It’s better to get the rust out at the start of a season than in the middle of one.
The St. Timothy Thunder boys soccer team found that out as they lost their opening two games against John Diefenbaker and Father Lacombe in Calgary Senior High School Athletic Association (CSHSAA) action.
The Thunder’s season opener against Diefenbaker was played on April 14, at St Tim’s field.
Despite the Thunder having numerous returning players as well as seven Grade 12s, the visitors ran out 7-1 winners, with Miguel Duarte scoring the sole goal for the home side, while Bedel Keyembe bagged a hat-trick for Diefenbaker.
“They’re a very good team,” said Thunder head coach Kevin Pilling, “Them and Father Lacombe are two of the toughest teams in the league. It’s an excuse, but they’re probably got around eight times the population of us. I’ve got around maybe 40 kids to pick from, so they’re just a bigger school.
“Truth be told, we didn’t play as well as we could, but we’ll turn it around. It was our first game, and we’re starting to feel our way around.”
On April 18, Father Lacombe travelled to St. Tim’s and thrashed the Thunder 7-0 to resign the home team to 0-2 in the league, confounding their start to the season.
“It was tough playing against two of the bigger teams in our division, but the boys are used to it,” Pilling said after the Lacombe game. “We created some good chances this game but couldn’t put one away, especially right off the bat when we missed an opportunity.”
Knowing his team – which hasn’t had as much practise as he would like – would have to face two of the top teams right out of the gates, what were Pilling’s expectations going in?
“We wanted to see where we were at as a team, what positions suited what players, and get stuff together for a good finish,” he said. “There’s some players on the team who have been here for three years, and we always try to get a good crop of Grade 10s in and keep building.
“In terms of the talent pool, this is the strongest team I’ve coached in eight years here.”
The Thunder next plays St. Martin de Porres on April 20, at St. Tim’s. It’s an encounter Pilling thinks will be more even than his side’s last two outings.
“We’ll matchup a lot better against them, and it could go either way,” he said. “They’re a lot like us in terms of resources and population.”
Kick-off is 4:15 p.m.
