VOYAGEURS SHOW PROMISE IN PAIR OF EXCITING EXHIBITION MATCHES VERSUS KEYANO
LAC LA BICHE – As far as the standings go, the games didn't count – but don't tell the Portage College Voyageurs that. The men's futsal squad hosted Keyano College for a pair of exhibition futsal matches on Sunday afternoon at the Bold Centre, putting up a strong showing against a perennial contender.
The two squads put on an exhibition of quality futsal for the fans in the stands, complete with great passing, fast paced action, fantastic saves, and beautiful goals. The hosts tied the Huskies 3-3 in the first match and lost a close 4-3 one in the second game. The pair of games gave Head Coach Macky Singh a much better sense of what his players need to work on as they prepare for the first Northeast Regional tournament next weekend in Fort McMurray.
"Pressing high, for a start, aggressively. We've got to learn what Keyano does and we've got to do better, in terms of learning from them," he said. "And then also moving the ball, passing the ball, instead of trying to run the ball."
He also noted things that his troops did well, including playing a strong low block, and being aggressive at the appropriate times. In both games, the Voyageurs kept fighting back, tying the score several times in the first game, and almost coming back to knot up the second one before the final buzzer sounded. Johann Bohard, Bjorn Goolie, Benjamin Hyrsky, Jesse Oladejo, Patrick Moreira and Matteo Scipione scored and Ben Kenny and Nicholas Santos provided some stellar netminding to keep the scores close. Singh was pleased with the effort and appreciated the opportunity to get some real game action in before the first regional tournament, for both the men's and women's futsal teams.
"You can do all the training you want but it's nothing compared to playing a game," he said. "So it was awesome. It was good to see where both teams are in terms of the way we've trained and also to see our fitness as well. It was definitely a worthwhile exercise and I'm glad that we were able to do it."
