(Season
standings are at the bottom of the page)
-
Alberta
Provincial Championships - Games 1 & 2
-
3
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Airdrie
Aztecs - 6
0
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Calgary
Juventus - 1
-
Well, it was a shorter stay at the ASA
championships than we had hoped but, as we walked off after game two, it
was clear to me how much the boys have grown this year. It would
be easy to blame the weather or complain that all other zones send club
teams to play at the Tier 4 level but, ultimately, I think our boys did
themselves proud and you can see, that with continued growth, these boys
are very capable of coming back and winning next year.
-
Game one against Airdrie started with
some initial nerves for the boys, who had to play into a ridiculously strong
wind for the first half. In that kind of weather it is nearly impossible
to move out of your own half and it is very disorienting as well.
The boys did well to keep it close to halftime and I think they sensed
the game could be theirs in the second half. If anything, they may
have expected things to come too easily with the wind though and you have
to give Airdrie credit for answering quickly every time we scored and stealing
back the momentum. Tanvir fit in as nicely as we had hoped, including
a huge goal from about 30 yards out, and added a lot of jump to our squad.
The boys really did their best and I thought the second half was pretty
even, perhaps a little in our favor. In the end, the halftime lead
proved to be to much and I think the boys were pretty dejected after the
game.
-
Game two, on the other hand, was a huge
moral victory for the boys. After losing to the number 4 ranked team,
how could they possibly deal with the number 1? Juventus had watched
our first game (they had the morning off), and they had shown us some disrespect
at that game and in the hotel. The Vipers had some serious doubts
before this game, some fearing a huge loss, but they managed to keep their
heads high. The wind was a huge factor in the first half and it seemed
like 90% of the play was not only in our end, but in our box. Still,
Juventus was unable to capitalize on it all and we went to halftime tied
at 0-0.
-
Things were falling apart on the Juventus
bench. The coaches were upset, the boys were scared, some of them
were in tears and one spent the entire second half in tears and never returned
to the game (I'll have more to say about that at another time).
-
The mood on our bench was quite the opposite.
We had told the boys before and throughout the game that the only failure
on their part would be if they quit. Whether the score was 8-0 or
0-8, they couldn't allow themselves to quit. With tremendous maturity
they seemed to take this message to heart and they truly played for pride.
More important to them than the score, whatever it would turn out to be,
was pride in their team and pride in their best effort. They really
worked and gave it all they had to give. We felt the momentum begin
to shift but, about halfway through their forth windswept half of the day,
the batteries were drained and guts had to carry them through to the final
whistle.
-
A single, seemingly harmless defensive
lapse brought about the only goal Juventus needed but it somehow didn't
seem to matter. Juventus looked deflated, in fact they didn't recover
(see final standings at page bottom), and our boys walked off proud of
their performance. Even boys who often take these losses pretty hard
had smiles on their faces and that is where I I saw the growth. It
isn't about settling for second best, it is about learning to give your
best effort and to be proud when you do. It is one of the things
you need to learn on the way to becoming "the best" and, like the loss
to Aspen Gardens this winter, like the loss to Ottewell at Spring Challenge,
they will learn volumes from this. I can't wait to see what they
do next.
-
The end result was that the boys finished
6th
in the province. That is out of some 1200+ U12 teams province-wide
and even ahead of Lessard who, after some pretty one sided losses, wrapped
up the weekend in 7th. I know I speak for all of the parents when
I say, we are proud of you boys for all you have accomplished, for how
much you have grown, and for your conduct throughout it all. Thank
you sincerely, for a great season! |
Edmonton
City Championship - Game 3
-
0
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Lessard
- 2
-
| Some days you lose because you don't play
well and others you lose to a stronger team. Today was definitely
the latter and you can't knock the effort our boys put forward. Lessard
is a strong club, deep with talent, who are formed by tryouts even though
they are technically a community team. We knew this would be a huge
challenge, and that we would have to hold them off as long as possible
and pick our chances. I thought the boys did really well to hold
on as long as they did while under tremendous pressure - and make no mistake,
they felt the pressure today. I think we forget sometimes how much
pressure we actually put on these young boys and I think they handled admirably.
