2018 BC Mens Provincial U21 Cup

[Canucks4Ever]

While there is no real interest, given these millennials don't take their football seriously enough these days and certainly not seriously enough to post about it online, perhaps I should pass on these predictions. Still, I like to be inclusive and with only 12 teams from three leagues, this one is not too much of a burden to cover so I will endeavor to give the kids their due. The transient nature of these league means that only three teams from last season's competition return for this season's edition of the tournament.

Standard Disclaimer:
For those not familiar with my column, I am largely just pulling this stuff out of thin air. I try to find whatever information is readily available online, but ultimately I am just trying to generate some interest in local soccer in BC. If I have omitted or overlooked facts that you consider relevant to your team or league, it's not done intentionally...get over it...

Completely Baseless Predictions
U21 Doug Day Provincial Cup
Preliminary Round:

Cowichan Utd. (VISL) v EDC Burnaby (VMSL)
EDC is one of the few returning teams in this competition and they have been a stalwart in the Vancouver Metro Soccer League's U21 Division for the past few seasons. This is as veteran of a group as you can get at this level and you would expect that experience to play a factor. It was a very hotly contested VMSL U21 Division this season; Chile ended up in fourth but were only four points out of first. As is often the case at this level, there were lots of goals to go around, with teams benefiting from beating up on teams of lesser quality at the bottom of the table, and Burnaby were lead by a pair of 13 goal scorers in Jevin Hillis and Zachari Ouariti. Cowichan put in a solid performance, finishing third in the Vancouver Island Soccer League U21 standings and winning the George Smith Cup. They also have the league's leading goal scorer among their ranks in Logan Kits, who netted a whopping 18 times in 18 games. Lots of explosive weapons and both teams in with a chance. I think travel might just tip the scales here though, as getting a group of teenagers to Cowichan for a Saturday afternoon is likely to be a challenge and that could bite EDC. With a full squad I like their chances, but if they show up shorthanded, Cowichan have the tools and the knockout competition pedigree to make home field advantage count.

Rovers Tigers Utd. (VMSL) v Vic West (VISL)
Both teams will fancy their chances given that the two lowest entrants from their respective leagues have been drawn together. Rovers parent club won the Vancouver Metro Soccer League's Premier Division, but their U21 group could not match that feat as, in a league that turned into a four team race, they finished in fifth, a distant 13 points off the pace. Meanwhile, Vic West salvaged a woeful season by making the final of the George Smith Cup after finishing second bottom in the league. In truth though, the draw was very kind to Vic West, as they were handed a bye to the semi-final of the eight team competition. Last placed Juan de Fuca then upset third bottom Bays Utd. setting the stage for Vic West to win a lone game and therefore qualify for the Provincial Cup. Add in the travel factor to Surrey for a Sunday afternoon kickoff and Vic West might just be in over their heads. Adding to the danger for the visitors is VMSL U21 Golden Boot winner Emmanuel Ekeh, who torched the league for 22 goals in 20 games. True, the next highest scorer for Rovers was Balraj Dadwal with only six as Ekeh accounted for nearly half of his teams 45 goals on the season, so if they can keep him in check the Victoria boys might just pull off the upset; however, if they cannot, it could be a long day at the office.

Lakehill FC (VISL) v Faly Academy (VMSL)
This one is definitely the Match of the Round as second place from the Vancouver Island Soccer League hosts third place from the Vancouver Metro Soccer League. Every season there seams to be a fly-by-night academy team in one of the U21 leagues that takes things very seriously and this year's edition looks to be Faly Academy. To their credit the were neck and neck for the league title, missing out on a championship by just three points. The Academy were also runners up for the VMSL U21 Cup. Now they will try their hand on the Provincial stage and their draw has them travelling to the Island to play league runners up, Lakehill FC. The Victoria based club road their strong defensive record and posted six clean sheet behind the play of goalkeeper Kevin Kissinger. In the end they would fall two points short of the League Champions, Mid-Isle Mariners. It sets up to be defense against offense in this one as Faly posted and impressive 62 goals over their 20 games, lead by Wonder Tarr and his 16 tallies, the second most in the league. Travel also a factor again in this one, but I expect the Academy to field a strong squad. If they can get behind the Lakehill defense, Faly Academy might be able to run away with this one, but if the game is close, look for the home side to clamp down and ride their strong defense to a win. Toss a coin here as both teams have a shot and neither will want to see their season end here given they are both likely too good to go out at this stage of the tournament. Only one will progress though and I will fall back on the league pedigree of the VMSL and the fact that these sorts of "academy" teams often have a chip on their shoulder and a point to prove. Not sure Faly Academy will be around next season, but I will take them to be around for the quarterfinals.

