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Late errors prove costly for Cowichan FC

Div. 1 team opens soccer season with a loss
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Blaze Roberts scored one of Cowichan’s goals against the Highlanders in a 4-2 season-opening loss. (Kevin Rothbauer/Citizen)

A couple of late errors put Cowichan LMG in the loss column to open the Vancouver Island Soccer League season.

After erasing a couple of one-goal deficits, the Div. 1 team was tied 2-2 with the visiting Victoria Highlanders at the Sherman Road turf on Saturday evening when what Cowichan coach Curtis Flynn called “a critical error” put the Highlanders ahead by one with 15 minutes left to play.

“We did the same minutes later,” Flynn commented. “Two miscues led to the goals.”

The Highlanders opened the scoring, but Blaze Roberts scored at 45 minutes to send the teams to the break knotted at 1-1. The Victoria team went up again shortly after play resumed, but Dan Citra levelled things again at 2-2 before the Highlanders were able to pull away.

Despite the 4-2 final score, Flynn wasn’t disappointed with his team’s performance.

“We played well and showed a lot of fight,” the coach said. “The first game all these fellas have played together after a short training season. All night our set plays wreaked havoc on the Highlanders team. We played physical, we played with heart and in the second half we played as a team.”

Darian Harris and Henry James were among the standouts for Cowichan, playing in their first Div. 1 games. Devin Jack was also excellent on the wing before he left the game with a broken ankle. Flynn joked that “half the crowd” was there just to cheer on Jack, one of 10 First Nations players on the LMG roster.

“Our crowd was fantastic and the support the community is giving us means a lot,” the coach said.

LMG will visit JDF All Flows this Saturday.

In Div. 3, Cowichan Oak FC played to a 3-1 loss to the Prospect Lake Lakers at the Sherman Road turf on Friday, with Alex Smith scoring the lone goal. Oak FC are at home to Lakehill Hooligans this Friday at 8 p.m.

In Div. 4, the Cowichan Fury played to a 3-0 loss against Bays United on the Keserich grass pitch on Saturday. The Fury visit JDF Spartans this Sunday afternoon.



Kevin Rothbauer

About the Author: Kevin Rothbauer

Kevin Rothbauer is the sports reporter for the Cowichan Valley Citizen
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