There were a few mistakes, but hardly worth mentioning because, when all
is said and done, Lessard deserved to win. That being said, I can't
tell you all how proud I am of these boys. I never even considered
a trip to provincials among the objectives for a young, inexperienced U12
team this year, and yet that's exactly where we are going! Congratulations
Vipers! |
Edmonton
City Championship - Game 2
-
3
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Aspen
Gardens - 2
-
| Definitely an improvement, but work still
to do. The Vipers' passing and creativity was back, especially in
the first 25 minutes of the second half, but coverage was still pretty
lacking. The boys showed up in much better spirits, determined to
show they could play better, they held on well enough when they were in
trouble and there were periods were they just dominated the game.
When Austin tucked in the crucial first goal you could feel confidence
grow and, when they took the field in the second half, they were determined
to put the game away. The passing was very nice, especially some
of the outlets to rushing wingers and the game probably shouldn't have
been as close as it ended up. Josh played a much stronger game, more aggressive,
and Gabriel showed great hustle all game. When Aspen Gardens had
nothing to lose they threw caution to the wind and sent seven & eight
man rushes which seemed to overwhelm the Viper defence and midfield - nerves
and inexperience again. In the end, the lead they had built up held
and they are still in the hunt. It was an exciting game, a strong
effort, and remember these are very good teams we are playing (just to
give you an idea, the Ottewell team we met at the last tournament only
made it here as a Tier 5 team). Whatever happens, I know we're all
very proud of the boys and it should be an outstanding final. |
Edmonton
City Championship - Game 1
-
3
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Delwood
- 3
-
| Well, I guess the good news is we know
the Vipers can play better. When the season started we knew we would
have a good year but we didn't really expect it to go as well as it did
because our team was mainly composed of first year U12 players. Last
season we were the old team, this year we are a young one. What we
saw tonight was a team who showed inexperience and suffered from nerves.
There were lots of factors in play, including the wind, a very slow field,
strange field rules, extreme difficulty in getting the officials to allow
subs on, an incorrectly disallowed goal, lots of injuries, an opponent
with a lot of vulgar trash talk - it all seemed to unsettle the boys and
they really didn't play like themselves. The passing was gone, most
of our own rules were broken, and they seemed confused by the large size
of the field. These aren't excuses, they are all things you need
to overcome and that is were experience comes in. In the end, these
are mainly 10 year old boys, and we can't forget that fact no matter how
much their play has made us forget it this season. Like our previous
encounter with Ottewell, the boys will learn from this and I would hope
they will come back stronger on Saturday. |
Game
15 (Round 2, Game 5)
-
7
- Lakewood Vipers vs. North
Millbourne A - 2
-
| The story of the day was CROSSES!
Lots and lots of crosses! All season long we've tried to work on
strategies using the outside of the field so that when we run into teams
who cut off the middle to us we will still be able to generate offense.
This was very encouraging as they enter into city championships
were they will be meeting some extremely talented teams. One after
another the balls sailed in front of the net and, although there were a
few open nets missed, there were a lot of goals tucked in with relative
ease. I can't state strongly enough how proud of the boys I am for
showing so much growth in this regard. The other big news was that
the boys reached their goal of an undefeated regular season (15-0), their
second such season in a row, and they should be very proud of this accomplishment.
As easy as they made it look some nights, it is actually quite difficult
to always be "on". Even a good team can show up and have a bad night
so this record is a testament to the effort, determination and teamwork
they showed each and every night. Congratulations Vipers and
good luck in Cities! |
Game
14 (Round 2, Game 4)
-
9
- Lakewood Vipers vs. North
Millbourne A - 3
-
| In many ways this game was much like the
first time we played North Millbourne this season. They are a talented
and well coached team but, thanks to some soft goals early in the game,
they spotted us a 4-0 lead and it was just too far to climb back even though
they played quite well in the second half. Seven players shared in
our scoring and it was nice to get some of our defenders up front &
scoring and we had goals from Z2, Sawyer and Nik, among others. Dylan
scored a beautiful "Bend It Like Beckham" goal on a corner, and also played
some very solid goal. The passing was quite strong throughout the
game and I was very happy with the tenacious play of Gabriel and Amin tonight.
