The teachings of Ross Moynihan are beginning to take root with the Sudbury U21 Cyclones women's team.

Taking over as head coach of the OWSL (Ontario Women's Soccer League) squad a month or so prior to the launch of their summer season in early June, the native of Ireland expected some early growing pains.

"We came in with our own ideas and something that we wanted to try differently," said Moynihan, who jumped aboard this challenge along with assistant coach and aspiring sports psychologist Cole Giffin.

"The first two games, we started slowly working in new things."

The results were somewhat predictable, the local crew saddled with a pair of 2-0 losses at the hands of the Barrie Spirit and Woodbridge Strikers.

Thankfully, Moynihan was not fighting an uphill battle all on his own.

"The girls bought into it from day one," he suggested. "They were enthusiastic in being willing to do anything we asked them to do. It's paying off now on the pitch."

A 2-0 win over Muskoka United Football Club Sunday at home evened the team's record at 3-3-0, hitting exactly the midway point of their schedule and sitting smack dab in the middle of the seven team group that comprises the Central Region U21 Division.

Soon to leave for her freshman season with the Indian Hills (Community College) Warriors in Iowa, Kiara Levac buried both Sudbury goals while call-up keeper Izzy Roy registered the clean sheet at the opposite end of the pitch.

For Moynihan, however, it remains more about the process than wins or losses, confident that his gathering of largely post-secondary talent needs to gain comfort with a style of play that is far more in-line with their soccer experiences that lie beyond youth soccer with the GSSC (Greater Sudbury Soccer Club).

"Long balls is one thing we've tried to get rid of," said Moynihan. "We want to play across the back line, across the mids, into the channels and between the lines. The girls are not just kicking it through and trying to chase everything."

"They're holding possession. They're dragging the opposition out of position and playing into the space behind them. That's what we want to see."

For as much as Cambrian College sophomore defender Makayla Bertrand is tuned in completely to the tactical teachings of Moynihan, there is also a far more practical purely physical takeaway she has targetted from her involvement with the Cyclones this summer.

"My main thing is cardio," said the soon-to-be 19 year old graduate of Bishop A. Carter Catholic Secondary School. "I have a really hard time with cardio, having ashtma. I was in the firefighting program (this year) and that really helped me, helped me for this summer."

"I am able to play the full game without being subbed."

That said, when it came time to set foot on the turf of the James Jerome Sports Complex, Bertrand was laser-focused on the messaging from Moynihan and company. "They wanted us to focus on letting the ball do the work, keep the ball on the ground and move forward as a team," she said.

That assignment is not quite as easy as it sounds for someone who boasts the specific soccer resume of the young lady who will be crossing over to Occupational Therapist and Physiotherapist Assistant studies come the fall.

"I've got to be a bit softer with my passes," Bertrand explained. "I am used to playing with Valley (Valley East) soccer where it's all grass (as is the Cambrian home field). On grass, the ball moves a lot slower."

"Switching to turf was a big adjustment for me, learning how powerful my passes need to be to get them to the right spot," added the young centerback.

Of course, adjustment is in the air, these days, for Bertrand and the remainder of her Cambrian teammates. With head coach Evan Phillips crossing over to work with the Sudbury Cyclones League1 Ontario entry on a more regular basis, Golden Shield men's coach Jason Garforth now assumes control of both Cambrian OCAA soccer entries.

"I think it's going to be really good for the team," said Bertrand. "He's really intense, but I think it's going to work good for us."

Between now and the start of Cambrian training camp on August 12th or so, Bertrand will play out the balance of her Cyclones' encounters, the team set to travel south this weekend for matches against the Oshawa Kicks (Saturday) and Alliance United (Sunday).