Premier [FVSL Premier]-Mid Season Review & Predictions

[Skip]

So, we've reached the half way point of the season already, and there have definitely been some surprises. Let's here your thoughts on the season so far, and some predictions for the second half.

1st Chilliwack Rapids 9-0-0 27Pts.

A perfect record thus far, and done so in convincing fashion with a +27 goalsF/A rating. Not surprising to many really, as signs of their rise to the top were obvious early last season. They added depth in the off season, and are rolling along nicely. I'd be surprised to see them finish the season off with a perfect record though, as recently, they have shown signs of faltering, giving up 3 goals to GEU. Definite favorites to win the league championship, but also very beatable.

2nd LUFC United 6-2-1 20 Pts.

The reigning league champs have also shown signs of mortality this season, but have managed a respectable 20 points after 9 games played. The work rate of this team has been a strength, with solid play both up front, and in the back. A top 3 finish seems like a good bet, but they're in tough to catch the league leaders, and defend their title. I think it's all up to BSLU, who is obviously carrying the team on his shoulders.

3rd North Delta Lions 5-1-3 16Pts.

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise this season has been the resurgence of the ND Lions. Having to play a home-away series vs the second place Div. 1 team last year to avoid relegation seems a far cry from the campaign they have put together this season. This team could go either way in the second half IMO. It appears they have much talent, but little depth. If they manage to stay healthy and unified, look for them to stay amongst the leaders. If not, look for them to sink fast in the standings.

4th Peace Arch United 4-3-1 15Pts.

Once again, PAU has managed to field a competitive team. One which has held high expectations for itself this season. Three draws in the first half of the season has limited this team's place in the standings. With depth in all position, and some good young players being slowly added to the fold, it is doubtful that PAU will find itself in the decimated state they were in late last season. If the goals against is lowered, look for PAU to rise.

5th Golden Ears United 5-0-4 15Pts.

GEU has managed to put together some fair results. This seems a healthy sign, when one considers the fact that they added a handful of players from the Div. 1 this year. I predict this group will hold onto it's mid-table standing, and perhaps get some surprise results as they continue to gel as a team.

6th Delta Metro United 4-2-3 14Pts.

Major rebuilding year. I could not believe how young and green this side looked when we faced them a few weeks ago. They have much young talent, but will struggle to get results against the experienced teams in the league.

7th Poco City Dominion 2-1-5 7Pts.

Haven't seen this team yet, but my hunch is that they are in much the same boat as Delta Metro. Many of the mainstay veterans have moved on, and left voids for young and inexperienced players to fill. The future looks bright, but the present will provide a huge learning curve.

8th GN Sporting Club 1-2-5 5Pts.

I can't figure this team out. Everytime we play them, they seem like bonified contenders. Yet, only one win to their record this season proves otherwise. I can't see this team being relegated, and yet they are only 1 point up on the new addition to Premier.....and the cold weather looms.

9th Dewdney FC Razorbacks 1-1-7 4Pts.

I'm not sure if Dewdney was missing some players when we played them, but I can say with confidence, they were the poorest competition we've faced in this league in a long time. Even worse than the 8-nil trouncings of Langley a few years back. This team is my bet to be relegated.

10th Whalley Storm 0-0-8 0Pts.

If the Lions are the most pleasant surprise, Whalley certainly has to be the most un-pleasant. This team seems to have suffered what can only be described as a complete break-down on many levels. Initially, it appeared their poor start was due mainly to the injury bug. At 0-0-8, it has to be more significant than that. This team won loads of respect since being promoted 2 years ago, and always presented themselves as a formidable adversary. Now, they have been reduced to a team winless, and in serious relegation trouble. Lamonte will have to work some magic to get this side back on track.

So, what are your thoughts gents?

~Skip

 

[Jock]

Well said skip, a very honest insight & pretty accurate.

 

[Dude]

Skip,

Great write-up. I'll comment on two: LUFC & Whalley.

LUFC just sort of keeps on rolling. They've had numbers problems to start the campaign with a few vets stepping down, but somehow keep coming up w/ results. You can attribute this to many factors- strong core, superior fitness, superiors management- but I think more than anything now is that the boys simply expect it. Winning breeds confidence, and when these guys step on the pitch, they expect to leave it w/ 3 points. I think over the second half there will be some depth added, so if anyone is going to challenge Chlli, Langley will.

Whalley...very disappointing so far, and yes, I think you nailed it. Injury bug early, but now- in contrast to Langley- losing has become habitual. It doesn't help that Mario left the team. On a skill level he is average, but his strength and ball winning ability made he and brother Peter possibly the most dominating and frightening stopper / sweeper pair in the league. I've heard that turn outs to training have been poor at best, so one has to wonder how much, as a group, do these guys really want to stay in Premier? They finally have Sandro back, and Train (Mike Wagstaff) is coming back from a late summer injury. If these two can find their form, they will make life difficult for full backs here on in. Doesn't hurt that these two guys are capable of giving the team an emotional lift, too.

 

[Guinness]

Whalley won the summer league!!! What else do you want???

 

[LFC2]

Come on guys, lets support Skip here and keep the great in depth analysis coming.

Some of my thoughts half way home.

1-Wack. These guys are all on the same page and show up to play together with the same agenda, except for Hollywood! I predict if they have the same success in the second half as they did in the first, they will win the league.

