"Southern Gazette" - June 19, 2012

Coach’s Corner

by

Gord Dunphy

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Soccer Tidbits

St. Lawrence Laurentians : The Laurentians may have had to overcome some adversity in 2011 when they had to deal with the loss of some of their key players but in 2012 things look a little different. With the return of all-stars Rudy Norman, John Douglas and Jon Grant the Laurentians should be able to push other contenders when the silverware is on display come Labour Day Weekend. The addition of Tyler Forsey in mid -July should help out the team immensely .

Holy Cross: New additions Steve DeLong, Pat Reddick, and Brandon Noseworthy add even greater strength to a star studded team. This club can once again be called “ the Big Red Machine” and they will be very hard to beat. However, the beauty of soccer is sometimes all it takes is one game.

Mount Pearl: It has to be very hard for coach, Walt Mavin this season. At the start of the season Mount Pearl lost Rudy Norman, Jon Grant, Tyler Forsey, and Kevin Oram from last years squad. To add insult to injury, Mount Pearl’s All -Star Jon Kelly fractured his foot in just the second game of the season.

Feildians : Youth, fitness, and believing in themselves is the key to the success of this team. The addition of Blaise Peters certainly strengthens the offence of the Feildians.

CBS: Coaches Gary Forsyt and Damien Masters believe in themselves and have done a remarkable job in recruiting and assembling a team. Combined with the organization skills of the senior committee responsible for the CBS Challenge Cup team, Gerard Kenny, Calvin Randell, and Bruce Miller and we now have another club that is a legitimate contender.

Future Challenge Cup Stars: The best young soccer stars who I feel have great potential for the future are Jordi Slaney - St. Lawrence, Ryan Thistle – Mount Pearl, and Thomas Pieroway - CBS. All three of these players are minor age ( U-18 )and are currently seeing action with their parent clubs.

A Richard Kelly Comeback: I love to see Richard make a comeback but only if he truly has the time to commit. For me to see Richard in uniform and be only a shadow of the player he was when he was on top of his game would be a shame. There is no doubt in my mind that Richard was one of the best players that I’ve ever seen and that’s the way I like to remember him.

Top Challenge Cup Goalie : Hands down my number one is John Douglas. Douglas is capable of winning a game by himself.

Sport Newfoundland and Labrador: It’s great to see that George “Bo” Collier has been inducted into the Sport NL Hall of Fame. Personally, I feel “Bo” was one of the greatest soccer players to ever play soccer in Newfoundland and he is by far the best ever Fortune Apollo. Congratulations Bo !

Canadian Soccer Association Soccer Hall of Fame: It’s also nice to see Angus Barrett has been inducted in to the Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame where the most elite soccer personalities in the country are showcased. The thing I like about Angus is he is every bit as much as a gentleman as he is great soccer person . Congratulations Angus !



Gord Dunphy is a former Challenge Cup 1990’s All-Star coach of the St. Lawrence Laurentians and National Bronze Medalist. He can be reached by e-mail at ‘gorddunphy@email.com’.