In the wake of his team's triumph in the Coastal 'A' Cup final on Saturday, Magnuson Ford Mariners FC under-18 boys coach Alan Errington offered the highest praise one can give an Abbotsford soccer team.
"I think we're even a stronger squad than we had when we won nationals twice in a row," Errington said, referring to the much-celebrated Abbotsford side which claimed Canadian titles in 2002 and 2003.
"Whenever I've got the starting lineup on the field, I look at the bench and I go, 'Wow.' The players on the bench are all starters. There's not one weak player."
The Mariners' depth shone through during Saturday's 2-0 triumph over the North Shore Selects at Richmond's Minoru Stadium. The Abbotsford side dominated from the opening whistle, and could have easily scored four or five more goals with a little better finish.
"Sometimes, when you make changes, it weakens your team," Errington said. "But we actually got stronger, because the players who came in, I think some of them were actually a little upset that they didn't start. They came in with the attitude of, 'I'll show you.' And they were absolutely fantastic."
Both of the Mariners' goals were created by right back Colton O'Neill. In the 22nd minute, the Abby captain's throw-in sprung his twin brother Connor on a breakaway, and he chipped the ball over the North Shore keeper to open the scoring.
In the 53rd minute, Colton's free kick from 40 yards found the foot of Trent Mayer, who buried it to give the Mariners a comfortable 2-0 cushion.
Striker Justin Sekhon was named game MVP, while keeper Matthew Kidwell picked up his third clean sheet in four Coastal Cup playoff games.
With the win, the Magnuson Ford club moves on to the provincial championship game against the top team from the Interior. Since the Interior clubs are just beginning their season, that game won't take place until the first weekend of July. The winner advances to nationals, Oct. 5-10 in Fredricton, N.B.
Errington feels it's fundamentally unfair that the Interior champ gets an automatic berth into the B.C. final, while all other clubs from Vancouver Island, the Lower Mainland and the Fraser Valley must survive a challenging Coastal Cup playdown. The situation will be rectified next year with the debut of B.C. Soccer's new Premier League, which will feature a March-to-November season.
"We'll bring (the players) back two or three weeks beforehand and get them prepared," Errington said, looking ahead to the provincial final.
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• Errington lauded the work of the coaches who guided the U18 Mariners through the younger age levels, most notably his son Peter Errington and Rob O'Neill.
"They've done a fantastic job with them, and I get all the rewards," he pointed out with a chuckle. "When I took over this team last year, they were playing the right way. They were playing the way I coach, so I didn't have to change them and get them to buy into what I was doing."
• For the record, the entire Mariners roster features strikers Trent Mayer, Kevan Nagra, Daniel Molendijk, Antony Urbano and Justin Sekhon; midfielders Nick Haywood, Connor O'Neill, Tyson Hunter, Logan McKeown, Kyle Parker, Andy Phillips Jr. and Jorden Leib; defenders Colton O'Neill, Ryan Couperous, Sahib Phagura and Sukh Dhaliwal; and keeper Matthew Kidwell.