Powell River Villa lost to Gorge FC by a score of 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the John Jackson Cup, bringing the local side’s cup run to an end after two games. The game took place on March 5 in Victoria.
“The effort was there, and the team worked very hard right to the end of the game, but we couldn’t capitalize on chances for any goals,” said Chris McDonough, Villa’s manager. “Gorge is a good team, and just like us have improved since the beginning of the season. We did hold them scoreless through the first half, and both their goals were scored midway through the second half, after which we really pressed them hard. There are still a lot of positives to take away from the game, even though it was a loss.”
Gorge pressed Villa from the outset, although neither team scored in the first half.
“Gorge had a great chance just before halftime, when they were awarded a penalty kick,” said Tony Leach, Villa’s coach. “The Gorge player put the shot towards the bottom right corner of the net, and Scott [McKenzie] dove over and made an incredible save on the first shot. The Gorge player, one of our defenders, and Scott all got to the rebound at the same time, and the shot was deflected off Scott again for a corner kick. We were very happy to end the half tied scoreless.”
Gorge scored twice in the second half, at 62 minutes and 69 minutes respectively.
“There was a very similar set-up to both goals, and unfortunately they both came from small mistakes we made during play,” said McDonough. “We had players miss their checks and lose their man, which gave Gorge the opportunity to score, and they did. But other than that, we really did hold them for most of the game, and put in a solid performance as a team.”
Both Leach and McDonough had high praise for McKenzie, as well as Richard “Chico” Murphy on defence and James Timothy, Jack Padgett and Niko Cristante in the forward positions.
“We’ve definitely come a long way since the beginning of the season,” said Leach. “Sometimes when there’s a change in intensity of play, like there was this weekend against Gorge, some of the players struggle to adapt, but responding to that comes with experience, and we are still a very young team. Even the Gorge coach came up to us after the game and commented on how well our players were performing.”
Villa isn’t done with the Vancouver Island Soccer League (VISL) season yet, however, as the club will meet Gorge FC again on Saturday, March 19, at Timberlane Park, and needs a win to avoid relegation to Division 2.
“This is our last game, and also our biggest game, of the regular season,” said McDonough. “A win will likely take us out of the relegation zone, depending on what happens this coming weekend between Juan de Fuca and Comox, and that’s been our goal all year. Having just faced Gorge in the Jackson Cup, we know what adjustments we need to make, we’ll be rested while they’ll have played at least once more between, and we’ll play them in Powell River on the grass in front of the hometown crowd.”
Kickoff will be at 1:30 pm, and tickets will be available at the gate.
Charity match
Villa will play once more before breaking for the summer. The Boxing Day charity game, which had to be rescheduled due to snow, will take place on Saturday, March 26, at Timberlane Park. The two teams will be Powell River Villa, coached by Paul Liknes, and Stevie’s Steelers, coached by Jim Veenhof.
Liknes and Veenhof will be honoured at the game for their contributions to soccer in Powell River, and proceeds from the event will be donated to the Salvation Army and Powell River Food Bank.
