Yesterday’s game was a hot one! Harbourside fought hard, but the Whitecaps FC Academy teams went home with all the points.
On the women’s side, the Whitecaps won 5-0. They were clinical in the final third and scored on the majority of their chances. They had a particularly deadly right-wing that caused the Harbourside gals some grief, and their central players were excellent at pouncing and capitalizing on any loose ball or mistake around the box. They dominated the middle with quick and accurate passes when they had possession. However, our Harbourside ladies were aggressive and aimed to use their physicality and age to their advantage as all of the Whitecaps players are academy athletes preparing for university leagues, national teams, or other high levels of soccer. Harbourside was able to keep the ball in the Whitecaps’ defensive end for the majority of the first half, and as coach Bobbie Taylor said:
“The score wasn’t indicative of our play. We moved the ball very well and our press in the first half really made them earn everything they got. Whitecaps’ execution is top notch. We gave ourselves a number of opportunities but couldn’t finish, that’s all.”
Taiya Scorey, a midfielder for the women’s team, felt that they stuck to their fundamentals and their values well, and have nothing to be ashamed of. “Two of our goals were us trying to stick to our values, so that’s all right, we go again in two weeks.” Kierra Blundell, a forward for the Whitecaps ladies, was kind enough to share a few words about how the game went from their perspective:
“It was a really good game. We kept possession really well and broke them down and went through the middle. It was really tough because of how physical they were. In the end, we came up five nil and as the younger girls, it was a tough but really good game.”
On the men’s side, it was a tight match. The first half almost ended nil nil if it wasn’t for a quick finish during added time from the Whitecaps. Goalie Callum Weir deflected a shot from the right side, but an unmarked Whitecaps player tapped in the rebound.
In the second half, Billy Bagiopoulos was able to tie it up thanks to a lovely cross from Suka Behery. Soon after, Harbourside made a defensive error that was saved by goalie Callum Weir. He threw himself at the ball and managed a spectacular save. In the 84th minute, Weir ended up in another testing situation. One on one with a speedy Whitecaps player, he was unable to block a well placed shot. Quite a few yellow cards were given out throughout the match, and the resulting extra time turned into a goal-scoring freezy. In the 93rd minute, the Whitecaps popped another goal, making the match 3-1. However, the Harbourside lads weren’t done. After a quick change of possession, the ball was suddenly free and Billy Bagiopolous was able to monopolize the moment with a quick controlling touch and a composed finish.
Whitecaps FC Academy Coach Robert Rositoiu commented that “We lacked some precision balancing against their backline, all credit to their defense who made it very difficult .” Harbourside coach Kevin Lindo felt that:
“We did enough over the 90 to get something out of it…We scored two really good goals, so good for that, really proud of the effort from the lads. They all really care and really want to do well for this team and this town. Really disappointed, we’ll have to pick the lads up, but we’ll go again.”
After the match, Callum Weir chatted with the Harbourside crew and gave his thoughts on the game:
“It’s a tricky one to take, but against a good side. A youthful side, and you could kind of see it out there. We did well, and it proves that this league is developing and it’s getting better. A couple mistakes, you get punished, and that’s how it goes. It was a good learning lesson for the guys, and we go again in two weeks.”
As Scorey, Lindo, and Weir said, the teams took a lot from their matches and are doing nothing but looking forward. It’s still early in the season, and there is much more to come! Stay tuned!
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