Westcoast Utd. (FVSL) v Abbotsford Utd. (FVSL)
It is a domestic battle from the Fraser Valley Soccer League in this one, with second place Abbotsford Utd. away to Westcoast Utd. It was a two horse race in the Valley's U21 Division and the two Abbotsford teams ran away with it, Utd. and their cousins from Abbotsford Soccer Association, the Storm, who finished in first by a two point margin. Westcoast Und. were third, 12 points off the title pace but one point ahead of their club-mates, Westcoast Juventus, who were in this tournament last season. This one should be fairly straight forward for Abby, as they posted a record of 4-0, winning every league meeting between the two sides this year. Perhaps it will be fifth time lucky for Westcoast and for that to happen they will likely need to see Golden Boot runner up Bela Piocza add to his 15 goals on the season. History, however, seems likely to repeat itself in this one.

 

[dezza]

Seems like Faly Academy only missed out on the league title due to fielding an ineligible player vs West Van

Also, I'm pretty sure Jevin is too old to play w/ EDC in U-21 provincials.

 

[Canucks4Ever]

The VMSL went 3-0 against the island in the first round meaning that five of the last eight teams represent the Vancouver League. We'll see if they can eliminate their competition as swiftly this week and make it a pair of domestic semi finals.

Completely Baseless Predictions
U21 Doug Day Provincial Cup
Preliminary Round: 2/4
Overall: 2/4

Quarter Finals

Abbotsford SA Storm (FVSL) v EDC Burnaby (VMSL)
Little difficulty evidently for Chile with a trip to the Island as they emerged as easy 2-0 winners over the VISL's George Smith Cup Champions in Cowichan. After the journey West they will now travel East out to the Valley to face Fraser Valley Soccer League U21 Champions Abbotsford. The Storm edged out their cousins Abby United for the league crown and completed the double over the other team in this Provincial Cup from the FVSL, Westcoast United, when they beat them 2-0 in the Neil Fuge U21 Cup. Their success is likely the result of having three of the league's top scores among their ranks. Stephen McMahon had an impressive 12 goals on the season and Rochan Gosal added an equally tidy 10 tallies of his own. However, they were both outshone but the league's Golden Boot winner in David Parfett who had a league best 16 goals in 20 games. Also helping things was the fact that Abby are backstopped by Jide Arojojoye who had a joint best eight clean sheets over the campaign. The VMSL has proven itself to be a different animal, one that the Vancouver Island league clearly could not cope with in the first round. Will the Abby boys have any better luck? They look to have a decent draw going against fourth placed EDC, but the Burnaby boys are a very experienced side in this competition with many players returning from last seasons domestic title winning team that were eliminated in a tough draw at the hands of the league runners up, West Van, at this stage last year. Perhaps there are even a few holdovers from the team that made it all the way to the final in 2016 as well. This is Abbotsford's debut in this competition, and while they will fear no one after the season they have had, I am not sure that they are ready for the step up in quality that this competition brings. EDC might have been fourth, but they were only four points out of first, they have the experience and they have already proven that they can go on the road and get a result. I will back them to do it again this week.

Mid-Island Mariners (VISL) v BCT Rovers Utd. (VMSL)
Mid-Island it the last man standing from the Vancouver Island Soccer League as all three of their other entrants were ousted in the first round; two of them on home soil to boot. Mid-Isle are the Islands best however and have been since the 2012/13 season, their first in the league, when they were known as the Mid Isle Highlanders. They would become the Mariners the following year, but the tradition of winning continued and they have won the U21 division on the Island every year since. While obviously none of the players from those teams in the early days are still with the squad now, the culture has obviously been passed from squad to squad as their pedigree as champions has continued to shine through. That success has not, however, translated into Provincial Cup success; the closest they have come in recent years to lifting the crown is a 2016 semi-final. They went out at this stage last season and are no strangers to tripping at the first hurdle in cup completions, losing out in the first round of their domestic cup to a mid-table Prospect Lakers side. The Island boys did not have a real offensive threat this season, clearly scoring by committee, as their leading scorers were Stephon Kriegel and Juan Rubiano who had a mere five goals apiece. That is of course in stark contrast to their opponents from the mainland, Rovers Tigers, who boast the league's leading scorer Emmanuel Ekeh and his 22 goals in 18 games. Rovers hosted VISL opposition last round, getting by Vic West 3-1, but know the shoe is on the other foot with them being the team that needs to hop on the ferry. Rovers are the one Vancouver Metro League side in the competition who finished well back of the title race, so it would seem like this one pretty much all comes down to Ekeh. If he is on the boat, Rovers have a chance of beating just about everyone, if he has to stay behind, look for the league champs to take this one at home. I'll roll the dice on millennials being tough to motivate and take Mid-Island with home field advantage to advance.

