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.