Veteran X-men primed for playoff run
The St. F.X. X-men soccer team is focussed on scoring a bye for the upcoming Atlantic University Sport (AUS) playoffs.
“I like where we are,” head coach Graham Kennedy said of his team’s performance so far this season.
He added one of the strengths of the Blue and White is “we are really balanced,” noting their quality “up the middle, along with – although young – “down the sides.”
Kennedy said their “strong bench” has – and will continue to be – a key.
“We are hard to play against,” he added, noting the X-men have “terrific speed.”
As part of the aforementioned balance, he said the team is getting quality seasons from the likes of Dan Hayfield, Josh Read and Serge Dossou, along with Tane Caubo, who Kennedy said is “having his best season.”
“You could say, before he was injured, Cole [Suart] had been our best player this season,” he added.
Kennedy noted Suart, in the midfield, provides “tremendous protection” for the X-men’s back four defenders.
“Cole does all the dirty work that no one else, usually, wants to do,” he said.
Describing the “strength of the team” as its seniors, he stressed their unselfishness.
“They all want to play, but they also all want to win,” Kennedy said.
He noted all-star quality talents, such as Liam Elbourne, Joe Edgerton and Ben Herringer, do not complain, if they do not start.
“We have that kind of depth,” Kennedy said.
‘Scheduling challenges’
During the regular season, he noted, the X-men have been a “victim of scheduling challenges.”
In mid-september, for example, after a Friday night battle with the defending national champion and rival CBU Capers, they were back on the pitch the next afternoon against the Saint Mary’s Huskies in Halifax.
“It was a sweltering afternoon,” Kennedy recalled, noting the Huskies were also fresh.
He hopes the “lost points” – the team tied 2-2 – will not come back to haunt the X-men as they push for a top-two spot in the standings, which means a firstround bye in the playoffs.
At the time, Kennedy said a similar challenge awaited the team over the weekend, with a Saturday home match-up against the unbeaten Dalhousie Tigers, followed by a road trip to Charlottetown for a Sunday tilt with the UPEI Panthers.
“It is a tall ask,” Kennedy said, noting the Panthers are always tough to play on home turf.
He added “it is going to be our most important weekend of the season.”
Results of those matches were unavailable at press time.
On the road
Over the weekend, the X-men played the Dalhousie Tigers in their final home match of the campaign (Oct. 13) and visited Charlottetown to face the UPEI Panthers.
Results of those games were unavailable at press time.
The X-men will finish their regular season, on the road, with a match against the Capers (Oct. 19) and Memorial University Seahawks (Oct. 26 and 27).