Things got a little loose defensively in the second half, but then we did
have our defenders playing up at mid and forward so it was to be expected
I guess. This game made it official and we are off to City Championships
now, after one more make up game Wednesday, so congratulations boys &
well done! |
Game
13 (Round 2, Game 3)
-
9
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Meadows
B - 0
-
| Well, hopefully that means the post-tournament
lull is over. The boys showed real determination tonight and we actually
had to call off the hounds at a certain point. It was strange because
some very bizarre goals were scored which should never have gone in - but
they all count. Meadows is a well coached squad who have caused a
lot of trouble for all teams in Tier 4 and they just had one of those unfortunate
games were everything went wrong. As for our squad, there were a
few moments where our own players fought over the ball, and that is something
that will be dealt with, but generally the passing was really great (including
a brilliant cross by Riz to a well positioned Arjun) and Dylan & Tino
were looking hard for passing opportunities. Austin had some good
chances in close, Josh worked extremely hard all night, Z2 was absolutely
supercharged and Ronak was very strong at both Mid and "D". Six players
shared in the goal scoring, always a positive sign, and there were really
no weak moments on "D". Everyone played well, no exceptions, and
it was a well deserved win. Well done boys. One more and you're
in! |
Game
12 (Round 2, Game 2)
-
3
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Southwood
B - 0
-
| It was sort of a funny game because the
boys controlled things well enough to win by several more goals than they
did and yet, in the end, Nik ended up having to save our necks several
times with some amazing saves against a really talented Southwood B squad.
If anything, the boys were guilty of handling the ball too much and there
were several instances where shots could have been taken but, instead,
they opted to try a few more moves. Simplicity is often the key and,
as confidence soars on a team, it is easy to think you need to do more
than is actually necessary. When shots were taken, there were a lot
of close calls and it could easily have been much more one sided.
On defence Sawyer & Marin were really strong, and Z1 was extremely
powerful, especially on the sides, outworking and outpositioning the oncoming
forwards. Up front, Willem made some nice passes, inside and out,
and I was happy to see Dylan looking for passing opportunities quite often.
Gabriel & Ronak were very strong in the midfield as well. When
it came down to it though, Nik was the man and he continues to get stronger
and more confident in the goal. All in all, a good effort Vipers.
You're getting close now so let's hope we can keep things working well
in what look to be a couple of rain soaked games this weekend. |
Game
11 (Round 2, Game 1)
-
5
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Meadows
B - 1
-
| When you have a team which wins so consistently
it can really be a challenge to keep them focused, and when they have just
come of a huge win it becomes even harder. In the indoor season our
big tournament wins came over Christmas holidays, when there was a
good break before we played again, and then at the very end of the season.
This time we have to step right back into the thick of things and it looked
like last game ran over into the first half of this one a bit. Things
changed gradually in the second half though and the Vipers wore their opponents
down in the end. Five different players scored the five goals, that
is always a great sign, and the defense did a pretty good job of keeping
#17 in check, especially Sawyer who I thought dominated him throughout
the night. Austin drove to the goal well on several occasions, Matthew's
throws were smart and accurate, and Dylan & Rizwan did some good work
on the outside and made some great crosses. Arjun was everywhere
once again and Z1 played a powerful game on "D". Meadows is not,
on paper anyway, the strongest team in Tier 4 but, in a way, they are the
ones you have to fear the most. Even when you're ahead you have the
sense that one player in particular could explode for two or three quick
goals and the boys did a good job of keeping an eye on him and of not letting
the game get away when they were down 1-0. It was a good start to
the round, but we do have a lot to work on in practice this Saturday. |
Game
10
-
1
- Lakewood Vipers vs. North
Millbourne B - 0
-
| It definitely felt like the game after
the big game. There wasn't really much in the way of excitement or
intensity and the boys played just well enough to win. The game didn't
matter in the standings and I think everyone was in need of a day off so
we just mixed up the positions and let them run through at a reduced pace.
Z1 showed some real determination/grit at midfield and forward, and Sawyer
made some nice passes into the middle during his forward shifts, but all
in all it was the way you would expect a young team to play following a
huge emotional win like the one on Sunday. |
Spring
Challenge Tournament - Gold Medal Game
-
2
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Ottewell
United - 0
-
How good was that! By now we're
probably getting a little too used to this sort of thing, but you can't
sell short a performance like that one. It is so easy to tell kids
what they are supposed to do, partly because they make it look so easy
to us, but actually being out there and doing it takes an enormous amount
of effort, courage and maturity. We saw on Friday just how strong
the Ottewell team is and the boys knew the sort of effort it would take
to bounce back. Knowing and doing are two different things though
and, frankly, I am in awe of these boys.
