Kenora Miner and News Premier match-up in soccer exhibition

Kenora’s top soccer players will test their skills against some of Winnipeg’s best Saturday at a Kenora Challenge game at the Brinkman Road Soccer Complex.

By Peter James
Kenora’s top soccer players will test their skills against some of Winnipeg’s best Saturday at a Kenora Challenge game at the Brinkman Road Soccer Complex.“It’s going to be some of the best soccer that’s going to be played here in some time,” organizer Dave Blake said.He has assembled an all-star team from the Hap’s Men’s Soccer League to challenge the South End Celtic from the Manitoba Major Soccer League’s premier division.“(The players) want to see where they stack up and where the league stacks up,” Blake said.The Celtic moved up from the first division to the premier league this season, but struggled against the tougher competition. They finished the year 4-16-3 and are awaiting to find out if they’ve been relegated. Celtic player/manager Mark Somogyi said his club is using the game as a bridge between the just completed outdoor season and indoor soccer which will begin in Winnipeg soon.“ A few years ago the team came to Kenora for the tournament and had a really good time,” he said. “We thought this is a good way to wrap up our season.” The Celtic will be calling on a few players from other non-playoff teams in the premiership to supplement their roster, which has been hurt by injuries. Some players can’t make the trip because of work commitments. Despite the poor standing the Celtic’s skill will be a challenge for the Kenora team, which will be missing some of its top players. Blake conceded that having the match so late in the season means he’s lost the services of players who have returned to university. Still, he’s pleased with the roster that’s been assembled. The team had a practice Sunday afternoon to work out any rust that may have developed in the three weeks since the playoffs ended.“I think Kenora has some pretty good soccer players, but they seem to be divided on all the teams,” Blake said. The Kenora all-stars will field representatives from all eight teams in the league, including four members of the regular season and playoff champion Casey’s Spurs. Picking the team was a challenge. Blake and a few other organizers tried to whittle down the list, but they struggled to make cuts. Blake said upwards of 20 other players were strong enough to make the team, but didn’t get a call.Blake expects the team will be solid defensively with the likes of Nate Goss and Jake Blosser protecting the area in front of goaltender Blair Beasent.“Those guys are solid back there,” Blake said.There are plans to make this challenge game an annual event, but Blake said in future years he would like to see it played in the middle of the summer, midway through the regular season.Admission to Saturday’s game is free, but there will be a silver collection at the door in support of local minor soccer programs.Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m.

Lucania FC Soccer Nationals Fundraiser!

In an effort to raise over $18,000 for the trip to this year's National Championship in Prince Edward Island, Lucania will be holding a fundraising social on Saturday Sept. 25th at the Empire Cabaret (436 Main St.). Tickets must be purchased before entering the club and will entitle you to a free drink and covers the cost of admission.

To arrange for your tickets, please call Damien @ 799-4465!

Lucania FC truly appreciates your support and we will endeavour to bring the Challenge Cup back to Manitoba!

Carman Valley Leader — Hoogerdijk willing to come back for another season

By Gene Still
They may have come up short in their bid to make the playoffs but that hasn’t discouraged William Hoogerdijk. The Carman Kickers’ head coach said, despite the disappointment of not qualifying for the post season, he would like to return for a third year with the Manitoba Major Soccer League’s Fourth Division team. “If they’re willing to have me back for another season, I’d like to come back,” Hoogerdijk said.

One of the reasons for wanting to return is the “steady improvement” that the club showed as compared to 2003. “I’d also like to give some of the guys opportunities at different positions,” Hoogerdijk said. “We’ve got some good strikers who just need more finish around the net. “We’ve got some converted midfielders who are playing defense and while they did a good job for us, it would be nice to get a defensive specialist or two for next year.” Up in the airHoogerdijk noted that since the Kickers club is basically organized by the players. the final decision of who coaches, will be up to the members of next year’s squad. Carman ended the year with a 7-11-4 record which left them in ninth place. The top eight clubs in Fourth Division make the playoffs.

