In extreme weather conditions the Junior Academy Program opened up their preseason campaign with a 2-1 win against Italia Shooters reserves on Saturday at Esther Shiner Stadium. It was a testing day for both squads as weather conditions impacted the quality of the football played. However, the Junior Academy had the better scoring chances as a combined squad of trialists and squad players battled the elements.
With a 1-0 lead at half-time on a goal scored by Keith Makubuya of St. Catharines, the second half proved to be the deciding factor in the match as the Junior Academy dealt with the wind and rain better than their opposition. By playing football and keeping a high tempo to the game the Juniors notched a second goal with Makubuya again finding the net. Italia Shooters reserves created some good chances for themselves and pulled a goal back when they capitlaized on an error at the back.
"I am content with the match today," said Academy Manager and Junior Head Coach Stuart Neely. "We have just added eight players to our roster and we have a lot of work to do with these 15 and 16 year old boys. We threw a challenge at them and it was up to them to grab the bull by the horns and show us something that will earn them a spot on our squad. At times the build up play was flawless, but we did lack a great deal of creativity."
"When you are nervous, you become rigid and your imagination shuts down. We don't want the boys to feel this way and we have created an environment that has eliminated this sense of fear. It will take some time for the latest additions to understand this," explained Neely. "On the day Oscar Cordon and Keith Makubuya played very well, but I expect more players will take their lead as they will all be competing for spots."
The Junior Academy's next match is Sunday, May 3rd vs. Brampton Lions reserves. Kick off is 3:00pm at Esther Shiner.
