LFC crack the top-three
The Lethbridge Football Club men’s team are number three with a bullet.
The LFC doubled up the Edmonton Drillers 4-2 during Alberta Major Soccer League play Saturday afternoon at the Servus Sports Centre.
The win gets the LFC one game above the .500 mark at 32-3 after settling for a tie with the Edmonton Green & Gold last weekend, and with a little help from some other teams around the league it also puts Lethbridge into third place in the league as the June schedule wraps up.
In other action Saturday, the Calgary Dinosaurs earned their first win of the season by blanking the second place Calgary Villains Elite FC, while the Edmonton Green & Gold and the Edmonton Victoria battled to a scoreless draw.
Those results aided the LFC in the overall standings, but on Saturday at the Servus Sports Centre the team also helped their own cause, jumping out to a 3-0 lead at the half on their way to the win that caps off three home games in as many weekends.
“The guys played well for the whole 90 minutes,” said LFC head coach Bruce Primeau. “We gave up a cheapie after the half, but that’s to be expected, unfortunately, being up 3-0 at the half.”
“We got the lucky bounces in the first 15 minutes and kept the game at 0-0 and then in the last 15 we took control and kept control for the next 60 minutes.”
Control of the game began with a lucky bounce in the host’s favour.
“It started with a pretty dangerous cross by Andrew (Primeau),” said Primeau. “The Drillers guy went to clear it and cleared it into this own net. Then we got a set piece off a corner where Dario Pasquotti headed a ball and then Corey Frecka totally undressed three guys and potted his leaguetying sixth of the year.”
The Drillers cut into Lethbridge’s lead in the second half, but the LFC was able to respond with an insurance goal.
“Stephen Primeau had a great run and finished off a screamer to put us up 4-2,” said Primeau.
At the other end, goaltender Nolan French kept the LFC in the game early on with a few key saves until his teammates could get going.
“He stood on his head again,” said Primeau. “He’s the one that keeps us in games time in and time out. In the first 15 (minutes) where we were the Larry, Moe and Curly Show, he stopped three or four quality Driller chances.”
What’s better, everybody got into the act in Saturday’s win, including a mostly-smooth transition of subs coming on to start the second half.
“From the subs at the half, that’s where you’re subbing in four or five guys, you hope we’re not going to stumble a little bit,” said Primeau. “We stumbled a bit five minutes in and they got to 3-1. (But) unlike previous games where we may have had that collapse for 15 or 20 minutes, it didn’t rear it’s ugly head yesterday. The boys shook it off and played the balance of the 40 minutes and finished off well.”
With the Canada Day long weekend around the corner, the LFC will take the coming weekend off before hosting the Dinosaurs July 8 at 2 p.m at the Servus Sports Centre.
“We’ll keep plugging away,” said Primeau. “We’ll address some of our deficiencies from the last three games. Each game we step up and do something better than we did the week before. I said to the boys at the start that I don’t mind making these mistakes in June because come September in provincials that’s where it all comes together.
“Even on that second goal (Saturday), when we went up 42, the same player had the same opportunity at the same thing and although we allowed them to have that shot and score earlier in the second half, when it came time later when it could have mattered we stood tall and the boys held their ground and lo and behold, he didn’t get the shot off that he had 10 minutes earlier. We didn’t have that 15 or 20 minute lapse that we seemed to have in almost every other game.”
That’s not only put the LFC in the top-three, but sets the team up nicely with the chance to stay there.
“When we’re 12 points in and sitting in third, there are some things going on that might keep us in that top-three,” said Primeau.
With the 1-4-3 Dinosaurs up next, Primeau said his team isn’t looking past the Calgary squad that just blanked the 42-1 Villains.
“Our next game should be a good test as well. If the Dinos give a shocker to the Villains, it’s not going to be an easy game.”