Any children’s sporting event after Halloween always brings thoughts of how their saturated blood sugar ratio will affect the game, and this was no exception. The Sunshine Coast Storm U13 Girls soccer team arrived at their home field of Kinnikinnick on Nov. 1 with the rain barrels overflowing and the fans excited to show off their umbrellas of choice, awaiting the Surrey Delta Lightning.
If ever there was a sporting event not to miss, this was it. The usual first half cobwebs were nowhere to be seen. The monsters were loose and no one could stop them. They were our monsters, and the ghoulish smiles on the fans’ faces could not be wiped off.
Out of the funhouse came Charlotte Thomson accelerating like she just devoured all her candy bag, making inroads through the confused Lightning offence. Ella Campbell as usual was not to be denied a part in this party and began her flurry of calculated explosions, making it impossible for them to get any real momentum.
Piper Goerzen and Gracie Hemstreet seemed to be reading each other’s minds right from the whistle, commencing the unbelievably coordinated passing game this was soon to be. Play after play, minute after minute, the Storm rallied together, bringing in other players like Jasmine Fitzsimons who tapped into Piper’s calm control to move the ball effortlessly. Pippa Boothroyd decided that no one was playing in her sandbox today, Karys Kooyman agreed with her and changed the momentum in true warrior style. Leela Fernandes had a demon in her eyes, resulting in a domination that scared the Lightning right out of contention, and Lauryn Stinson sprinted her way magically from play to play.
With the team axe-sharpened to a terrifying sheen, out of left field came the poetic grace that is Paige Clucas to do a brilliant thigh trap in full stride towards the goal and slot in our first to raucous cheers from the sidelines.
The second half only provided opportunity for more, more and more of the same freakishly awesome style of play that was to be this game of professional calibre soccer on the Sunshine Coast.
The cold and wet provided a brief excuse for the Storm to slack off a little, but as with any good frenzy, it was brief, thanks to more hard-won balls from Mary Wood, out of net, in the back field. Coach Trina was not going to allow a chill to slow the girls down and continued her warm songbird-like wails onto the frozen field.
Wars are won with this kind of leadership. Paige pushed the game into overdrive, pulling everyone along for the ride, Jasmine slid it up to Gracie for an almost. Teagan Sweet, not to be denied on more occasions than can be mentioned, fought for it all day long. And finally to top it all off Mary delivered a dream, showcasing her kick, from 20 metres out, a perfect geometric arc over the centre pit, off the goaltender’s fully outstretched fingers, just under the bar, slamming the back of the net to make it the final 2-0.
The packed gallery looked at each other with smiles of astonishment, each basically pledging to never miss a home game and cancel the cable sports channel. No matter who was coming to challenge these thrillingly talented girls, it will clearly be, without a doubt, spectacular.
