Most soccer coaches would probably be left wondering what happened if their teams were involved in a match where they combined for 16 goals.
However, those involved with Thursday’s 9-7 exhibition win for the John Paul II Crusaders over the North Battleford Comprehensive High School Vikings were using the match as a good base to build on for the upcoming season.
“This was our first game of the year and the girls had only practiced twice before hand,” Crusaders coach Amanda Hansen said. “Many of them hadn’t played before, so a lot of what we wanted to see was how they were in certain positions and how they interacted with one another.”
“When you have a game like this you just want to see how far along your squad is,” Vikings coach Sebastian Prost added. “We have a number of new faces this year, but I like where things are headed.”
It was the Vikings that took control of the match early as they jumped out to a commanding lead thanks to a six-goal outing by Grade 11 student Graci Albert.
“We had some great play up front and that included our players who came on from the bench,” Prost said. “There was a drive from all of them to get some goals.
“We played really well in the first half and in the early part of the second half. Then we had a few breakdowns in our own end on defence, but that’s something we will get better as the girls work on their communications and grow more into their positions.”
It was in the late stages of the second half that momentum dramatically swung to the Crusaders, as they scored four unanswered goals to complete a dramatic comeback.
“What I liked the most is the fact that the girls never quit out there,” Hansen said. “They could have easily given up when they got down by a few goals but they kept working hard and it was impressive to watch them take the lead back.”
This year’s Crusaders team is a young one with more than half of the roster being Grade 9 students.
“This is a really fun group to coach,” Hansen said. “They get along well and as they get to know each other better on the field you can see how strong their communication is between one another.”
The Vikings have a fair number of returning players this year, although only four of them are in Grade 12.
“We have a strong mix of Grade 10 and 11 players that we can build around for the next couple of years,” Prost said.
“We also have a lot of Grade 9 players on our junior team this year so there’s a great development base here. That’s very exciting so see as a coach.”
The Vikings will travel to Lloydminster Wednesday for a game with the Holy Rosary Raiders.
They will host a rematch next Wednesday before they take part in a tournament hosted by the John Paul II Crusaders on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1.
Prior to their home tournament, the Crusaders will compete at an event in Prince Albert this coming weekend.
