Calgary Villains FC News

Elbow Valley Villains U14 Boys Win Bronze in National Championship

After a season of success in Alberta, the Elbow Valley Villains (U14 Boys Div. I Alberta Champions) travelled to eastern Canada to test their level against the champion squads from the rest of Canada, at the Canadian National Championships.

In Moncton, the hospitality was great, and the soccer pitches were in perfect shape. However, the final throes of a nearly spent southern hurricane meant that much of their games would be played in cold, driving rain and strong wind.

In the round robin, the Villains defeated a plucky Yukon team (6-0), and then outlasted Nova Scotia (2-0) in a wet, cold contest that was as much a test of endurance and character as it was soccer skills.

This advanced the Villains to the semi-final game against Quebec. In another soggy game, the Quebec team used their size to great advantage in the sodden conditions, to convincingly defeat the Elbow Valley Villains (6-0). The Villains outplayed Quebec in the first half, and at one point could have been up 2:1 except for two unforgiving crossbar shots.

In the finals match for Bronze, the Elbow Valley Villains met the other semi-final loser, British Columbia. The game was very close, with the lead changing 4 times throughout the game. A regulation time tie (3-3) was followed by two scoreless overtime periods. Finally, in a thrilling shootout, the Elbow Valley Villains prevailed to secure the Bronze for Alberta.

In the finals gold/silver match, Ontario was successful over Quebec, (3-1).

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