This week in the women's league, the Gibsons Pigs gave the Xenichen Ya Yas their first loss.
The game was played at Ted Dixon, and while conventional wisdom picked the home team Ya Yas, it was the Pigs who prevailed.
Ya Yas were missing supercharged fullback Sara Agnew, and the Pigs took the field without indomitable striker Ginny Blattler. The field was a bit mucky, but that seemed to suit the Pigs. The game's single goal came from Jen Rhodes, who returned to the Pigs' lineup with flair, taking a nice run down the wing to beat her defender and smack a ball upstairs past the far post.
LJ Contracting Fusion met CALs Crushers at Connor for a well-fought match, which Fusion took 2-0. The game had some stellar goalkeeping. In the first half, CALs' Linda Coady slid across the muddy goalmouth to get her fingers on a low blast from Michelle Towert and sent the ball just outside the post.
In the second half, Teresa "Stonewall" Sorensen faced a well-struck penalty shot from Teresa Fournier, which she dove at to punch out of bounds. Fusion's first goal came from Vicki Schneider, who powered a ball through the 18 and tucked inside the post. The second goal from Fusion came on a rebound. After Coady made the initial save, Melissa diPietro ran in from the wing and knocked it into the net.
Coast Progressive Blazers fought the Marshall Mayhem to a 3-3 tie. Blazers' goals came from Jenica Vaneli with two and Christine Campbell after Dani Thompson moved the ball up the field. Viki Pauls got her first goal as a Blazer in the Blazers' makeup game earlier in the week. For Mayhem, Stephanie Ross scored twice, by deflecting a loose ball and then by being in the right place at the right time to bang in her second. Andrea Aleong also scored, volleying in a cross from Jen Fitchell. Laura Bush played well for Mayhem.
Men's league contenders Gibsons United and IGA Selects played to a 2-2 tie.
United's big midfielder Ian Armstrong broke through the defensive line and hit a ball high into the top corner, and Chris Marsh put his foot to a rebounding ball inside the 18. Selects' masterful midfielder Bill Davis took a ball from Eric Penfold to score, and longtime league striker John Nickerson got the Selects' second.
Coast Progressive United met HMB at Connor and played a spirited, hotly-contested match. CPU started the scoring with a header from Steve Oka. New HMB striker Mike Cowie countered with a header of his own just before the half.
In the second, CPU got goals from Dave Rogers and relentless Sean Cullen, who kept coming on, tapping in his own rebound. HMB got good midfield playmaking from Trevor Cockfield, Jack Bryson and Peter Williams and good play from keeper George Cuthbertson who stayed in the game after taking a hard crack to the head.
Cheers also to HMB player Jeff Shupe, who threw on the zebra shirt and whistle when the game had no ref.
In what was to be the exciting rematch to last year's final, the Xenichen Wolves/Gibsons Pigs match was cancelled. The boys in blue arrived en masse to Ted Dixon, but there were only eight Wolves there to meet them. Hopefully the Wolves can get some men out on the field and return to their championship form.
Pender Bananas beat the Sechelt Chiefs 9-1.
Though the Chiefs had only nine men, they fought hard until the final whistle. Pender got three goals from Robin Millar, two from Richard Massullo and singles from Rod Kammerle, Brent Sheppard and Macho Macellin. Curtis Craigan scored for Chiefs. Chiefs beat the Selects in their Thursday night game 3-1.
Now that the Ya Yas have finally lost, who will beat the Pigs? Kammerle says his second-place Bananas are the bunch to do it this weekend.
