The TOFC U16 boys defeated Fusion (Vancouver-Richmond) on May 5, 2 to 0, to win their third game in the British Columbia Soccer Premier League (BCSPL) season.
From the beginning of the game, the TOFC boys executed what coach Tom Flanagan had been preaching throughout the year, namely stringing passes together and letting the ball do the work. In the second half, Fusion pressed hard to regain a 1-0 deficit, but the TOFC side held firm. Although Fusion had 13 corner kicks to TOFC’s one, and out-chanced the home team 13 to five, the winning team did control the ball at times and pressured Fusion’s back line. In the 63rd minute, a series of wild bounces led to the second goal of the game – centre midfielder Tyler Shalansky from Kelowna lobbed the ball off his knee to forward Isaac Walton from Salmon Arm, and a few bounces later the ball sailed over Fusion’s keeper into the back of the net.
The Thompson Okanagan U16 boys won their second consecutive game on May 6 at the Rutland fields by beating South Fraser FC 3 to 2 in a close game. The first half ended in a tie and, in the second half, it looked like TOFC would take the lead when Walton broke free at midfield and went in alone on South Fraser’s keeper; the ball hit the post and the game remained tied. Three minutes into injury time Ben McDonald of Kelowna headed the ball in off a TOFC corner kick to give the team a well-deserved victory.
Kaos triumphs
In North Okanagan Women’s Soccer Association Masters Division play May 15, Salmon Arm’s Kaos defeated Vernon’s Controllers 1-0 in a hard-fought contest.