The Williams Lake Football Club (FC) team — which includes South Cariboo soccer players Griffin Carmont, Matthew Keller, and Isaac Todd — came home as award winners from the Les Sinnott Memorial Boys Provincials Cup.
The U16 team received the Fair Play Team Award for their good sportsmanship and fair play throughout the tournament, which was held in Kamloops from July 7-10.
While the team played hard, they fell short of a win, losing 0-5 to Kamloops Blaze, 1-6 to CMF Porto, and 0-5 to Saanich Fusion IG Wealth Management. Head coach Grant Gustafson previously told the Free Press that he expected it might be difficult to play against larger city centres such as Kamloops, Coquitlam and Saanich, as the teams on the coast were nearing the end of their soccer season.
Williams Lake moved on to the playoffs on Sunday, where they were defeated by Pinnacles FC, a team from Penticton, by a score of 0-5.
The game was close in the first half, with only three goals scored against the team. However, Williams Lake FC faced difficulties after their main keeper received a red card for picking up the ball outside his box, resulting in immediate ejection from the game.
Pinnacles FC received several warnings for late slide tackles and double-handed shoves from behind. A Pinnacles FC player was also given a red card and was forced to leave the game when he kicked the ball after the whistle had been blown, hitting a Williams Lake FC player in the head. This came during a Pinnacles FC free kick due to a foul.
Williams Lake FC finished eighth overall in the provincial tournament. They plan to continue practices throughout the summer.
lauren.keller@100milefreepress.net
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