SARNIA FURY WINS THE LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP
Sarnia travelled to Wallaceburg's Kinsmen Field
to take on the first place team for the
championship game on Tuesday August 28th.
Sarnia ended up in second place after a well
deserved win the week before against Chatham,
earning them the right to take part in the
final. Wallaceburg appeared to be quite
confident as the game got underway, perhaps
expecting Sarnia to cave in to the larger team.
However, our kids came out with their game faces
on and did not waver in their determination to
win this final match.
The pace of the game was set quickly with the
ball passing back and forth between both teams
with numerous opportunities to score on each
side. Dominic "The Dominator" Iacobelli played
his best game ever, allowing only one goal out
of a series of 17 shots in total. The other
Sarnia players worked well with the Dominator to
cover him and clear the ball when he needed
assistance with rebound shots. Both teams had
to run a lot and work hard to
keep possession. The Fury were intense in their
determination, talking to each other and
covering positions by helping when and where it
was needed. In watching this game, one would
have never thought that the beginning of the
season had a dominating Wallaceburg team that
Sarnia did not seem to be able to beat.
The game was fast paced, exciting, and left
spectators pressed against the fence just
waiting for what would happen next. Wallaceburg
was able to score their goal in the first half
off of a deflection from one of the Sarnia
keeper's saves, which left half time with a
score of 1 - 0 for the other team.
Sarnia's first goal was delivered from a call
against Wallaceburg for shoving. Ricky Primeau
had a free kick, which he sent towards the net
from the right side of the field. Spencer
Gorman ran to the front to where the ball was
descending from the kick, and directed the ball
straight into the net before anyone could stop
him off of the deflect from the keeper. The
score was tied at 1 all. With three minutes
left in the game, Sarnia had the ball in front
of the Wallaceburg keeper. The players were
furiously trying to sink the ball in the net.
Darien Primeau crossed it over to Ryan Tanner,
who was waiting closer to the net. Amidst
the efforts of Sarnia to score, and Wallaceburg
to defend, a home team player tipped the ball
into the net off of the drive from Ryan. The
score with less than three minutes left was 2 -
1 for Sarnia.
Players, parents, coaches and other spectators
were all yelling during these last few minutes.
Sarnia spectators were anxiously waiting for the
referee to blow the whistle and end the game,
while the other spectators were hoping for the
opposite - just a few more seconds to tie or win
the game. The ball was all over the field with
each team doing their best to defend and score
against each other. These last few minutes
seemed to take forever. Finally, the whistle
was blown, the game was over, and Sarnia was
victorious. SARNIA FURY HAD JUST WON THE LEAGUE
CHAMPIONSHIP!
Afterwards, as Coach
Medeiros was passing out the medals to the
players, he reminded them of his ideal for the
kids: "No matter what the score of the game is,
if you play with your heart, you are always a
winner." It takes a lot to have a successful
season and the team would like to thank everyone
who supported them this year. Coaches Medeiros
and Tanner worked well with the boys, taught
them a lot, and guided them to their first place
win. Other parents stepped up and helped with
practices and games when needed, raised funds
for the team, donated prizes for draws, managed
paperwork, banking, and ensured the efforts were
published for all to see. In the end, the boys
played for them and for everyone else who made
them believe they could win.
Sarnia Fury U-12 District is
sponsored by Custom Plumbing, and also by B &
H Construction and Chicory Inc. Our team thanks
these sponsors for their support during the
season.