Carman Valley Leader — Kickers come up short in bid for playoff spot

Carman finishes in ninth place
By Gene Still

The Carman Kickers battled hard but it wasn’t meant to be this season as they were once again left on the outside looking in as far as the post season is concerned. The club’s final regular season game against the Kildonan Fusion on Sept. 11 at the Carman Collegiate Soccer Field ended up being the finale of 2004 schedule. That’s because the Kickers were officially eliminated by Ragnarok for the eighth and final Fourth Division playoff spot before they even hit the field. Carman striker Lyle Vanveen said while they were closer this time round to qualifying for the post season – the bottom line is they still came up short. “It’s kind of déja vu from last year. It’s disappointing but the guys gave it their all,” Vanveen said. “We just got to step back and figure out what we need to do for next year.” In what was essentially a meaningless game as far as playoff implications go, the visiting Fusion defeated the Kickers 3-1. Carman’s only goal was courtesy of Joel Bilodeau. Kickers’ coach William Hoogerdijk, who was unable to make the final contest due to personal commitments, said it’s tough to come this close but still not make the playoffs. “It’s disappointing, but I look back early in the season and it’s the old cliché that you want to get off to a good start so you aren’t necessarily left battling for a playoff position at the end of the season,” Hoogerdijk said. “You obviously wish you had made it. “But we put ourselves in this position earlier on in the season. There were games, during the middle of the year, that we gave away some points.” The loss left Carman with a final mark of 7-11-4. However the club will be able to stay in Fourth Division for next year.

Britannia Rovers - Hanover kicker Draw 1-1

Hanover Kickers' Andreas Bergen drills a shot at the Britannia Rovers goal Saturday afternoon in Steinbach as the Kickers and the Rovers played to a 1-1 draw.


The Kickers completed the First Division regular season in sixth place with a 10-8-4 record and play in the quarterfinals against the third place finisher Sunday morning at 11:15 a.m. at Vince Leah Community Centre.

CJOB.com - Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame announces Inductees

The Manitoba sports Hall of Fame announced its 2004 inductees Tuesday.

Athletes Joe Poplawski, the former bomber great, Lisa Fraser-Gilmore, a former world handball champion, Henry Gerow from rifle shooting and a pair of deceased stars, Nick Mickoski from hockey and golf and Jack Jacobs, the former Bomber quarterback, were named to the hall.

Honored in the builder category were Soccer's Ralph Cantafio, Vic Pruden from basketball and Aihlin Walker from golf, while the 3-time national champion Smitty's senior womens fastball team from the 1990's, and the 1958 Grey Cup champion Winnipeg Blue Bombers were named as teams....The induction dinner is November 13th at Canad-Inns Polo Park.

Winkler Times — Out of playoffs

By Steve Martens
With one game to be played on the weekend, the Winkler Storm were out of the playoff picture in the Manitoba Major Soccer League’s First Division. They held ninth place before facing the 11th place Chilean Selects Saturday. All they needed was a draw in that outing to secure themselves a spot in First Division for next season. Winkler came through with a win over Grant Mill Sword and a draw with Elmwood over the last two weeks to keep themselves out of the relegation zone in the 12 team division.Scoring goals was the major problem for the Storm, who managed fewer than 1.5 per game in a self-described transition year that saw the melding of players from the old Third Division South Central team with the First Division Storm.“We were making one team out of two and it took a while for the guys to know each other,” said Arevalo, who was also at the Storm helm this year. He noted injuries up front also blunted the Winkler attack.Randy Froese’s nine goals led the club heading into their final game, with David Doerksen adding six and Eddie Wiens, Daniel Kroeker and Zach Pauls each chipping in with three.Elsewhere in the MMSL, the Carman Kickers are also headed to a ninth place finish. With one game to play, they still had a mathematical chance at seventh or eighth place but needed a lot of help from the teams ahead of them in Fourth Division, who still enjoyed a couple of games in hand. In Fifth Division, Morris SC sat sixth with two games left to play and almost guaranteed themselves a post-season berth.

