy, which spelled the team’s eventual doom.
That, said Rodriguez, came directly from a lack of bench strength. He pointed to ample opponent force – Fundy at one time substituted all but one of the on-field players - as evidence.
The loss creates a bit of a log-jam at the top of the league standings, with Fundy, Hampton and Charlotte County all vying for the top spot. The top four teams earn playoff berths, and the winners of the two semifinal games earn berths to the provincial championships.
That, Rodriguez admitted, is his goal for the team, which now has six games in the season to cement its playoff position.
The loss comes at a good time, Rodriguez asserted. He recalled coached a team in Bathurst that had dominated the entire season.
“One day, almost at the end ... game 13, we lost. My players were upset, because they were used to winning. At this stage of the season, it’s OK. We played against one of the best teams.
Aresenau agreed.
“We’ve got to learn to lose. We can’t win them all.”
The Saints return to action Monday against Fundy under-11, a 7:15 p.m. kickoff at Harry Mallory Field in St. Andrews.
Advertisements
