A year ago, the John Paul II Crusaders were able to punch their ticket to the provincial 2A high school boys’ soccer championship.
The goal for this year’s squad is simple. Return to the provincials next month in Prince Albert and earn a win after being knocked out early last year.
“This year’s team is coming along a lot quicker than we did a year ago,” Crusaders head coach Shalen Fox said. “They are learning how to play with each other, they are learning from the mistakes and they know it’s not the end of the world if they lose a game. They are able to shake it off and bounce back.
“A lot of that has to do with our three Grade 12 players Thunder Morin, Michael Arcand and Narcisse Mbwebwe. They have been on the team for the last four years and they provide great leadership for our younger players.”
The Crusaders have played three matches so far this year. They opened up their season with a 3-0 setback to Se-Se-Wa-Hum.
Following a 4-2 loss in a rematch to open up their home tournament at Crusaders Field Saturday, they bounced back with a 3-1 over the Martensville Royals.
“Overall it was a good weekend for our guys,” Fox said. “We got to see a lot of younger players out on the field and we got to see where we matchup against the other two teams in our division.
“It gives us a better idea of where we are standing at the moment.”
One of the biggest things that Fox is focused on in the first few matches of the year is to get the newer players on the Crusaders used to the fact that they are facing a tougher challenge in senior high school soccer compared to what they have seen with the Battlefords Santos youth club.
“The speed and the strength is completely different,” Fox said. “There’s a two to three year age gap for the players that are in Grades 9 and 10 to the ones that are in Grades 11 and 12.
“It’s really important for them to get used to that at this early stage of the season, and that’s something we will be doing in our tournaments, especially this coming weekend when we go to Prince Albert.”
The 2A boys regional tournament will take place at a yet to be determined location on Oct. 21-22 and will feature Se-Se-Wa-Hum, Martensville, Warman and a school from Moose Jaw.
The top two teams will move on to the provincials the following weekend in Prince Albert.
