Powell River Villa pressed the third place team in Vancouver Island Soccer League Division 1 standings until the final whistle on Saturday, November 30, but fell just short in a 4-3 loss to Victoria Highlanders.
“We started off slow to quickly go behind 3-0, but after some tactical adjustments we started to get back in the game,” said Villa manager Chris McDonough. “A great individual effort and finish from Jerod Timothy put us on the board to make it 3-1, and right before half, Jerod scored again. After being brought down in the box, he stepped up and finished his penalty shot to pull us within one.”
Villa came out strong in the second half but fell behind 4-2 before applying even more pressure. Late in the match, another penalty kick was awarded when Niko Cristante was taken down in the penalty area. Jacob Duyvesteyn stepped up and put the ball into the back of the net to cut the deficit to one goal.
“In the dying minutes, we swarmed the Highlanders and came close to getting an equalizer, but came up short,” said McDonough. “I thought the team showed great character, never giving up, going down 3-0 and battling back.”
He added that Timothy has been in top form with five goals in the last two games since coming back from suspension.
Powell River hosts Gorge FC at 1:30 pm on Saturday, December 7, at Timberlane Park. Gorge is tied for sixth in Division 1 with 15 points, six ahead of ninth place Villa.
Powell River wraps up the 2024 portion of its schedule on December 14 in Victoria versus Bays United, who also have 15 points. Villa has played one fewer game than each of its next two opponents.
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