2-PAU You know what you are going to get with these guys. As much as they mention the youth from time to time, this team still succeeds or fails by the veteran core. Great rivalry and no need getting our guys up for these hated cross town rivals. They are still a team that can compete come Provincials so I hope for the FVSL that they get top 3 in the end.

3-GEU Not much to say. Did not put up much of a fight against us.

4-POCO Saw them too early to comment much and no one really ever says anything about them.

5-Lions. Most pleasent surprise of the year. I thought we would see allot of new faces but lots of the old guard, and where they were not able to score last year, they are now. Always been strong defensively. Lacking a bit of veteran leadership as they came a little unravelled against us late.

6-DMU. Very young, maybe too young. With the risk of possibly getting ripped, seemed a bit overcoached. Not enough guys willing to just put the hard work in, instead waiting for it to happen.

7- GNSUFC. Nobody knows.

8- Whalley. Not very good. No significant new blood since they came up. Have to be willing to accept change to continue and maintain your position. Have not seen them do it. With Sandro hobbling, not a tough team to shut down.

9-Dewds. Gotta hand it to them, never quit against us and believed in themselves down 2-0 late. Admirable, but still not very good, and without significant changes will be battling with Whalley over the next 9 weeks.

10- Lang. Continue to build. Each veteran we had last year that moved on has been replaced by a kid off of the U-18 Metro team of last year. Comes with it's short term pains but hopefully long term potential. We are quite pleased to have done as well as we have, and I think the Dewdney game was a bit of an awakening for the kids. Come game day, this does mean allot to many. Good to see the anger from the core that was there on the day, unfortunately too late. Huge difference against DMU as in my opinion we simply outworked them for 90 and on the night deserved the points.

Should be a great battle mid pack, which we are only a loss away from, for the provincial spots. Love the new rule of top 3 going.

 

[Guinness]

New Rule??? Top 3 in League automatically get into BC's???

 

[LFC2]

New Rule??? Top 3 in League automatically get into BC's???

That's what we were told by the brass at the Premier/CAT meeting this year.
Top 3 Premier and Pak winner.

 

[crafty cokcney]

This years Premier division is not as good as it was last year, so far as quality team performances and depth. It seems a few teams have gone into rebuild mode and the promoted team has struggled to compete.

Chilliwack, trying to repeat what Langley did last year, are half way there and are looking comfortable to take first spot overall should their current form continue. They seem to have found what it takes to get the job done each and every week and have group of lads that continually work hard for one another. They are beatable, but it will be difficult to break them down defensively and at the same time keep them contained up front.

Langley is not as good as last year, but still one of the better teams in this division. A few new younger faces would indicate some rebuilding going on and with that, usually comes the price of dropping a few points along the way. By the end of the season I would expect this team to finish strong, so if they are one of your last games during the regular season...Beware!!

Lions much better effort this time around though the team is not that different. A couple of faces are new or have been regenerated, but all in all the same. I personally thought they were a little unlucky last year in some games I watched, but those results have turned around for them this season so far. I also believe a few teams took these guys for granted this season and will be much more attentive the second time round. Top half finish, but maybe not a provincial spot.

PAU have added some younger boys from the CAT program and are utilizing the system well. Still one of the more dangerous teams up front, but are starting to give up an awful lot more at the back than the PAU teams we have seen in the last 4 - 5 years. Having said that, on any given day, this team can beat anyone in this division. Top half finish but will struggle to get a provincial berth if they continue to concede as many goals in the second half of the schedule.

GEU impressed me the first time round. One of the few teams that I believe have improved this year over last while still rebuilding. Many new faces with some of the veterans moving along to Masters I think. I am surprised to see them lose four games. I know you can only base your opinions on limited exposure to some of the teams, but based on the first encounter, I would see them challenging strongly for a provincial spot come April.

Delta Metro have been a little unlucky in some of the bigger games and have faltered to put teams away when the opportunity was there for the taking. We definitely have the speed and talent, but our experience is lacking in areas and our desire to win as a team has been questionable. We are not grinding out the results that we have in the past and it has been a frustrating first half of the season for both players and coaches alike. Last year was the first time since being back in the Premier division that this team did not qualify for Provincials and we must have a better second half to put us back on course.

Poco have had a total melt down from what I've seen from their results and heard. I was absent from our first game so I can not comment too much. Obviously another team in the stages of rebuilding, but it seems to have affected them more than others. They will be looking to improve on the first half dramatically and keep away from the drop zone.

GN Sport have not improved at all with their merger with SUFC. With rain and cold weather imminent, this team will do well to avoid the bottom half of the table come the end of the season. Lots of individual talent, pace and technique, but not a scooby when it comes to the fundamentals. Somedays they click and somedays they don't. If only they could put their finger on the reasons why they do and build on it, they could and would be much better than their current record indicates. As LFC2 would say.. "definitely under coached."

Dewdney are probably the worst team I've seen in Premier in a long time. They were much better when we played them in the pre-season. Not sure if it was an off day or what, but they have started to put points on the board in recent weeks which would indicate some sort of revival. They will need to sign some quality if they really want to compete at all in this division. The first season is always going to be tough and any points they take in the second half will be crucial toward their survival in the top tier.

Whalley is a team I like. They have character and the determination to pull out results when it matters. They have lost some key players to other clubs and injury and apparently the bleeding is yet to stop. Not a point from eight games is a huge mountain to climb, but not impossible. Again a team that needs to sign decent players to compete at this level or they will find themselves in the same position year after year. They will be fighting it out with bottom teams to avoid the drop and will need all the luck they can get.

Cheers