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Sarnia Spirit Vs. Petrolia
June, 16th
This was Sarnia’s 2nd
regular season match against Petrolia.
Sarnia had just faced off
against Petrolia two days prior in tournament play at the
Woodstock Walter Kirchner Tournament in round robin play
which resulted in a 0-0 draw. Petrolia had certainly gained
confidence from this result as the previous meeting weighed
heavily in Sarnia’s favor by a score of 8-1.
Both teams continue to show
improvement, and the quality of play has certainly increased
the entertainment value of the games. The Sarnia Spirit
have been using their regular season games as opportunities
to work on some of their weaknesses with hopes to improve
their play for upcoming tournaments and end-of-season
match-ups.
Sarnia worked hard during most
of the match making several attempts at goal from outside
the 18 and looking for rebound opportunities. The Spirit
did eventually sneak 2 goals past Petrolia’s goal-keeper
from inside the box that gave them the victory.
All in all a good match from
both sides, noting that both squads had just finished their
tournament play the day prior.
The final score was Sarnia 2 –
Petrolia 0.
Sarnia Spirit Vs. Chatham
June, 25th
Veteran’s Field, Sarnia
The Sarnia Spirit hosted Chatham
for their 3rd meeting of the season.
The Spirit continued to work on
different aspects of the game during this match, noting
focuses on passing and communication which led to some very
high-quality plays throughout.
Sarnia’s squad was well rested
having more than a full week since their previous match,
which certainly began to show early on as the girls moved
the ball well and maintained possession for much of the
game. Chatham did manage to mount a few attempts at goal,
but the Spirit’s defense held strong allowing only a few
true quality attempts at goal. Chatham did catch Sarnia
off-guard at one-point earning themselves a goal on a
break-away that was the result of Sarnia’s entire team
playing slightly too far up pitch and not giving themselves
the proper amount of space to bring down any long through
ball attempts.
However, with goals from #15
Brittany Sefton, #12 Maria Vani, #5 Kadin Siopidou-D’Andrea,
and #4 Lauren Handy, the Sarnia Spirit had the game well in
hand and won the match by a final tally of 4-1.
Sarnia Spirit Vs. Chatham
July 3, 2008
Kiwanis Field, Chatham
This was the 2nd
match in the home at home series with Chatham. Last week
Sarnia snuck past Chatham with a narrow victory and were
looking to improve on this result with added ball movement
and communication.
The Spirit came out fast and
furious in the early stages, keeping Chatham on their end of
the pitch, and making several quality passing plays down the
right side which helped contribute to Sarnia’s first goal in
the 5th minute scored by #21 Amy Bennett on a
nice ball through from #12 Maria Vani. Sarnia continued to
mix up their play and try new tactics moving players through
various positions on the field. The Spirit’s ball control
and communication levels certainly contributed to them
winning the possession battle for much of the first half.
However, Chatham did not let the half end without a fight,
and certainly made more attempts at goal in the later stages
that were nicely secured by goal-keeper #1 Kayla Griffiths.
Chatham opened the 2nd
half in the same fashion as they ended the 1st
with some good pressure and movement within Sarnia’s half
that forced the Spirit to rely heavily on their defensive
core. The Spirit eventually settled back into the match and
put focus back on communicating through the mid-field, which
eventually led to a second goal from #21 Amy Bennett that
was tapped in off of a low bullet from #15 Brittany Sefton
that snuck through the Chatham keeper’s legs. As the match
drew to a close Chatham played very aggressive moving most
of their team into striking position. With five minutes to
go, Chatham scored on a ball through the middle of the 18
that eventually hit the back of the net. Chatham certainly
did not let up and tried very hard for the equalizer, but it
was not to be.
Sarnia won the match on a final
score of 2-1. The Spirit now travel to Newmarket for the
Girls U-12 2008 All Star Classic hosted by the Newmarket
Soccer Club.
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