听
The Island soccer community prefers to look at it not as a marketing nightmare, which it obviously is, but instead as a chance for local fans to see the best in sa国际传媒 amateur soccer.
All seven of the 2016 sa国际传媒 Province Cup finals are being held today and Sunday at Westhills Stadium and Goudy Field in Langford, but not one Island team has qualified.
鈥淚t鈥檚 always better, of course, to have hometown teams qualify,鈥� said Vince Greco, executive director of the men鈥檚 Vancouver Island Soccer League.
鈥淏ut Island fans who want to see excellent soccer will be there. It鈥檚 the best amateur soccer in the country. Many players, over the years, have used this level as a stepping stone to the pros and even the national team.鈥�
Also shut out of championship weekend have been the Fraser Valley teams, which only goes to show off the power this season of the Vancouver Metro Soccer League.
鈥淗ats off to the VMSL. It鈥檚 a great league with lots of great teams,鈥� Greco said.
鈥淭hey won the qualification games and they deserve to be here. It鈥檚 their year. The cream rises and they deserve all their finalist berths this weekend.鈥�
The featured games are the men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 Province Cup 鈥楢鈥� championships.
The men鈥檚 championship game, between Pegasus FC of Surrey and Metro Ford Wolves of Coquitlam, is today at 3:30 p.m. The Island鈥檚 big hope, Cowichan FC, was eliminated in the quarter-final stage in what was a huge disappointment for the powerhouse club.
The women鈥檚 鈥楢鈥� final is between the North Shore SC Renegades, who edged Lower Island-champion Castaways Highlanders 2-1 in the semifinals, and Richmond FC on Sunday at 3:30 p.m.
The sa国际传媒 champion teams will advance to the Canadian championships in the fall.
The other men鈥檚 finals are today and feature Rhino鈥檚 Fury versus Campo Atletico kicking things off for the Province Cup 鈥楤鈥� title at 10:30 a.m. at Westhills. EDC Burnaby, which edged the Mid Island Mariners 2-1 in the semifinals, faces Guildford FC for the provincial under-21 title at Goudy at noon.
The men鈥檚 over-35 championship game is between Croatia FC and Metro Ford PCE at 1 p.m. at Westhills. Metro Ford scored at the death to tie their semifinal against the University of Victoria Vikes Alumni and then went on to win on penalties.
The other women鈥檚 finals are all at Westhills on Sunday, beginning with the Province B showdown between North Shore Hearts and Dasmesh United at 10:30 a.m. and followed by the over-30 championship between Coquitlam Metro Ford SC and Coastal FC Supra at 1 p.m.
The Province Cup finals are hosted in a three-year rotation between the Island, Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley.
The Island will next host in 2019.
鈥淣ext year, maybe it鈥檒l be all Island teams playing on the Lower Mainland,鈥� Greco quipped.
