Carman Valley Leader-September 15, 2003-Kickers eliminated from playoff race

By Gene Still  — The Carman Kickers ended their 2003 soccer season on a losing note. Carman went down to defeat, 3-2, at the hands of St. James U2. The game could have had serious playoff implications for the visiting Kickers as they had been chasing down the eighth and final playoff spot in the Fourth Division of the Manitoba Major Soccer League. But Carman needed a victory over U2 and Ragnarok and East Side to lose their remaining games. Ragnarok co-operated as they were blitzed 9-0 by the second place Hanover Strikers but East Side had defeated the Rovers to secure a playoff berth and officially eliminate Carman. Kickers’ coach William Hoogerdijk, said regardless of what happened in the playoff race, Carman was also trying to remain in the Fourth Division. If they don’t finish in the top ten, they would be moved to the Fifth Division for next season. “It was still an important game because we had a chance to avoid being relegated,” Hoogerdijk said. “And I think from the way we played this year, we should be able to stay at this level (Fourth).” But the Kickers faced an uphill battle before the match began against U2. Carman was only able to field a team of nine players. “We had only nine guys show up because of injuries and other commitments,” Hoogerdijk said. Further complicating matters was that the Kickers were forced to play without either of their regular netminders. Despite being two men short for the entire contest and having to go with Mike Kamminga, who hadn’t played the position for several years, in net, Carman refused to quit. “The nine guys that came out, played their hearts out,” Hoogerdijk said. “And Mike did a pretty good job in net for us.” The Kickers opened the scoring about 15 minutes into the opening half, when Pete Vanderzwaag scored the game’s opening goal off of a corner kick by teammate Kendall Ferris. But about eight minutes later U2 scored on a header to tie it. Vanderzwaag then pressured the St. James defence into a mistake as they tried to pass the ball back to their goalie but he was rushed and made a poor kick to get it out of the U2 zone. “He didn’t get enough on the ball and Dale Dewit pounced on it and pumped back it,” Hoogerdijk said. That lead lasted until there were about seven minutes to go before the intermission and U2 tied it up off of another header. Despite having twice surrendered the lead, the Kickers remained upbeat at the half. “We came into the half feeling pretty good and there was a lot of guys telling each other to ‘keep your energy up and play smart’,” Hoogerdijk said. But it wasn’t meant to be on this day for Carman as St. James got what turned out to be the game winner just twelve minutes into the second half. “We were down but we probably had another four chances to score,” he said. “We couldn’t get the equalizer, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying.”In the end, the short bench caught up with the club.“Some of the guys said, that even when they got to the ball, ‘I didn’t have much energy to do anything with it’,” Hoogerdijk noted. “Still, it was a real solid effort from the guys.“They never gave up.”

Carman Valley Leader- September 15, 2003-It’s next year time for Carman

Coach looks back on season highs and lows

By Gene Still  — Their season may have ended in disappointment by missing the playoffs, but the Carman Kickers are already looking ahead to next year. Carman narrowly missed out on the eighth and final playoff spot in the Fourth Division of the Manitoba Major Soccer League. But they did manage to avoid being relegated to the Fifth Division for next season by finishing tenth overall. This marked coach William Hoogerdijk’s inaugural season at the helm of the Kickers. And while he brought extensive experience in the game to his position, he was a newcomer to the players and teams in the Fourth Division.“I really didn’t know what to expect. This was my first year in the league so at first, I was asking some of the guys what to expect from some of the other clubs,” Hoogerdijk said. “That really helped and after about the 11th game when I’d seen all the teams, then I was definitely more comfortable.”The club actually got off to a strong start with three straight wins, although the coach acknowledged that the victories weren’t necessarily against the top contenders. “We started off against some of the weaker teams and won three straight which was a nice way to begin,” he said. However Carman hit a tough stretch as the calibre of the competition improved. Early in the season, they lost three contests after surrendering an average of five goals and lost another when they gave up seven goals. But the coach noted, they tried to gain something positive from the defeats. ‘A lesson’“Those types of games teach you a lesson,” Hoogerdijk explained.That lesson involved the fact that Carman wasn’t an offensive juggernaut and as a result would need to concentrate more on playing a disciplined style of defense. “We realized that we didn’t have a ton of offense so we had to focus on playing strong defense,” he said. “And we learned how to play solid defense.” Being committed to defense slowly started to pay off, not always in the win column, but they were more competitive.The coach pointed to two games against one of the division’s top clubs, the Grant Mill Rangers. Carman lost their first matchup early in the season by a 7-2 margin but in their second game which was the last of the regular season the score was a more respectable 2-1. And Hoogerdijk pointed out that the Kickers could have easily won that game, if it weren’t for a couple of bad breaks that contributed to the two goals by the Rangers.“We continued to improve as the season went along and it showed in games like that,” Hoogerdijk said. First year players Dale DeWit, Shane Termeer and Dave Vanderzwaag were among the many Kickers who impressed their coach. More experienced teammates Lyle Vanveen and Kendall Ferris provided some much needed offense and leadership. Tyson Kamminga was another stabilizing force on the squad providing some leadership as well. Les Deleeuw and Darcy Davis were also among the many Carman players who had overall solid performances. Hoogerdijk said if there’s an area that definitely needs improvement for next year, it’s making the most of their offensive chances. The club finished with seven ties. “We had too many ties. It’s nice to get the point, but some of the guys were saying that if we had seven timely goals we’d have seven wins and could have finished as high as second place,” he noted. But it’s not as if the Kickers didn’t have their share of chances. “One thing we have to work on both team wise and individual wise, is to develop more of a ‘killer instinct’. We can’t relax once we get up by one goal. We need to keep going to score and make sure they (opponents) stay down,” Hoogerdijk explained. “We just have to put the opposition away when we get the opportunity.” Despite not making the post season, Hoogerdijk is looking ahead to the next year. “I enjoyed working with them and sometimes it was frustrating, but I’m sure they said the same thing about me,” he said. “We just need to improve in a few areas and we’ll be all right.”