Carman Valley Leader — Kickers battle for playoffs going down to the wire

Club needs help to secure post season berth
By Gene Still

Winning may not be enough for the Carman Kickers. Heading into their final regular season game which was played on Saturday, Sept. 11 when they took on Kildonan Fusion (results were unavailable as of press time), the Kickers needed help from other Fourth Division teams in order to secure a playoff spot. “We’re in a position where we have to depend on other teams,” Carman coach William Hoogerdijk said. The Kickers had a tenuous hold on the eighth and final playoff spot in the division as of press time, with a 7-10-4 record. That was just one point ahead of Euro FC. However, Euro had two games in hand. “We put ourselves in this position and the guys know that,” Hoogerdijk said. “There were some games we felt we should’ve won, whether it was because we came out sluggish in the second half or didn’t have a full line-up of players.” He noted that it didn’t help that they were forced to play at times with a depleted lineup due to job and school commitments. Different lineups“There were times when it seemed like nobody’s ever playing the same position, which makes it even harder (to compete),” Hoogerdijk said. The coach added, that even if they do get some favourable results from other division clubs by beating Euro, Carman needs to win their last home contest of the regular season against Fusion. “But in the end, even if we do get help from other clubs, we just have to win our last game, we just can’t depend on others.”

Carman Valley Leader — Kickers doubled up by first place Penarol

By Gene Still

The Carman Kickers travelled to Winnipeg last Monday evening with a lot on the line to face the class of this year’s Fourth Division. Kickers’ coach William Hoogerdijk knew it would be a difficult test for his squad because Penarol had already clinched first place with an impressive 18-2 record. They were also a team that was motivated after coming off an upset loss to Kildonan Fusion, a club that has long since been eliminated from the playoffs and were sitting in tenth place of the 12 team division. In addition, the Kickers were locked in a battle for a playoff berth with Ragnarok, Reservoir Dogs and the Rangers. Despite the additional challenges facing the visitors, the Kickers’ held their own on the scoreboard for the opening ten minutes. “We played very well against them – for the most part,” Hoogerdijk said. However there were a few rough moments at the beginning while the Carman players tried to adjust to a new strategy. “We started pretty tentatively at first, because we played differently that we had all year. It was a much more defensive system than what our guys were use to,” Hoogerdijk explained. And it seemed to work, even after Penarol opened the scoring at the 10 minute mark of the opening frame. “It was almost like the guys said, “okay, that’s just one goal but we’re still playing well so let’s try and minimize their chances’,” Hoogerdijk said. That approach paid dividends as five minutes later, Mike VanderVelde tied it. Despite the commitment to defense, Penarol showed why they’re considered the top team in the division by scoring three more times on starting netminder Rich Vanderveen, before the intermission. Trailing 4-1 going into the second half, Hoogerdijk said they refused to get discouraged and continued to work hard but once again it was Penarol who scored first to take what seemed like a commanding four goal lead. But Lyle Vanveen scored for the Kickers on a breakaway and then Joel Bilodeau got Carman’s third tally with about 15 minutes remaining in the contest. That was as close at the Kickers would get on this night, as Penarol scored once more near the end of regulation. “The score was 6-3, but I thought we played them stronger than the end result,” Hoogerdijk said. “We know it’s not impossible to beat these guys. But everybody on our team has to do their jobs and play very well at the same time for the entire game.” The coach added the loss left Carman with a 7-9-4 record and battling for eighth spot overall. He noted that the Kickers will not only have to win their final match, but may also have to depend on some help from other clubs in the division to ensure a post season spot. Kickers’ notebook: Carman’s final home game of the regular season is this Saturday, Sept. 11 at 3 p.m. at Carman Collegiate when they host Kildonan Fusion.

