It’s going to be a fiery Friday night as the top teams in Canada West Pacific Division women's soccer — the second-place UBC Thunderbirds and the league-leading Trinity Western Spartans — face off at 6:30 p.m. at T-Bird Stadium.
Both teams go into the last weekend of the regular season on seven-game win streaks. The teams also appear evenly matched on paper, with Trinity having a slight an edge in statistics. The Spartans have dropped points just once this season (a 3-2 loss to MacEwan) while the Thunderbirds have lost two, one of which was at Trinity.
This won’t be an easy game for either team. Both will have to fight for any attempt at goal and both teams’ defenses can expect to be much busier than usual, tracking runs and intercepting passes.
Here are some things the Thunderbirds can do to challenge for top spot in the Pacific Conference:
Contain Kashima
The UBC defensive line will have to keep track of Seina Kashima throughout the game. The U Sports Female Athlete of the week (for the week ending October 7) holds the Trinity record for most season assists so far at 13. Aside from supplying the ball to her teammates, she also has seven goals. If she is left to run free, her effect on the game will be lethal.
Interestingly, UBC will also face a challenge they’re not generally accustomed to: stopping Spartan defenders from finding the back of the net. The Spartans defense has found the net 13 times this season. That said, the stats back the T-Birds in defense. They’ve been solid all season and all things considered, it’ll take some work getting past UBC's line and Emily Moore in goal.
Utilize depth
The current Thunderbird squad is packed with quality and head coach Jesse Symons has made use of his squad’s depth through a strategic rotation of players. The stats prove it: about three-fourths of the squad have featured in more than half of their games. Aside from the obvious threats posed by strikers Danielle Steer and Michelle Jang, the Spartans defense will have their hands full trying to keep up with the creativity and skill of various players amongst the Thunderbirds’ attack, including Melissa Bustos, Amelia Crawford, Emma Cunningham and Alyssa Hunt.
The UBC back four play their role on attack as well, with runs down the middle and the wing, and crucial passes that change the game. The key to beating a powerhouse Spartans team will be utilizing this depth of talent and putting up team-play that overpowers the effect any single player could have on the game. In all fairness, UBC has been phenomenal at this throughout the season, but it comes down to if they can bring their best show to Friday night’s spectacle.
Manage the momentum
UBC has been great when they’re up: they’re determined, hungry and eager to cement their victory, but they haven’t really been tested when they’re on the other side of things. Their loss to the Calgary Dinos was unfortunate as they played exceptionally but were unable to level the game. Their fixture at Trinity saw them concede two early goals which left them a little flustered, too. Although they were able to pull one back through a Steer strike, the result wasn’t in their favour.
Hopefully, if they can keep their composure, they can pull through and head into their final regular season match against the University of Fraser Valley and then playoffs on a high.
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