The under-18 boys soccer team from Magnuson Ford Mariners FC punched its ticket to the Coastal Cup final, knocking off Richmond United 2-1 in the semifinals last Sunday.
The Abbotsford side moves on to face the North Shore Selects at Richmond's Minoru Stadium on Saturday, April 30 at 5 p.m. The Coastal Cup winner moves on to play the Interior champ for the right to represent B.C. at nationals in September.
The win was particularly memorable for the Abbotsford side in light of the fact they had never defeated Richmond in regular season play before.
"We were the better team on the day, and we deserved the win," Mariners head coach Alan Errington said.
Against Richmond United, the Mariners fell behind 1-0 at the 30 minute mark. But before the half was over, Abby's Trent Mayer was taken down in the penalty area, and Connor O'Neill stepped up and buried the penalty kick.
The Mariners went ahead for good in the 51st minute when O'Neill converted Sahib Phagura's cross.
In the waning minutes, keeper Matthew Kidwell made a diving save to deflect a shot off the post and preserve the Abby victory.