Powell River Villa broke its four-game losing streak with a 0-0 tie on the road against Nanaimo FC on Saturday, October 22.
“We went back to basics in this game and focused on taking care of our own end, as well as sticking to our game plan, and we came away with a point,” said Chris McDonough, Villa’s manager. “We haven’t been able to get points in Nanaimo these last few years, so this is a positive result in more ways than one.”
The Powell River side had a few good scoring chances during the game, including a breakaway by James Timothy three minutes before the end of the match.
“James took possession of the ball in centre field and ran in with one Nanaimo defenceman chasing him down,” said Tony Leach, Villa’s coach. “He cut to the left where the defenceman ran through, and Nanaimo’s keeper followed the defenceman, which left half the net open. Unfortunately, the ball went off his foot a little wrong and just missed the post. It was a great opportunity, and almost gave us the win.”
Leach and McDonough praised the overall commitment and effort by all the team members, which they said provides a good foundation to build on for upcoming games. The team’s renewed focus on defensive strategies and faster starts in each half helped Villa turn things around after four consecutive losses.
“We moved a few players around in positions, like putting Niko [Cristante] in the midfield and Jake [Kenmuir] on defence, and they did very well in those positions,” said McDonough. “And Matt [Liknes] made an amazing save in the second half to keep the game scoreless.
“Nanaimo got off a good shot from about 25 yards out; it was definitely going into the net in the top corner, but Matt got a fingertip on it and just deflected it up over the bar. It was definitely a save-of-the-year move.”
Villa returns to Timberlane Park on Saturday, October 29, to host Victoria Highlanders. Highlanders are five points ahead of Villa in the Vancouver Island Soccer League (VISL) Division 1 standings, and are coming off their own tied game against Cowichan Axis FC this past weekend.
“Highlanders have been getting stronger this year as well, and it’s always interesting when they come to Powell River,” said Leach. “We tied them here last year, so we’re aiming for a good effort on our home field and an entertaining game for our fans.”
Kickoff is at 1:30 pm, and tickets will be available at the gate.
Lakehill FC currently sits atop VISL Division 1 standings with 19 points, followed by Gorge FC and Vic West FC with 16 points each. Cowichan and Highlanders are tied for fourth place with 10 points each, ahead of Nanaimo (eight points), Bays United (seven), Villa and Westcastle (five points each), and Comox Valley United (three points).
Villa has three road games next month, at Cowichan (November 6), Westcastle (November 12) and Comox (November 19), and one home game versus Lakehill (November 26).
