Joey Payeur
A casual observer might suggest Chris Sinclair’s toughest task going into today’s NorWOSSA boys’ soccer final was to keep his team’s collective head from swelling to Rocky Mountain-size proportions.
But Sinclair believed his team’s mindset was exactly where it needed to be after completing an undefeated regular season with a 2-0 victory over the Kenora Broncos and a 3-0 shutout of the Dryden Eagles last Wednesday in Dryden.
“One of our goals going into the season was to win our league so we didn’t have to play that semi-final,” said Sinclair, whose team did just that by earning a bye to today’s final in Kenora with a chance at its seventh-straight NorWOSSA title and the right to advance to the OFSAA ‘AA’ tournament June 1-3 in North Bay.
“It’s a huge advantage not having to play the semi-final game as playing two games can be tiring, especially when it’s a win-or-be-done situation.
“I’m not too concerned about being overconfident,” Sinclair added.
“We have had some good games with both Dryden and Kenora this year, and I think the boys realize that we need to be at our best if we are going to move on.”
Fort High outscored its two NorWOSSA foes by a combined total of 14-3 this season and ramped up its defensive intensity on the final day of the regular season.
“Obviously, coming out of the final day of league play with two shutout wins is a great feeling,” Sinclair remarked.
“One of our team goals at the beginning of the year is one or less goals against each game and when you keep your opponent to zero, you’re going to have success,” he noted.
“I want the boys to be aggressive in the back in the sense of pressuring the ball and I thought we did a really good job of that, especially considering we were without [injured veteran Liam Metke],” added Sinclair.
“We didn’t allow them time to move the ball through the middle and when they tried to send the ball, we were in good position to make a good first pass up or clear it.”
Rookie keeper Jacob Albright posted back-to-back shutouts between the pipes.
Veteran keeper Cole Kowalski made the most of his time out of the net by scoring one of the goals against Kenora before being a healthy scratch versus Dryden.
“Like I mentioned before, we are very confident and comfortable with either Cole or Jacob in net,” Sinclair said.
“Both teams had a few chances that kept Jacob busy throughout the games and he was obviously up for the task,” he lauded.
“We had first place locked up and getting Jacob some good playing time is a bonus,” Sinclair reasoned.
“I think it helps with his confidence and helps gain playing experience.
“Cole didn’t play in the second game as I didn’t want him to get an injury or anything like that,” he explained.
“Without one of our strikers with us in Jake Clendenning, I wanted to get Cole on the field to run around a bit [against Kenora].
“Also, I’m a big fan of trying different things,” Sinclair stressed. “In games that Cole hasn’t been in net, we have put him on striker a few times now and, surprisingly, has been impressive.
“He’s a big kid and has a lot of speed,” he said. “He did really well up there scoring a goal for us.”
Aaron Bujold had the other marker against Kenora.
In the win over Dryden, Chase McGuire, Connor Nelson, and Dawson Allen were the goal scorers.
“It’s really great to see different guys getting goals, especially our younger guys,” said Sinclair.
“We are very impressed with the depth of our offence as going into the season, that was one area we were questioning,” he admitted.
“We have guys with good ball skills and who are fast,” he added.
“When you have that combination, good things are going to happen and that showed [last] Wednesday.”
Sinclair was optimistic he would have Metke back for today’s final after the Muskie stalwart broke his nose during the semi-final of the Broncos Challenge Cup tournament May 13 in Kenora.
Metke’s presence will do much to improve the chances of Fort High maintaining its foothold atop of the NorWOSSA soccer mountain yet again.
“Obviously, there is a certain sense of pride to continue the streak that we have going,” said Sinclair.
“Shane Beckett did a great job getting this program to where it is,” he noted. “Last year, I was fortunate enough to add one more and I’m hoping to do the same this year.
“I have stressed to the boys that each day we have to be better than we were the previous game, so we have to know [today] has to be our best game yet,” Sinclair added.
“With being the top-seeded team and going for seven-straight championships does add some pressure to the team, but I think we have prepared all season for this game and know what we have to do to have success.”
