This past weekend was an emotional roller coaster like I’ve never experienced before!
After finishing our regular season with a 11-1-2 record and being ranked the #1 university soccer team in Canada, our University of Toronto men’s team fell victim to the biggest defensive wall I’ve ever seen.
We played unranked MacMaster University in the provincial finals and after having squeaked by their previous 3 playoff games in penalty kicks, they did the same to us – winning 5-4 in a shootout after an intense 120 minute game that ended 0-0.
I have to say that MacMaster was by far one of the weakest teams that we had played all year but boy did they put up a fight. From the opening whistle, they lined up 4 defenders outside of their box with 2 holding midfielders to further solidify their defence.
In essence, they were defending with 6 guys!
It was like trying to break down a bloody brick wall. As good as our attack has been, we just couldn’t find the back of their net.
Less than 24 hours before this game, on Saturday, we had just beaten the Western Mustangs in a crazy shootout that would send us not only to the provincial finals but also to the National Championships in BC this coming week.
After a 2-2 game and 120 minutes of end to end action, our boys dug deep and dig whatever they could to win the game. And it was a nail biter all the way to the end as our keeper needed to save Western’s final PK in order for us to have another chance to shoot.
Miraculously, after having dived the opposite way on the previous 4 shots, he saved the 5th and then game winning 6th shot.
We obviously went nuts!
Our goal of reaching Nationals was now a reality.
After much celebration, we regrouped and reminded the team that we were playing for gold in just under 24 hours. So we needed to refocus, recover, and get some much needed rest.
It was one of the most memorable games I’d ever experienced. After all, we were hosting the provincial (OUA) playoffs and we had such an amazing turnout from our fans and alumni. The crowd and the ambiance was amazing. A truly unbelievable way to claim a spot in the National Championship, especially considering that this very game last year saw us lose 2-1 in a heart-breaking match against the eventual National Champs, York University.
So even though we lost the OUA final in shootouts to a mediocre team, we reassured our team that they had done everything we had trained and everything they could have humanly been done.
Sometimes, that’s just the way the cookie crumbles.
After all, when you get into shootouts, it’s anyone’s game. You might as well just flip a coin.
Sure it was a heartbreaking loss but after our coaching staff had said their final words to the team, I left the team with a bit of inspiration (at least I hope I did).
I referred them to the one of best quotes of all time that comes from the movie Batman Begins, where Alfred (the butler) says to Bruce Wayne…
“Bruce, why do we fall?…So we can pick ourselves up again.”
I love that quote because it really hits home the idea of never giving up and understanding that no matter what happens in life, we need to keep on trekking.
So, tomorrow we depart for Vancouver, BC to compete in the university men’s soccer National Championships and we’ll see just how resilient our boys really are.
I’m predicting that we’ll win the gold.
I’ll keep you up to date with what happens.