The Chronicle-Journal - Sons of Italy Win Thunder Bay Tournament

By David Trifunov - September 07, 2004 Karen Barry has exceptional timing.She scored her first two goals of the season as the Thunder Bay Impact escaped with a hard-fought victory at the $10,000 Thunder Bay Invitational soccer tournament on Monday.For the second year in a row, the Impact defeated an Express team in the women’s first division final. This year it was a 2-1 decision over the Ozone Express under-16s.“It feels even better,” said Barry, a Lakehead Thunderwolves basketball graduate. “It’s more convincing, this one.”But Carolyn Fragale salvaged some hardware for the Express and was named the women’s MVP.The Impact takes home $1,500 for the victory and was one of two local teams that claimed a trophy on Monday afternoon. The Volunteer Pool Spiders doubled Dryden United 4-2 in the men’s second division finale.But Thunder Bay Croatia fell flat in the men’s Division 1 championship. With $4,000 to the winners, Winnipeg’s Sons of Italy emerged with a 4-0 win over Croatia. The women’s second division went to the Dryden Shooters who nipped the Winnipeg Titans 1-0.A crowd of about 500 converged on Fort William Stadium to watch Croatia carry the Thunder Bay colours into battle. But it was a 27-year-old Guatemalan who stole the show.Tony Sanchez scored three times for Sons of Italy, including twice from the penalty spot. Sanchez played professionally in Guatemala for Comunicaciones FC and also represented his country between 1995 and ’98.He scored seven goals internationally.“I think our secret was bringing everyone together,” said Sanchez, who was also named tournament MVP. “I think we’re working hard.”The day was a split decision for coach Rob Pasqualino. He led Impact to victory in the women’s final, but was on the losing end with Croatia.Pasqualino said the Impact’s performance was especially satisfying since the club has struggled since the beginning of the year. The team rescheduled five games during the season because of player commitments or injuries.And five minutes into Monday’s contest, goalie Whitney Schnieders was forced from the game after breaking her hand in a goalmouth scramble. “We’ve come a long way since the beginning of the season,” said Pasqualino.He helps coach Croatia alongside Drago Plasaj, but it was a different story in the men’s game later in the afternoon. Strong winds played havoc with the play.“To lose like that is definitely disappointing,” he said.

Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal Still hot

By David Trifunov - September 04, 2004

Ron Badanai scored twice as Italia-Juventus opened the $10,000 Thunder Bay Invitational soccer tournament with a 2-1 victory over Portuguese at Fort William Stadium on Friday night.Juve is the top Thunder Bay team and has a semifinal berth in the District League thanks to an undefeated record in 10 regular season games and two straight playoff victories.But coach Frank Lacaria stressed that his team considers the Labour Day weekend a barometer for the season. First prize in the men’s first division is $4,000 and the money has attracted teams from Winnipeg.The Minneapolis Internationals are defending champions.“That’s the big test,” he said. “Now we get to see how we really compare with the competition.”Kyle Kawahara responded for Portuguese, but it was a game neither side seemed happy with the result.“I don’t think we had a particularly strong game today,” Lacaria said. “I felt that we could’ve been a little better with our passing and our decision making on the field.”In last night’s only other game, Travis Komar and Matthew Eaton each scored as the Volunteer Pool Spiders escaped with a 2-1 victory over EuroStars.Komar ended a goalmouth scramble early in the first half and it appeared the game was going to end 1-0. But Eaton capitalized on a defensive miscue to make it 2-0 late.He stole the ball deep in EuroStars territory and went in alone, beating the goalie and scoring into an empty net.Spiders goalie Larry Johanson turned away a pair of EuroStars chances as the game came to a close, but he was eventually beaten by Bryan Arruda. He wasn’t about to be outdone in the deke department and finally broke through after two clever moves in close.“As the game went on they matured,” Spiders coach Paul Facca said. “I think we can hold our own (this weekend).”There are 24 men’s and women’s teams competing in four divisions this weekend. Play continues all day in the ninth annual edition of the tournament at the Stadium and Chapples Park.Among today’s marquee matches in the men’s first division, Thunder Bay Croatia faces Winnipeg Hellas at noon at Chapples.To conclude the action at 6 p.m., Italia-Juventus and Winnipeg Sokol meet at the Stadium.The women’s first division also has an interesting game at noon. Winnipeg’s Team Extreme and Thunder Bay Impact meet at Chapples.The finals begin Monday at 9 a.m. with the men’s first division wrapping up the weekend at

Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal Power shift at annual tourney

By David Trifunov -
The September 03, 2004

The Minneapolis Internationals are back to defend their title, but longtime favorite Winnipeg Lucania is staying home.The Internationals slipped past Winnipeg Maples-Juventus 1-0 to win the $10,000 Thunder Bay Invitational soccer tournament last year. Lucania, multiple winners of the Labour Day weekend event, weren’t invited back, Soccer Northwest president Carmen Felice said. Invitational organizers were unhappy with Lucania’s behaviour at the tournament last season. So it’s the Internationals who lead a field of 10 teams vying for the $4,000 first prize in the men’s first division.“We don’t need a team to come here and ruin the tournament for everybody else,” Felice said.

Sure to provide plenty of competition in the 24-team tournament are Sons of Italy from Winnipeg. They were fighting with Lucania atop the Winnipeg Premiere Division heading into the weekend. Winnipeg Sokol is also poised to run for the title.“I think Sons of Italy is going to be strong, Sokol is going to be strong,” Felice said. Katie Weatherston scored three goals in a 6-1 win for Thunder Bay Impact over the Lakehead Express under-15s in the women’s first division last year. The Impact, Winnipeg Team Extreme, Lakehead Express U16 and Express U18s comprise the women’s top division this year.“That should be very competitive,” Felice said. “Actually that group should be one of the most competitive groups.”In the men’s second division, United defeated Nemesis 1-0 for the $1,000 prize one year ago.United and five other squads are fighting it out this year. Other Thunder Bay teams competing are the Spiders, EuroStars and Red Devils. Dryden United and Winnipeg SEU Empoli are the visiting teams. Lori Robertson scored a hat trick in a 4-1 win for Gleeson Clinic over the Winnipeg Titans in the women’s second division in 2003.Gleeson returns to duel alongside Santa Fe Legends, Winnipeg Titans and the Dryden Shooters.The tournament begins tonight at 6 p.m. with Italia-Juventus meeting Portuguese at Fort William Stadium. The men’s first division final is set for Monday at 1 p.m.

Stonewall Argus and Teulon Times — United in hunt for the tripleSoccer

Club preps for playoffs after first-place finish, cup win
By Jason Halstead

Two out of three puzzle pieces are in place, and now Stonewall United is gunning for a sweep of top prizes in the Winnipeg Division of the Manitoba Major Soccer League.The men’s soccer team wrapped up the division title heading into the final game of the season this Tuesday. Stonewall will face the second-place River Heights Cardinals in a road match that day, but with a five-point lead on the Winnipeggers, United’s place atop the standings is safe. United already won the mid-season league tourney – the President’s Cup – and will be looking for victory in the knockout playoffs set to start late this week.Set for playoffs“We’ve got two out of three now and we’ll be looking for the last piece of the puzzle by winning the playoffs,” said United player/manager Grant Barker. “We’ve had an outstanding season.”In 2002, United won quadruple honours, taking the division and playoff titles, as well as winning the President’s Cup and the Kenora men’s soccer tournament title.“We didn’t do well in Kenora this year, but it’s difficult to win all four,” Barker said.On Aug. 19, United played to a 4-4 draw with the Cardinals in Stonewall, so while the rematch this Tuesday won’t affect the standings, Barker said his team will be looking to better the city side.“It will be a good match,” Barker said. “We allowed back into the game when they tied up, so we’ll be looking to take them out of the game next Tuesday.”Stonewall currently boasts a record of 13 wins, three losses, and a draw, with 59 goals-for and 20 against.Stonewall has earned a bye in the first round of playoffs as the division’s bottom clubs play off to decided who will face the first-place side.“I think we can really rally around the fact that our goals-against total has been kept low,” Barker said of his team’s defensive strength. “It really speaks well for our defence. Everything starts from the back for us.”Barker also had high praise for what has been a crew of goalkeepers this season – Troy Owen, Chris Ford and even forward Jason Ferris have all taken turns between the pipes for United.“We’ve got a capable bunch of forwards who have really shone,” Barker said.Scoring has been fairly evenly spread throughout the United squad. The club’s leading scorer, Jason Ferris with 10 goals, sits in third place among Winnipeg Division marksmen. Four United players – Jerry Zinko, Patrick McManus, Marco Correia, and Damian Hines – stand in sixth spot in divisional scoring with five goals apiece.“Jerry (Zinko) rejoined us halfway through the season and it’s been nice to have him back in midfield,” Barker said. “He’s really starting to peak now.”Barker is joined in running the soccer team by playe/coach Andre Dube and team captain Doug Nixon, who also takes on some coaching duties.