-
The defenders played an incredible game,
and the opposing coaches said right away that it was the four man "D" which
killed them more than anything. When Ottewell looked sure to score,
Z2 ("Neo") came flying through the air with a Matrix-like move to painfully
block a shot (as a proud dad yelled, "he takes one for the team!").
You could see the team explode with enthusiasm to that example. Further
up the field, our midfielders played wide, with relentless intensity, and
came back responsibly whenever needed. Up front, our forwards knew
they would have less support, with only a two man front, and they worked
their tails off, coming through exactly when needed. Finally, Nik
was Nik - what more can you say. He's been the center of this team's
heart for years and his determination continues to inspire.
-
Grabbing an early lead gave us momentum
and put Ottewell right into catch-up mode. As the game progressed
our Vipers continued to press and run, you could see the frustration building
on the other side (including a coach-called cheap shot on Dylan) and then,
when we needed to put the game away, Josh exploded through the Ottewell
"D" and blasted one high. It was the sort of stunning goal you'd
expect from Arsenal or Manchester United and it totally took the wind out
of our opponents' sails.
-
Congratulations Vipers, you continue to
amaze us all. Those critics who complain that this team is just about
stockpiling talent simply don't get it. This team is about heart,
teamwork & support and you should all be very proud. The Lakewood
Vipers - Joshua, Sawyer, Matthew, Gabriel, Amin, Willem, Tino, Dylan, Austin,
Arjun, Rizwan, Zach 2, Zach 1, Ronak, Marin and Niklas - 2005 EWZSA Spring
Challenge Gold Medal Champions! |
Spring
Challenge Tournament - Game 3
-
4
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Britannia
Youngstown - 3
-
| ...And that, ladies and gentlemen, is
why there are no old coaches! It was a seesaw battle sure
to raise your heart rate and our Vipers managed to pull one out in thrilling
fashion. Britannia was a tenacious bunch who were ready and eager
to pounce on every mistake. They anticipated well and there was no
room for error. Nik was solid in goal again and Sawyer, Marin, Amin
Z1 & Z2 played aggressively and smartly on "D". Arjun was masterful
in the midfield and I was thrilled to see the determination Josh showed
in the second half with his speed and aggressive runs through the offensive
zone - it was his best game so far. The real story though was Viper
heart. When it seemed like maybe the boys had handed the game over,
Dylan stepped up and refused to be denied. Once he scored that one
you knew they wouldn't look back and Riz put the cap on with a beautiful,
game-winning goal. Well done Vipers, it was a gutsy win and everyone
one shares credit for a solid team effort. |
Spring
Challenge Tournament - Game 2
-
4
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Baturyn
Crushers - 0
-
| You can learn a lot from a loss and today
we saw a Vipers team which was better at their positions - though there
still needs to be some improvement. Midfielders were better at coming
back, our first two goals were the result of great crosses (we really have
to do more of that), and the defence were more cautious, especially Amin
who played a phenomenal game. Most teams want to give us the outside
of the field, they know how lethal we can be in the middle, and we have
to keep taking it whenever possible because I know the boys can win games
playing down the sidelines. Strong work today from Josh as well.
Hopefully we can build on this later today. Great job Vipers! |
Spring
Challenge Tournament - Game 1
-
1
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Ottewell
United - 3
-
Well, all good things come to an end eventually.
For those not counting, it had been 45 games since we last lost a regular
season or tournament match. It was an amazing run, a testament to
the work and consistency of these boys, and along the way they very often
relied on heart to beat teams with much more talent and experience.
Inevitably though, such a streak brings about a certain cockiness and lack
of focus which has to catch up with you sometime. Tonight the boys
learned what happens when you don't play your position and they very often
left Nik all alone. Credit to Ottewell, they saw the weakness and
they took advantage of it.
-
Now, it was obvious that our opponent
abused the tournament's "guest player" allowances and brought in some out-of-age-group
players. It doesn't matter though. We always say "no excuses"
on our team. We believe every game is ours to win or lose and tonight
was no exception. Besides, we don't enter tournaments solely to win
gold medals. We enter for the experience. We're here to better
ourselves and our team. This experience will be a very positive one
in the long run. Those who remember the infamous Aspen Gardens game
will also remember that one week later the Vipers turned in the best performance
of their lives - one of the best us old soccer folks have ever seen in
any age group.