Carman Valley Leader- September 8, 2003- Kickers still in playoff race

 By Gene Still 
— The Carman Kickers’ hopes for a post season berth in the Manitoba Major Soccer League’s Fourth Division remained on life support despite a loss last Thursday. Rangers 2 Kickers 1Carman dropped a close 2-1 decision to their hosts the Grant Mill Rangers. Full details were unavailable as of press time, but the disappointing loss meant that the Kickers needed to win their last game and hope that Ragnarok and East Side lose their remaining games. Despite having a lineup that was bolstered by the return of leading scorer Lyle Vanveen, Carman was unsuccessful in its bid to register a much needed victory. Red Dogs 0 Kickers 0Carman was forced to settle for a 0-0 draw against the Red Dogs that at the time, still kept their playoff hopes alive. The tie came despite the fact the Kickers dominated most of their match against the visitors from Winnipeg on August 28. Kickers’ coach William Hoogerdijk said it was just a case of his club not being able to finish on offense. “We outchanced them 20-6,” Hoogerdijk said. “But it was just that we didn’t convert.” He spoke with a couple of his key players before the contest, which had serious playoff implications, about the need for strong performances. At the time, Carman was in 10th place, two points out of the eighth and final playoff spot. “Before the game with the Red Dogs, I went up to a few guys and really challenged them and they responded,” Hoogerdijk said. “Some teams collapse under pressure like that, but the guys played very well. “Overall, I’m very happy with the way we played.” The club was also without the services of Kendall Ferris who also plays for another soccer team and was unable to attend the match with the Red Dogs. Despite not having one of their top players, the other members of the team seemed to rally around each other and it showed on the field. “We played marvelously without him,” Hoogerdijk said. “Kendall’s an important member of our team, but the guys really did well. “I thought we deserved to win.” The Kickers remaining regular season contest was on the road in Winnipeg. Their season finale was set for Sept. 6 against St. James U2.

Carman Valley Leader-September 1, 2003-Solid effort fails to add up to victory

 Missile shoot down Kickers in close contest
By Gene Still

— A valiant effort by a depleted lineup wasn’t enough for the Carman Kickers as they dropped a hard fought 1-0 decision to the visiting St. James Missile. Kickers’ coach William Hoogerdijk said his Carman squad came up with a stellar effort but were missing two of their top forwards, including injured leading scorer Shane Vanveen who is out for the season. They were also without, arguably, three of their top defenders. Short bench“You don’t like to make excuses. But the fact is we had 11 guys for the game and it’s tough to play that way with basically no subs,” Hoogerdijk said. Despite being shorthanded, those who were able to play didn’t disappoint their coach. “The guys responded and came out and played really well,” Hoogerdijk said. “They worked very hard.” Adding to the club’s obstacles was the fact that Carman played the first half going into a headwind of around 40 km/h. But thanks to a solid defensive effort, in particular from centre-defense sweeper, Tyson Kamminga, and rover Les DeLeeuw, the game remained scoreless as the clubs went into the intermission. Their defensive stance also contributed to a couple of turnovers that quickly turned into scoring chances but the Kickers came up empty handed. Hoogerdijk said thanks to the performance in the opening half, the team began the second with high hopes. But their depleted lineup eventually took its toll as the contest wore on and St. James scored what turned out to be the game’s only goal.“In the second half we again played strong. But if there was one thing I was disappointed with, it’s that we weren’t able to play more towards the middle of the field. We were forced off to the angles much of the time,” he explained. “Eventually we just ran out of gas and they got past us on a break and got one by us.”