West Van FC (VMSL) v Faly Academy (VMSL)
This one is the Match of the Round as it is a Vancouver Metro Soccer League domestic battle between second and third from the league table. These two were separated by a mere two points this year and both were just a shade off of the pace of title winners Coquitlam Metro Ford. This is also a rematch of the VMSL U21 Cup final and on that day it was second placed West Van knocking off third placed Faly by a 2-0 margin. That earned West Van a bye into this round, but Faly were seemingly not bothered as they went over to the Island in their opener and got past a good VISL second placed Lakehill side by a comfortable 2-0 scoreline. Tough to assess the league meetings between these two as one finished in a 0-0 stalemate while the other was awarded to West Van as a 3-0 win due to Faly using an ineligible player. Not sure how that game would have played out had it been above board, but missing out on those points potentially cost Faly the title and being deducted a further three as punishment definitely cost them a chance to playoff against Coquitlam for first place, given that the teams had identical 13-3-2 records. The three teams at the top were so close, even the goals for and against are right in range of each other. This one is a toss up in the truest sense. On one side you have a program in West Van that has consistently put up good results at this level, they were finalists last season, champions in 2015 and only absent from the 2016 tournament because they were playing Premier in the FVSL. They are back to back league runners up by the narrowest of margins and they won their domestic cup this season. On the other side, you have the stereotypical fly-by-night academy with a laundry list of staff on their team sheet and the idea that they are no doubt going to be sending players to Europe or wherever else they have promised the parents who are paying their fees. Certainly the product on the field at this level has delivered as they have burst on the season, only to be denied a championship season so far by an administrative issue and a one game playoff loss to the opponent they now face again. Flip a coin. I'll go with the North Shore boys as it is a case of been their, done that, both as a program with their history and with their results this season in beating the Academy side when the chips were down in the cup final.

Coquitlam Metro Ford Jr. Wolves (VMSL) v Westcoast United (FVSL)
A bit of a mismatch in this one as the Vancouver Metro Soccer League champions host third placed Westcoast from the Fraser Valley Soccer League. Westcoast were a distant third place in the Valley, but did manage the upset over second placed Abbotsford United 4-2 in their opener. It will be quite the feat if they were to repeat that sort of performance against the best the Vancouver league has to offer. Metro Ford won a very hotly contested U21 division in the VMSL this year and were rewarded with a bye to the second round. They are lead by 13 goal scorer Lucas Rojen who netted 13 goals this season but he has plenty of support from Abhinav Bhatta and Ethan Mullen who added nine goals apiece to the cause. CMF's flagship side took a massive step backwards this season as their Premier side missed the Provincial Cup for the first time in recent memory. Coquitlam has long been known for their development pathway and ability to constantly produce top players for their club, so with their U21 group winning the VMSL title this season, you wouldn't be surprised to see some of the more senior players integrated into the top group next season. The Tri-Cities club also have a Division 2 side still going strong in the B Cup and they have earned promotion to Division 1. While that side may have been born out of frustration with the hierarchy internally at Metro Ford, with the top group clearly needing a refresh, perhaps there are opportunities for the best players in that side to move up. Point being, Coquitlam could look very different as a club next season, so this may be this groups best shot at bringing home a title. This round should be comfortable as it would be a major upset to see them go out at this stage.

 

[Rangerforever]

What was Dude saying about you and your lips again?



Abbotsford to do the business here.

 

[Canucks4Ever]

Hit the bottom half of the bracket but missed the top. There will be a VMSL team in the final as they look to win this crown for a seventh consecutive season, but can Abby crash the party?

Completely Baseless Predictions
U21 Doug Day Provincial Cup
Quarter Finals: 2/4
Overall: 4/8

Abbotsford Storm (FVSL) v Rovers Tigers. Utd. (VMSL)
The Storm lay an absolute smack down on Chile last week, cruising to a 6-2 win in their first match in this competition. Rovers, EDC's VMSL brothers, should arguably be a step down in quality. They finished only one place, but nine points back of Chile in the table. They have played a pair of Island teams with the VISL looking off the pace in the competition. All four of their teams failed to win a match and three of them lost at home where the Island has, traditionally, been able to get results. That includes their champions Mid Isle Mariners who were dispatched by Rovers last week 2-0. Abbotsford were the FVSL champions and showed their credentials big time in their debut at this level. Can they keep it going? They managed to bottle up two of the VMSL's top six goal scorers with Chile last week, but will now need to contend with the Golden Boot winner in Emmanuel Ekah. They boast their own Golden Boot winner in David Parfett, so there should be goals to go around in this one. I have to say I like Abby in this one. After their first performance and the fact that they did the league/cup double in the Valley, I think they are favourites, not only in this game, but will surely have a good shot at the title next weekend.

