Falcons men’s soccer team head to nationals

Reported by Joe Ayres

The Langara Falcons men’s soccer team is off to nationals after beating season long rivals, the Douglas Royals, by four to three in a penalty shootout.

The last round of provincials took place on Saturday Oct. 20, with the men’s team winning against Douglas College while the women’s lost.

With nationals looming over head Joey Ratcliffe, the Langara team’s captain, says the team is fine tuning their skills while focusing on the mental aspect of the game. If the team trains too hard they could find themselves with injuries, a dreadful prospect at this pivotal stage.

“You have games where it’s do or die. On one game you never know what can happen so you try and put your best effort forward and hope,” said Ratcliffe.

Game day

The Falcons will be playing their first game in nationals on Nov.7 at the Terry Fox Sports Complex, in Cornwall, Prince Edward Island.

Kevin Monk, the Falcons goalkeeper in net at the end of the shootout, prepared himself to save the opposing shot. The kicker stuttered, purposely pausing to throw off Monk before the shot. Monk almost went too early but managed to stop the shot, winning the game and taking the team to nationals.

Monk has been a goalkeeper for seven years. This season is Monk’s last with the Langara team.

“Its sad but happy at the same time. Just trying to take in as much as I can while it lasts,” said Monk.

Teams secret weapon

Marc Rizzardo,The Langara team’s coach and physiotherapist, has gone the distance in ensuring the team’s success by offering free physiotherapy treatments to all team members.

“It’s a win win situation. I know they’re getting good treatment. A lot of the guys can’t afford to get treated, they’re not necessarily in well to do families.”