SCOTLAND YARD NEWS: Albion Match
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Written by: Jason Stanley, Assistant Coach
We met up with Albion for the second time this season on Saturday at Scotland Yard for our last match of the season. Having squeaked out an overtime victory at Albion in our last match-up, we knew this had the makings of an epic battle between the Scots and the Britons as Albion would certainly be eager to avenge their previous loss.
Albion came out of the gate hard and fast, but we were fortunate to get on the board early as Mark Daisy sent a floating ball across the front of Albion’s goal and over the head of their keeper to Kevin Cross who was waiting to tuck it away on the back post. The remainder of the first half became a midfield struggle for us as we had difficulties organizing against a fluid Albion midfield attack. We were able to keep our 1-0 lead intact going into halftime, but knew we had some adjustments to make if we were going to fend off a second half push from the Britons.
We honored the five senior players at halftime for their four years of service and dedication to the Alma Men’s Soccer program. As they gathered at midfield, some remarks were read over the loudspeaker about the collective group as well as each individual senior. We all took a few moments to recognize those five guys, but quickly had to turn our attention to the large task that lay ahead in the next 45 minutes.
We went back out with the same starting lineup that began the game, looking for some better organization and challenging on 50-50 balls in the middle of the park. To be perfectly honest, Albion proceeded to take it to us for a majority of the second half. But, with some stellar play in net from Anthony and some timely ball-winning from second half substitutes Bobby Jock and Chad Erickson (among others), we were able to keep the Britons off the score sheet and take a 1-0 victory.
The victory was certainly a great way to end the season and an even better way to send off those players playing in their final collegiate match. We finished the year with an overall record of 5-12-2 and a league record of 4-9-1. We finished in 6th place in the MIAA, jumping two spots from our 8th place finish last year, with two victories over 4th place finisher Albion which I think proves that we were capable of playing with just about anyone in the conference.
We didn’t finish the year with the wins and loss totals that I would have liked to have had or even anticipated that we would have had, but I think we made a serious push in the direction that we (collectively) want to be heading in and that to me trumps any final record or single win or loss. Our end goal is to reestablish Alma Men’s Soccer as one of the top contenders in the MIAA and in the region, and I think we made an importantly positive stride towards that goal this year. If you ask anyone associated with this program, they will without doubt tell you that we were a completely different and much improved team from last year, and as long as we continue to improve in such a way, I am certain we will achieve our goal.
We are practicing a few more times this week, going out and having a kick about, mainly for fun. The goalkeepers are trying their hands at playing in the field, and we’ve had a few hidden gems (as well as some real lumps of coal) step between the posts to see if they can’t stop a shot or two better than Anthony, John, or James. We’ll break on Thursday and call it a season, but indoor starts soon, and we’ve got some serious work to do in the weight room during the winter. Fall might be coming to a close, but the soccer really never stops, and I think everyone will agree that’s the way it should always be.
Posted: Wed, November 7th, 2007 at 12:46AM
