Senior openers postponed; intermediate league set to start tonight
Sunday’s cool and windy weather led to the postponement of what was supposed to have been a double-header to open the Molson St. John’s Fastpitch League’s 2018 season. The five-time defending champion Kelly’s Pub Molson Bulldogs were to have taken on the 3Cheers Pub Bud Light Dodgers in the first game of the season, while the NTV Hitmen had been set to tangle with The Bigs at Lions Park.
The Kelly’s Pub Junior Canadians, the league’s fifth entry, are set to play Tuesday on what now stands to be the senior league’s new opening day. Hopefully, the Molson St. John’s Intermediate League will have more success getting in its first games of 2018 at Lions Park tonight.
It’s the 14th season for the intermediate circuit, which will feature eight teams this campaign. Back are the four-time defending champs Lafontaine Club of Placentia, the C.B.C. Junior Canadians, C.B.S. Storm, Chayee Bourras NL Selects, Roebothan Mckay Marshall Republic, Sportscraft Waterford Valley (formerly Game On Gear) and Sable Building & Design, which operated s as Goulds last season. Carbonear-based MJR Masonry is not returning. Tonight’s season-opener has Sable Building & Design taking on Sportscraft Waterford Valley, while the Junior Canadians take on Lafontaine Club.
The league announced dates for its two major tournaments, the Swing Into Summer tourney (June 22-24) and Intermediate provincials (July 20-22).
Feildians have a youthful Challenge Cup soccer squad this season, so Sunday’s seasonopening 3-2 win over Holy Cross should give the Double Blues a jolt of confidence as the 2018 Molson provincial senior soccer campaign kicked off at King George V Park.
Emmanuel Dolo scored from about 25 yards out in injury time as the Feildians upset the reigning provincial champs.
“We’ve got a young crowd,” said the Feildians’ Greg Reid, the top defender in the Challenge Cup last season, “that hopefully will gain confidence as the season progresses.
“Hopefully this win today has set the bar.”
It was the Crusaders who got things going down next to Quidi Vidi Lake, with Tyler Kirby scoring eight minutes after the opening whistle. Stephen Johnson, grandson of the wellknown late provincial Hockey and Sports Hall of Famer Don Johnson, evened things up at 41 minutes before Andrew Stanford restored the Holy Cross lead three minutes later.
It stood 2-1 for the Crusaders until the 62nd minute when Iain Gamba scored for the Double Blues, setting the stage for Dolo’s last-second heroics.
The season kicks into high gear next weekend with four games on the schedule. Saturday, Holy Cross is in Mount Pearl for a 7 p.m. game, while the St. Lawrence Laurentians, who finished first in the regular season last year before losing to the Crusaders in the final, head to C.B.S. for a 4 p.m. tilt.
Sunday, the league’s newest entry, Paradise, plays its firstever game 4 p.m. against Feildians at King George V. In Mount Pearl at 1 p.m., St. Lawrence plays its second straight game as Tyler Forsey, the league’s leading goal-getter last year, plays against his former team.