Powell River Energy U14 Boys soccer team ended its remarkable season by winning the bronze medal at the BC Soccer Les Sinnott Memorial Boys Provincial Cup on Sunday, July 8.
In the match for third place, Energy beat Vancouver KLM Mustangs 1-0.
Marcus Cramb scored what proved to be the winning goal in the first 45 minutes of play and then Energy’s defence shut down the Mustangs’ offence in the second half.
“The final game was a battle, that's all I can say; it was a rock'em, sock'em,” said head coach Tony Leach. “We had a couple of chances late and we scored just before the first half. We had a couple of chances in the second half to bury the game, that made for the last 10 minutes of the game to be an absolute crazy gong show of a battle. Clearing the ball off the line and all kinds of great stuff happened.”
Leach said the game was the best his team played in the tournament.
Energy’s first game was on July 5, a 2-0 loss against the hosts and eventual silver medalists from South Burnaby.
“Our first game the boys were really nervous,” said Leach.
Against Nelson on July 6, the Powell River team turned its fortunes around and won 2-1. Griffin Leach scored a curving goal and Jacob Duyvestyn scored on a penalty kick for the win. Energy’s last game in the round robin on July 7, a 0-0 tie with Prince George, earned the team its spot in the bronze medal match.
Eight of the best U14 boys soccer teams from across BC played in the tournament, which was won by Port Coquitlam.
Energy’s goal this season was to win the Island Championship, which the club did by beating Bays United 1-0 for the Island B Cup championship in Victoria in February.
In April, when Powell River Youth Soccer Association hosted the 54th Annual Island Invitational Cup, Energy beat Bays United again to win its division cup in a single game, winner-take-all match between Lower Island Soccer Association and Upper Island Soccer Association champions.
Looking ahead to next season, Leach said the roster will not change much.
“For the most part we've kept the same group together,” said Leach. “I don't know if it's due to how well we did this year but we have a couple of players now who are interested in coming out that used to play a few years ago."
