The Laurier Brantford co-ed soccer team is looking to emerge from the shadows of the rest of the teams on campus. There are 12 people on the team with five of them being girls. Currently there are two tournaments scheduled for the upcoming year, being played on Nov. 15 and Feb. 7, both at Redeemer University in Ancaster, Ontario.
The biggest difference from this team to last year’s team appears to be the team’s dedication to winning, according to second year player and fourth year student, Matthew Trottier. “The technical skill has improved as well from last year,” says Trottier.
An area of concern for the team has to be that their very first tournament is coming up within two weeks, especially because their team was only finalized last week. But thanks to the strong veteran presence from returning players, the team should be prepared from the start.
Also, having a lot of returning players means that the team should come together rather quickly, which in turn will affect everything from ball movement to communication. All of which should mean that the team will perform well within the short prep time.
Communication is key in soccer because each player has to be on the same page in order for the pace to be played at a comfortable level and for teamwork to be effective.
The team was able to hold their ground in tournament play last year, but the sense I get from talking to members of the team is that the expectations this year are to come in first in tournaments.
With this being such a young team on campus, there are obviously expected to be some growing pains from the group, but thanks to veteran leadership, the team should settle down earlier than expected.
Buy in from each of the players is not only important, but key to a good team as well. The team has to be willing to work at each practice ensuring that they don’t mail it in and waste time. It is hard for this team to get enough time consistently each week in order to practice, so they can’t waste any crucial time. But a veteran-led team can ensure that everyone is on track so they can build towards something successful in the upcoming year.
Unfortunately, soccer does not get the same flare as some of the other sports on campus like basketball or hockey, but that doesn’t mean that their passion and talent should be ignored. The team seems like a hard-working group of people whose expectations are not only to compete in every tournament, but to win. A strong returning group of players combined with good technical skill should mean success for the Golden Hawks extramural soccer team this year.