West Van FC (VMSL) v Coquitlam Metro Ford (VMSL)
Definitely the Match of the Round here as first plays second in the VMSL standings. It is also a meeting of the cup and league winners, West Van having won the knockout competition while CMF were league champions. Just as they did in the VMSL U21 Cup Final, West Van dispatched the upstart Faly Academy by a two goal margin. The final was 3-1 this time and the North Shore boys have clearly proven that knockout football suits them. West Van also knocked Metro Ford out of the cup, beating them in the semi finals, a feat they will look to repeat at the same stage here in the Provincials. The Tri Cities boys had the better of the league meetings though, winning both match ups by 2-1 scorelines. Metro Ford were kings of the league, but their finished their schedule in mid-January. Since the league has wrapped up, Coquitlam have been less than dominant. The narrowly got past sixth placed GN in the VMSL U21 Cup quarter finals, winning 5-4 on aggregate over the two legs against an opponent who finished 16 points back of them in the table. They followed that up with their 1-0 loss to West Van in the semis on March 17 and then did not play again until last week. In their first match of this competition they found a way win, but only beat a Westcoast team that finished a distant third place in the FVSL 2-0 at home. Hardly the calling card of a champion. West Van meanwhile did not miss a beat against a tough VMSL opponent and they seem to have the moxie for cup competitions along with a spring in the step. I think West Van will ride that momentum all the way to a date at Burnaby Lake for the final.

 

[Rangerforever]

I have to say I like Abby in this one.

It's about time.

 

[Sir M]

In the last round the West Van vs Faly Academy game was delayed half an hour because Faly followed along with the latest Premier Division trend of when you get cant win on the field, try to win your games by the protest strategy and stated they were going to protest because the WV coach couldn't be on the bench as he was suspended because in league play with the Premier (not U21) team as a player he accumulated his third yellow during the last game of the league season. Therefore, he was ineligible, they alleged, to coach the team from the bench. In the BCs. Which is a tournament. Run by a different organization. Which isn't league play. With the under 21 team. Where he is a coach.

Game was suspended for a half hour until BC Soccer was reached and advised that Faly was dreaming. As were the parents that pay that kind of money to these guys because they might get a tryout with Barcelona.

 

[GoF]

Hearing that the U21 final hasn't been confirmed yet because one of the semis had to be abandoned. Anyone know what happened?

 

[lego3]

It's under protest. BC soccer is going to make a decision on Thursday.

 

[Canucks4Ever]

Haven't heard anything about a protest, unless there was also an incident in the West Van/CMF game.

Story I heard on the Abby/Tigers game was that Rovers had multiple players sent off including one who snapped and began swearing at the referee and accusing him of racism; I believe the incident is all on video. The referee abandoned the game late after it was 2-0. BC Soccer may be waiting to review it but I'm told it is fairly open and shut, Abby to play in the final.

 

[Gurps]

one who snapped and began swearing at the referee and accusing him of racism

 

[OldMilwaukeeFC]

I was out watching and I'll try to keep it short... The Tigers keeper attempted a Suplex on the Abby striker in on goal... Very obvious PK and Red card... The show started there with a very long temper tantrum by the Tigers keeper (throwing his gloves and kicking water bottles). After a long process of getting the keeper off the field the back-up keeper came in for the PK, 1-0 Abby.

On the sidelines the original keeper continued his temper tantrum (truly was a U-21 game), he started to throw his shin pads around and I think the shin pad throwing count raised to double digits by the end of it... This guy started threatening Abby players and the linesman from the sidelines. I thought the ref could have done more to stop the game and wait for this player to leave the field entirely but the game continued.

Then 10 minutes later Abby breaks down the sideline where the back-up keeper comes hustling out of net with no real chance at the ball. Studs up and no real play on the ball the only logical thought is that he came out with intent to injury the Abby player. The Abbotsford players and the ref both did a great job on keeping calm while the Tigers players seemed to only want to fight at this point and for no real reason, I don't believe the Abby player that was tackled even slightly retaliated. Nevertheless the back-up keeper got a well deserved Red card as well as a Tigers midfielder who decided to promptly come in on the action (I think the Tigers striker at this point was the only player not getting into the mix, and literally every Abbotsford player). From there coaches were screaming and I saw what I think was the assistant coach holding back the head coach from attacking the ref....

