It’s tough to find any fault with a season that included just one loss and a national championship medal, but the Capilano Blues men’s soccer team is still feeling the sting after falling one step short of their ultimate goal.
The Blues claimed bronze at the CCAA national championships held Nov. 9-12 in Fort McMurray, beating the Algonquin Thunder 3-2 in the consolation final. Their only loss of the season, however, came at a most inopportune time as the host Keyano Huskies beat the Blues 3-1 in the national semifinal to end Capilano’s claim for a national title.
“The guys had an incredible season,” said head coach Paul Dailly, who was named the national coach of the year after guiding the Blues to their second straight PacWest provincial championship. “To go 15 wins, one loss, two ties on your year, and your only loss costing you a berth in the gold medal game, you can’t really fault them for that.”
Capilano finished second at last year’s national championships and were looking for gold this year after an undefeated season in PacWest play. Their quest started out well as the Blues routed Charlottetown’s Holland Hurricanes 4-0 Wednesday to earn a berth in the
national semifinals.
The matchup with the host Huskies went sideways for the Blues when they scored an unfortunate own goal in the first half. Captain Devan Woolley and goalkeeper Hudson Nelles got their signals crossed on a long ball that came over the top – Woolley headed it back intending for Nelles to gather it up, but the keeper was well off his line and the ball heartbreakingly bounced past him and settled in the Capilano net.
“It was a real unfortunate miscue,” said Dailly. “Credit to them, they both put their hand up.”
The Blues found themselves down two after another defensive miscue in the second half. They got one back, but their furious bid for an equalizer was foiled by strong Keyano goalkeeping with some help from the post and crossbar. A late goal against a sold-out Capilano attack gave the home team a 3-1 win.
“We probably deserved to tie it and go to extra time but unfortunately we just couldn’t get a bounce,” said Dailly. “I think we were definitely a better team, just on the day they got the bounces and we didn’t. … We played well – we just made two defensive miscues that we didn’t make all season long and it cost us, it really hurt us. We were chasing the game from that point. Their goalie made a couple of great saves to keep it at 2-1. We just couldn’t find that equalizer.”
The loss forced the Blues to play an extra game Friday just to make it to the consolation final, and they didn’t let their disappointment slow them down, beating Sainte-Foy 4-0.
“The echo through the locker room was we can hang our heads and feel sorry for ourselves or we can get up and fight another day,” said Dailly. “Credit to them, they chose to fight another day.”
In the bronze medal game the Blues went up 2-0 before Algonquin stormed back to tie it up, the equalizer coming with just six minutes left in the game. With overtime looming, the Blues instead ended it with Edris Najm curling home a left-footed free kick to clinch the bronze. The late goal set off a slightly subdued celebration.
“They were feeling great that they won the bronze and could go home with a medal, but it was bittersweet for them. I know watching the gold game they knew they should have been part of that game for sure,” said Dailly, adding that the team had extra motivation playing for Woolley who was suiting up for the Blues for the final time after five years in the program. “They wanted to reward their fifth-year captain with at least a medal. Obviously it wasn’t the colour we were looking for – we definitely wanted to be in that gold medal match – but I’m just happy they responded the way they did and were able to get that bronze.”
The Blues came home with some individual awards as well, with super striker Keith Jackson – the PacWest’s leading scorer with 11 goals in 12 games – earning all-Canadian status for his stellar season. Jackson battled an ear infection during the national tournament but still managed to fire home three goals in the four games.
Fourth-year defender Nicolas Morello earned a spot on the national championship all-star team, an award that followed his MVP showing at the provincial tournament in late October.
“Nick was great all tournament long. He led by example. He’s a hard-working individual,” said Dailly, adding that recognition is coming for Morello now but he’s been playing at a high level throughout his Capilano career. “He’s been consistent for us ever since he’s been in our program – he’s always performed very well. There were a couple of coaches who thought he was the best player in the league this year. It’s just one of those things – being a defender, sometimes you get overlooked.”
Dailly was also recognized at the national awards banquet for claiming national coach of the year honours.
“A coach is nothing without his team and without the support staff and everyone behind him,” he said. “It’s always nice to be recognized, but I would trade it in for a gold medal any day of the week.”