-
I have complete confidence that tomorrow
the boys will take what they have learned and be a much better team for
it. They will be better at their positions, they will work harder,
they will get back to basics and, who knows, they may yet play in that
Gold medal game on Sunday. |
Game
9
-
5
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Southwood
B - 2
-
| Well, in a way it didn't quite live up
to the hype. In the midst of some truly bizarre officiating, neither
team really played their best. Fortunately, in the end, the ref didn't
really change the outcome of the game but it sure was frustrating to watch
(how an attacker can run around a defender, creating his own breakaway,
and then be called offside is simply beyond me). For our part, the
boys didn't really play the way they have lately. Then again, Southwood
is a much better team than they showed us today as well. Play was
confined mainly to the middle of the field, we never really used the outside,
there weren't a lot of good crosses, and the midfielders didn't come back
very much or very quickly - perhaps they were thinking ahead to the tournament.
That being said, they played well enough to beat the team which was supposed
to be their biggest challenge, and they did it even with a number of disallowed
goals, plus Nik looked really strong in goal again. It was a gritty
win to be sure. |
Game
8
-
13
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Millhurst
- 0
-
| Wow! I'm not sure where that came
from but the passing was the best it has been yet - not just the long crosses
& leads, but the idea of keeping the ball moving all the time.
There were so many examples of short inside and outside passes in sequence,
5 or 6 in a row before any real offensive attack took place, and it is
very difficult to defend against that kind of perpetual movement.
We have worked so hard at that in practice, and even in our previous two
games with our "everyone gets a goal" objective, so I was very proud of
the boys for the level of game maturity they are showed tonight.
Tino's crosses were incredible, Josh made some really nice dish out passes
coming through the offensive zone, Marin made a couple of confident "exclamation
point" takeaways (right off the attackers' feet), and Arjun played
his best game yet. The real star though was the team as a single
unit, everyone played well, everyone was thinking and working hard, and
if they can keep playing this well they will give Southwood a pretty good
challenge on Thursday. |
Game
7
-
11
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Ridgewood
- 1
-
| Another game we knew wouldn't be close
so we focused on our objective of getting goals for those 4 defenders who
hadn't scored yet. Z2 was the first to pop one in (he hates forward
and wanted back on "D" as soon as possible!). Amin had a lot of bad
luck in the first half and was probably wondering if it was meant to be
but, in the second half (after having a goal disallowed), he finally tucked
one in and we were down to 2 players still looking. Later in the
half Z1 got his chance and made no mistake - then there was one.
Marin appeared to score but it was waved off because of a hand ball so
he was awarded a penalty kick which he sailed clear over the net (although
it would have been 3 points in football)! His moment finally came
though, and with Marin's goal we reached ours as well. As of Game
7, all 16 Lakewood Vipers have now scored and I think it is a great achievement.
In all, 8 players shared in the scoring tonight and I am very proud of
the teamwork they all showed. Great job Vipers! Now we get
back to the tougher games including a big game with Southwood B which will
decide 1st place for round one. |
Game
6
-
7
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Meadows
- 0
-
| One look at the the standings would tell
you this wasn't going to be a close contest but our team philosophy wouldn't
have us looking for a double digit score as some other teams have done.
Teams don't learn or grow from that. Each year we set a team goal
that every single player on the team will score at least once, even defenders.
It encourages the boys to look around, to see their team mates, and it
helps develop our passing game and positional play. More importantly,
it is an exercise in team concept, the idea that every member of our team
is equally important, and so we worked tonight to set up our very talented
defenders and midfielders who make it possible for our offence to shine
game after game. There were some really outstanding passes by all
of our players, Riz & Dylan made some "world class" crosses,
and I was very proud of the way everyone worked so unselfishly as a team. |
Mill
Woods Tournament - Gold Medal Game
-
5
- Lakewood Vipers vs. North
Millbourne - 0
-
Well don't say you won't remember this
one for a long time! It was cold, wet, miserable, and yet the boys
put forth another solid effort. Nik was right there when needed,
Ronak made some key plays on "D" and midfield, and our "double Zach attack"
was tremendously strong on the defensive outsides. North Millbourne
was trying to play an offside trap so our forwards and midfielders did
great staying onside and won some tough battles pushing through a pretty
physical midfield wall system which our opponents set up. Really,
when it is a team effort like that it is hard to pick out just a few highlights
and, when you look at the tournament as a whole, you can see that every
single player contributed in a substantial way to this gold medal (as it
should be). Congratulations boys, we're all very proud of you!