Winnipeg Free Press - City soccer guru making mark at home, around the world

Wed Sep 1 2004 By Chris Cariou

WHETHER he's on the sidelines officiating an Olympic or World Cup soccer game or trying to calm the overheated passions of a local side screaming at the referee for issuing red cards to two of its players at the Manitoba Soccer Association Cup, Hector Vergara is a man of rules, order and a drive to get things done.
Only hours after Vergara stepped off a flight that arrived at 1 a.m. last Friday from Athens, where he had been an assistant referee for three men's games at the 2004 Olympics, Vergara was at the MSA office making sure arrangements for the senior men's and women's semifinals that night -- and Sunday's finals -- were being taken care of.
While heavy rains forced the semifinals to be relocated, the finals went off without a hitch back at the Red River College pitch Sunday afternoon, and Vergara, in suit and tie, was there to shepherd the event to its conclusion.
"One of the reasons I'm on board now is to try and make some changes," said Vergara, 37, recently appointed the MSA's chief administrative officer.
"Over the last many years, the MSA's only had two or three staff people and we're the No. 1 sport in Canada. Including winter and summer, we have greater numbers than hockey now. So if you have that type of need out there, then we have to put resources out there to meet that."
Vergara said the MSA is going to make a lot of noise -- to promote the game, to get proper playing facilities, to develop players in Manitoba at the grassroots level, to get Manitobans on national teams -- and to have the world's most popular sport catch on in Canada like it has in the United States. The MSA hired Stuart Neely as a high-performance coach to work with and teach kids the game. And the Winnipeg Soccer Federation has been formed by a variety of city organizations to try to secure a facility that will be kept in good condition, unlike the Winnipeg Soccer Complex on Waverley.
Canada is hosting the Under-20 World Championship in 2007 and Vergara said Winnipeg would make a great host, because thousands showed up to cheer on Canada in soccer at the 1999 Pan Am Games. But the complex, a legacy of those Games, now sits idle and wasting away.
"We actually visited that facility before we hosted this event here to figure out whether there was any way we could actually go there with these games, and the fields are nowhere near the condition these fields are, the dressing rooms have mould and there's a health and safety issue," he said.
Meanwhile, Vergara was energized by his first Olympics in Athens and hopes to be called to officiate at the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
"We did the semifinal game with Argentina and Italy, which was the toughest match of the whole tournament," he said. "We did really well, we were pleased with our performance and so were the instructors. Long days, hard days, a lot of heat, but it was a satisfying experience.
"The World Cup (in South Korea and Japan in 2002) was the ultimate," he added. "It's not Under-23, it's the full squad, so it's a little different when you go to see players like (David) Beckham and Renaldo and people like that, it's a much faster game than we experienced at the Olympics."
chris.cariou@freepress.mb.ca