Some BC Soccer officials were in attendance and I personally can't see anything being overturned. The Tigers should assess their ability to play a game with dignity.

 

[Canucks4Ever]

On to the Final for the kids and their semi final antics may have just piqued one or two interests in this one. This is also a cup that the FVSL has a history of winning and will be keen to get the trophy back in the league cabinet for the year.

Completely Baseless Predictions
U21 Doug Day Provincial Cup
Semi Finals: 2/2
Overall: 6/10

Final:

Abbotsford Storm (FVSL) v West Van FC (VMSL)
It is champion against champion in the U21 Provincial Final with top of the FVSL pile in league and cup double winners Abbotsford taking on the cup champions, and league runners up by a single point, West Van from the VMSL. The Doug Day Cup is one trophy that has spent some decent time in the FVSL's possession as a powerhouse Port Moody Gunners side flew the flag for the league, winning the title in 2007, 2009 and 2012. That has to be considered a dynasty at this level, albeit the players would have turned over from that first championship winning side to the last, but it is clearly a testament to the program that was being run in the Tri-Cities during those years. Since that 2012 win, however, it has been, you guessed it, a period of VMSL dominance, as they have won the trophy in every season since then. It has been an all VMSL final for the past four years so Abbotsford have already crashed the party just by reaching this stage. Seeing off VMSL teams has yet to be a problem in this competition for the Valley side as both their previous fixtures in the tournament came against teams from the "big" league. They had little trouble with free scoring EDC, knocking them off 6-2, as the Burnaby side was made to pay dearly for their porous defense, a trait that cost them during their domestic campaign as well; conceding the most goals of any of the VMSL entrants to this competition. In their semi final Abby welcomed the Rovers Tigers young guns to the Valley and saw them off 2-0. This entire Provincial Cup season has been marred by controversy and discipline proceedings, particularly in the A Cup, but the kids have gotten involved as well. The semi-final had to be abandoned before the final whistle when Rovers could no longer contain themselves and their disdain for the officiating. They had earlier had their goalkeeper sent off and when things boiled over again late in the match the Surrey boys received an additional two red cards before their coaching staff lost control, along with their remaining players. BC Soccer reviewed the incident but quickly determined that the extracurricular activities had no effect on the integrity of the game and the scoreline would stand as is; though I imagine some lengthy suspensions might be pending and perhaps one or two harsh life lessons for the Rovers kids.

West Van are no stranger to administrative controversy which, as mentioned, seems to be the flavour of the month for this years competitions. Their opening round match against Faly Academy was delayed until a ruling could be given by a BC Soccer official. Evidently Faly wanted the coach of the West Van side, who plays for another team in West Van's club and was suspended in VMSL League play, to be deemed ineligible to participate as a team official and barred from the sidelines due to his league suspension. Rational heads prevailed however, and he was able to play his role in leading the North Shore side to a 3-1 win over their VMSL rivals and the team they had defeated mere weeks earlier to win the VMSL's U21 Cup. They then knocked off the team that narrowly pipped them to the league title, Coquitlam Metro Ford, in their semi-final, finding the extra bit of quality necessary for a 1-0 win. Obviously, being in different leagues, it is difficult to gauge these sides in a head to head. This is Abby's first time on this stage though and their domestic league only featured six teams, two of which were well off the pace. Disparity in the league is not uncommon at the U21 level, and certainly West Van also benefited from padding the stats against two or three of the lower sides in the VMSL's U21 table. However, that still left six or seven decent side to push the Amblesiders and while Abby have certainly risen to the challenge and defeated good VMSL sides in this tournament already, they were the fourth and fifth placed finishers. West Van, meanwhile, has beaten the first and third placed sides, teams they battled against all season and the experience gained those sorts of games should give them an edge in this final. Similar to the Port Moody program that was discussed earlier being a dynasty for roughly a decade from the mid-2000s, this West Van U21 program looks to be the cream of the crop over recent times. They were Provincial Champions in 2015 and then left to play in the FVSL Premier division in 2016. The program was reborn last season and they were Provincial Cup runners up. Now they are back in the final this year, with no doubt a decent number of returnees who are looking to put things right after they way their previous campaign ended. West Van have the pedigree and I think that will be the distance here. Abbotsford are certainly worthy finalists and are of course capable of bringing the trophy back to the FVSL after a six year hiatus, but West Van have to be the favourites in this one.

 

[Canucks4Ever]

Abbotsford 1-5 West Van FT

 

[Regs]