-
(click HERE
for pictures)
|
Mill
Woods Tournament - Game 3
-
2
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Meadows
Snipers - 0
-
| Was that exciting or what? 0-0 at
the half, and a nail biter to the very end. The boys played tentatively
in the first half, and Meadows had clearly been coached to play a very
safe game and slow it down wherever possible. It is hard to gather
momentum when the ball is kicked out of bounds at every turn but, credit
where credit is due, our opponent played a smart game. Apart from
two nice goals by Dylan and Willem, the latter following a great setup
from Matthew, the biggest difference was some phenomenal(!!!) goalkeeping
by Niklas. Elsewhere, Gabriel was relentless in the midfield (as
usual) and our defenders (Z1, Z2 and Amin) played a strong game despite
having no substitutions. A special mention to Austin who kept Meadows'
#20 in check for much of the first half, no small task I can assure you.
Nice passing, smart play, good teamwork... another strong effort
boys! |
Mill
Woods Tournament - Game 2
-
6
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Southwood
Stingers - 2
-
| Both talented and well coached, Southwood
was definitely the team to beat, and they will be again near the end of
our regular season, but the boys responded and looked really solid out
there against a tired team which, in fairness, was playing their second
match of the day. Five boys shared in the goal scoring, there were
lots of other close calls, and their were some really nice setups.
It was nice to see our forwards passing the ball around a bit more, that
has been improving every game, and some more great work out at the sidelines.
It's definitely coming around! A few highlights - a very nice "lob
shot" goal by Tino, excellent defensive work on the outside by Zach (Z1)
and some absolutely brilliant two way play by Arjun. Honestly, everyone
had a strong game and, as the saying goes, you win as a team. |
Mill
Woods Tournament - Game 1
-
6
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Millhurst
Crusaders - 0
-
| A very strong game against a talented
and well coached team. We saw some promising things tonight, including
a better awareness of using the outsides of the field and some really outstanding
passing. Once again the "D" was solid, delivering our second shutout
in two nights. Too many highlights to mention really but there was
a beautiful cross by Arjun, followed by a good finish from Matthew, a great
deke and pass out of the defensive corner by Willem, persistent midfield
pressure by Gabriel, and a highlight reel goal by Riz. An excellent
effort all around and thanks to everyone who got there early! |
Game
5
-
7
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Burnewood
A - 0
-
| Well, you can't knock a team for winning
by such a large margin, clearly our Vipers were the better team, but it
was the sort of game which can promote bad habits as players wander way
out of position trying to share in the scoring jackpot. When an opponent
bunches up it is very tempting to follow them and to go where the action
is rather than wait patiently at your position. There were also a
lot of errors on throw-ins and we really have to work on this aspect of
our game. Still, it was a big victory, considering we were short
three players (all defenders), and it was our first shutout of the season.
Good effort boys! |
Game
4
-
9
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Knottwood
- 2
-
| Down 2-0 almost immediately, but after
that it wasn't really in doubt. It was a gutsy performance by the
Knottwood squad who was short two players, had no subs, and gave it their
all despite the heat. Five players shared in our scoring but, beyond
that, it was a difficult game to evaluate with so many things out of our
normal routine (time of day, temperature, late arrivals, opponents short),
and we were busy moving players into positions they don't normally play.
Kudos to Sawyer for sticking so consistently to his wing, never getting
out of position, and waiting patiently for his linemates to see him. |
Game
3
-
9
- Lakewood Vipers vs. North
Milbourne A - 4
-
| A bit of a shocker to be honest.
