After turning the corner about midway through the summer of 2022, the GSSC (Greater Sudbury Soccer Club) U18 Impact boys are more than a little anxious to throw it into high gear in the next few months, following up their final year of high-school soccer with a dash to the finish down the home stretch of TOSL (Toronto Soccer League) play this season.
What a difference a year makes.
“We actually got off to a really rough start last year,” noted 18 year old centerback Tyler Thibodeau, the soon-to-be St Charles College graduate who is taking his game over to the Cambrian Golden Shield in the fall. “We played the number one team in our league and they beat us pretty good.”
“After that, we were playing okay and then we went to Ottawa, didn’t even have our whole team,” added the multi-sport athlete who had generally favoured hockey to soccer, pre-pandemic. “We really connected there, really bonded. That’s when we got really close with all of the new players.”
“We played really well at that tournament.”
The momentum carried over not only into the last half of 2022 but right through the winter as the U18 Impact opened up this summer’s schedule with a 6-1 win over the Olympic Flame, with Maliq Olanrewaju (2), Finn Gould (2), Nicholas McGee and Nathan Cranston handling the scoring for the locals.
“Before, we were all kind of friends from soccer but now that we have grown a lot more as people, the chemistry has been much better,” said Cranston, echoing the general sentiment of the teammate (Thibodeau) that he will remain with as they tackle OCAA play in the fall. “We’ve been playing really good together since about midway through last year.”
Over and above the tightness that the team has developed in battle has come a much better understanding for the style of play required to achieve a degree of success as one hits higher and higher levels of competition.
“Last year, we had times where one person would try and take it up by themselves,” said Cranston. “But you need to pass and move into space; you want it to be an instinct. For me, when I make the pass, I will make a run past the defenders. You always have to find the space after you make the pass.”
“When we were U15, we would get the ball and our first mindset was to put it over the top and get it straight to the striker,” added Thibodeau. “I used to think that was good. Now I know that when you get the ball, you’ve got to relax it, make sure your head is up and keep the ball on the ground as much as possible.”
“There’s been a lot of moving it out of the back, with Tyler or Carter (Grenier) starting with the ball and sending it out wide, then back to the middle,” acknowledged Cranston.
Throw in the added benefits that have come courtesy of access to the Lancer Dome on a more consistent basis in the off-season and you have the makings of a group of young men who can hardly wait to welcome the Olympic Flame to Sudbury in the back end of their home and home set on Saturday May 27th (2:15 p.m. – James Jerome).
“This is the first year that we’ve trained on a turf all winter,” exclaimed Thibodeau. “We’ve been getting a lot of training in. We did really well in our first game; everything was really working out for us. We have a lot of confidence in this team.”
Rounding out the 2023 roster are Matthew Bodnar, Kaelan Cuglietta, Braydon Ethier-Perras, Jacob Gill, Alex Leduc, Bryan Perez, Ousama Quarqouz and Blake Rosener.
Meanwhile, the GSSC U15 Impact boys righted the ship after a tough opening outing, starting their season on the road but now having a three week stretch to implement the adjustments they will need when regular season play resumes on June 11th against Etobicoke Youth in Sudbury.
Coach Dino Moretta and company were swamped 8-0 by DCFC (Dutch Connections Football Club) in their ice-breaker last weekend, though the long-time local soccer man commended Impact defender Emanuel Boamah and keeper Tyler Granthien for their perseverance and effort in the face of adversity as the locals dusted off the cobwebs.
Their Sunday affair was a far better one, falling behind 2-0 to East York, halving the deficit courtesy of a lovely strike from outside the 18 by team veteran Massimo Toffoli, but not drawing any closer. Mishal Olanrewaju stepped up with a big game on the back line for the U15 Impact.
The balance of the Impact U15 boys team features David Akero, Alfarouq Alzawi, Maksim Beljo, Mauro Cusinato, Allesandro Moretta, Lukas Morin, Donald Munyua, Kouame Nango, Chamirai Nyabeze, Moyo Olusola-Kuteyi, Caleb Pearson, Joshua Rioux and Sullivan Smith.
Of special note this year is the fact that there is actually a second GSSC Impact team of 2008-2009 boys, one which will compete in the Huronia District Soccer League – which speaks volumes to the growth of the sport locally and the wonderful energy that has been added to the mix courtesy of the influx of immigrants from various parts of the world to northern Ontario.
Coming off a nice 4-1 win over the Nipissing District Lakers in pre-season play earlier this month, the Impact U13 Boys duplicated that effort and then some in TOSL Cup play, outscoring their North Bay rivals 6-1 and advancing to round two.
Rhys Johnson-Calixte and Xander Millett scored two goals apiece for the Sudbury reps, with solo markers registered by both Hudson Green and Samuel Lazare. The team will endure a busy weekend, complete with some travelling on May 27th and 28th, hosting North Toronto Nitros Saturday at noon but off to the GTA for a Sunday match against Wexford, also at noon.