Men's soccer preview:

October 8-

> Falcons inbound

Davie Wong Sports Editor

t’s safe to say that no one is

happy about how the men performed last week, least of all the men’s team. Getting blown out sucks, no matter who you lose to. The team looked devastated after last week’s 6-0 loss to the Capilano Blues. They will need to bounce back strong. Unfortunately, it can be a little tough to do that. Mental fortitude and strength plays a huge role in any sport, for any team. It takes a lot of strength to bounce back from a loss like that, and I’m not sure if the men have shown they have that.

The loss marks the third

time the team has gone down a couple of goals and given up. That can’t be happening. The team can’t give up before the game is over. They can’t just concede themselves to the loss and be content with winning the next one. This team wants

9

to be a National Title contender, and in that tournament, one loss costs you your shot at gold. The team needs to buckle down and get mentally tougher, because

if they buckle after giving up

a couple of goals, Nationals is going to be the last thing they have to worry about.

Hopefully, the fact that they play the struggling Langara Falcons next will be enough to pick them up. The Falcons have yet to win a single game this season, and sit at the bottom of the PACWEST standings with two points. Hardly the supposed challenge of a rivalry match, but for the down and low Royals, it could actually be tough.

The last time the two teams played, it was the season opener for the Royals. They barely clipped the Falcons, scoring in an odd way off a quick tap free kick. It’s worrying to think about how close that game was, now that the Falcons are easily the worst team in the PACWEST. The Royals will really need to

Falling Royals

> Men’s soccer team collapses

Davie Wong Sports Editor

Gineeys clash against

the Capilano Blues was supposed to be the Royals’ chance to prove themselves

as PACWEST?’s elite men’s soccer team. A win against the CCAA’s second-best team in the country would go a long way to prove the Royals were indeed back in championship form. Unfortunately, fate had another place for them to be.

The Royals came out of the gates aggressive, and their ball movement spoke of the fast- paced offence that they’re so used to playing. Several deep drives by the Royals saw the ball by the Blues net, but the Blues’ defensive line was deeper than regular, having anticipated the Royals aggressive start. They would match their visitors, foot for foot. Their defensive stance to start caught the Douglas team off guard,

which opened up room for the Blues to launch several counters,

Last year’s PACWEST men’s soccer rookie, Kristian Yli-Hietanen, has had a quiet sophomore year so far. But this game, he went off. The tip of the counter attack for the Blues found a way to poke holes all over the Royals’ defense. His first goal came off a steal from the Blues, which sprung him into a counter. Receiving a low-cross from his teammate, Hietanen slid into the ball to tuck it right under the top-left corner of the net.

Put under pressure of being swallowed up by the Blues’ offensive prowess, the Royals made a desperate bid to tie up the game. Taking the ball deep into the Blues’ zone, the team tried to hold it there to establish pressure and presence, but the Blues backline was just too good. Try as they might, the Royals could not hold the

step it up.

I'm expecting six points out of the Royals this weekend. The minimum I can see them getting is four. Anything less and coaches Robby and Paul can go back to the drawing board because that’s pretty much a failure. For the emotionally charged Royals, a loss to the worst team in the PACWEST can really damage their morale. If they lose the first game, it wouldn't surprise me to see them lose the second as well. If they really do lose both games, it may be a turning point in the Royals season.

Of course, the atmosphere of the games will always help the home team. For the Royals, who play at home for the first since week one of the PACWEST season, a good atmosphere would give them the drive they need. Help raise their morale by coming out and supporting them as they take on the Langara Falcons at Cunnings Field on Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

ball and establish their regular presence, To make matters worse, it would seem Hietanen was playing a poaching role for the Blues, and his defenders found a way to spring him every time. To make matters worse, the Royals defenders couldn’t lock him down. He caught the defence flat-footed and broke though the line by himself. Left alone with the goalkeeper, Hietanen put away his second of the game to put the pressure back on the Royals.

As the saying goes, the goal was the straw that broke the Royals’ backs. Demotivated and demoralized, the Royals did little to fight back against the Blues’ take over of the game. Hietanen would add a third goal to finish his hat-trick, and the Royals would go down to 10 men shortly after. Royals’ defender Matthew Pierre delivered a bad takedown after being caught off-guard by the Blues and was handed a straight

(¥ Remembering José Fernandez (¥ Fighting Fit: Straight Outta Jerusalem

(Y Comeback Queens

And more!

WOMEN'S SOCCER

INSTITUTION CONF PTS LANGARA 4-1-2 14 VIU 2-1-5 11 DOUGLAS 2-2-3 9 CAPILANO 2-2-3 9 QUEST 0-4-3 3

J MEN'S SOCCER

INSTITUTION CONF PTS CAPILANO 6-0-1 19 VIU 4-3-1 B DOUGLAS 3-3-1 10 QUEST 2-4-1 7 LANGARA 0-5-2 2

red card by the referee.

From there, it would only get worse. The Blues capped off three more goals by the end of the game, while the Royals

Photo by Davie Wong

. s 4 ese a « ae struggled to get out of their own half. The end score of 6-o for the Blues is a memory the

Royals will be wanting to forget. Hopefully forever.