North Millbourne is a talented team with excellent coaching but our Vipers
came roaring out of the gates and an early 4-0 lead proved too much to
climb back from, although it got tense at 4-3! Other than some midfield
lapses during Millbourne's goal outburst it was an improved effort to be
sure. Seven players shared in the scoring, there was some
very nice passing up front and there were even signs that they team may
be gaining some awareness of the sidelines and using the width of the field
(special mention to Matthew in this regard). Best of all, during
some questionable and often confusing officiating, the boys kept their
composure and remained focused and sportsmanlike (we'll work on
the parents though!). The ref even mentioned to me after the game
how well the boys had behaved throughout all of it. We're proud of
them for that. |
Game
2
-
8
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Meadows
B - 5
-
| Another good effort. Still much
to work on though, especially "bunching up". We knew that our team's
toughest adjustment to the big field would be at the midfield position
which is why we decided to go with the four man mid system. Learning how
to get the most out of our midfielders will be a big priority in practice.
Positives - five different players scored and there were some very nice
forward passes on the fly which we had worked on in practice. We've
always been a team that responds better to challenge and it was nice to
see the boys put the game away so quickly when things became close.
Other than some disorganization on substitutions (the coach needs to go
to bed earlier), it was a really fun game to watch - and it was a lot warmer
too! |
Game
1
-
4
- Lakewood Vipers vs. Southwood
A - 1
-
All in all, a pretty good start.
We expected that the boys, 14 of whom have never played on the big field
before, would have some trouble adapting to the width of the field after
years on smaller surfaces. Sure enough, play was mostly confined
to the middle third of the field, rarely coming out to the sidelines, and
"fanning out" is something we will definitely have to work on.
It was great to see good parity on the
team, everyone contributed, and that scoring was spread over four different
players (with good chances for several others). It was a strong effort
from a great bunch of boys and definitely something we will be able to
build on. More importantly, we all had fun and this is a really positive
group. It should be a fun season! |
-
-
2005 ASA Final U12
Standings
-
1. Calgary PSA United
(Club)
2. Calgary Triwood
Juventus (Club)
3. CASA Sylvan Lake
(Club)
4. Airdrie Aztecs
(Club)
5. Lakeland Strikers
(Club)
6. Lakewood Vipers
(Community)
7. Edmonton Lessard
(Select)
8. CASA #2
(Club)
(Vipers
Finish Sixth in Province of Alberta)
-
-
-
Edmonton
City Championships - Tier 4
- |
| Team |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
GF |
GA |
+/- |
Pts |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Lessard |
3
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
12
|
5
|
+7
|
9
|
| Lakewood Vipers |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
6 |
7 |
-1 |
4 |
| Delwood |
3 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
8 |
12 |
-4 |
2 |
| Aspen Gardens |
3 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
6 |
8 |
-2 |
1 |
- -
MWSA
Round 2 - Tier 4 - Final Standings
- |
| Team |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
GF |
GA |
+/- |
Pts |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Lakewood
Vipers |
5
|
5
|
0
|
0
|
34
|
6
|
+28
|
15
|
| Southwood B |
5 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
16 |
17 |
-1 |
6 |
| Meadows B |
5 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
11 |
26 |
-15 |
4 |
| N. Millbourne
A |
5 |
0 |
3 |
2 |
16 |
28 |
-12 |
2 |
- -
MWSA
Round 1 - Final Standings
- |
| Team |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
GF |
GA |
+/- |
Pts |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Lakewood
Vipers |
10
|
10
|
0
|
0
|
74
|
15
|
+59
|
30
|
| N.
Millbourne A |
10
|
8
|
2
|
0
|
75
|
26
|
+49
|
24
|
| Southwood
B |
10
|
6
|
2
|
2
|
54
|
23
|
+31
|
20
|
| Meadows
B |
10
|
6
|
3
|
1
|
43
|
27
|
+16
|
19
|
| Millhurst |
10
|
6
|
3
|
1
|
37
|
33
|
+4
|
19
|
| N.
Millbourne B |
10
|
4
|
4
|
2
|
41
|
22
|
+19
|
14
|
| Southwood
A |
10
|
4
|
4
|
2
|
30
|
26
|
+4
|
14
|
| Burnewood
A |
10
|
3
|
7
|
0
|
17
|
33
|
-16
|
9
|
| Knottwood |
10
|
3
|
7
|
0
|
14
|
49
|
-35
|
9
|
| Ridgewood |
10
|
1
|
9
|
0
|
14
|
87
|
-73
|
3
|
| Meadows |
10 |
0 |
10 |
0 |
7 |
65 |
-58 |
0 |
-
-
Standings Sorted by:
1. Points
2. Head to Head
3. Plus/Minus
4. Goals Against
5. Goals For
|
