One Obstacle Overcome

August 15, 2007 by Mark Block | View Comments (5)

Northwind defeat Revolution, August 4th, 2007
Canada (45) def. U.S.A. (32)

Cross border footy certainly has been a touchy issue for Canadians as of late. Ask any Northwind player about their success against the Revolution and you would have likely heard nothing but snarls. Although this match-up has always been close, until August 4th 2007, the Northwind had not beaten the Revolution in an official international competition. A record like that weighs heavily on a team. In Vancouver, B.C. however, the Northwind finally shed their past, and delivered a great performance in beating the U.S. side.

This marquee match was part of an expose of Australian football hosted at Thunderbird Stadium. From the grandstand, this spectacular venue offered spectators an impressive view of international footy played on an oval in pristine condition. The weekend was a jam packed 2-day schedule of non-stop footy, featuring not only the senior mens' national teams, but also Canada and U.S.'s junior, and womens' teams as well as teams representing Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, Portland; even players from Japan who battled for the B.C. Footy Cup. Everything from newspaper and radio coverage, event programs, beer and meat pie concessions, even music and commentary ensured this to be the greatest amateur 'Footy' event that has ever been held in North America.

Saturday's 2:00 pm feature match was the senior men. It started with the Revolution entering the field accompanied by Bruce Springstein's "Born in the USA" while the Northwind followed by BTO's "You Ain't Seen Nothin Yet" blaring over the stadium's P.A. system. After the teams lined up for national anthems, the battle was on. What an exciting start!

With intensity so high, it still takes a while for these teams to settle into their games. The Revolution have always been strong in packs. The Northwind have been working hard to use field space to their advantage. Not surprisingly, this was the way the game played out. Every time plays became congested, the Revolution outnumbered the Canadians, but the Northwind worked hard to avoid this strategy and, although the game was an epic battle, the Northwind were more successful in using space and spreading the game out. By the second quarter, the Northwind gained their first lead of the game but conceded a goal with only 6 seconds remaining in the half to let it slip.

From the Canadians' standpoint, there was a strong sense of confidence in the changing room after that. In the third quarter, the Northwind took the lead back and would not let it go. The Revolution pressed heavily at times but Matt Lowden, Tasos Dimakacos, and Daniel Zimmerman provided dramatic smothers and incredible defense for the Northwind. Daniel Zimmerman did well to clear the ball from danger under some desperate situations with giant boots. Steve Carew saved the day with numerous wandering goal line saves and was awarded BOG for his performance. With only minutes to go, the Northwind held the game taking pokes at the Revolution goal. Although they didn't score majors there, they were able to execute a successful "offensive lock" and control the ball for the rest of the game.

The final score for the 49th Parallel Cup:
Northwind 45, Revolution 32.

On Sunday, the seniors played their second match. It was originally slated to be the Northwind Reserves vs. Revolution Reserves but, in all honesty, featured two badly battered and bruised squads from the day's previous game. Both the Revolution and the Northwind had numerous players out with injuries. Even from the beginning, the Revolution requested not to go through the pageantry of pre-game ceremonies. They just wanted to get on with the game.

On this occasion, the Revolution were able to dominate the larger percentage of play using their pack style of footy. They clearly did not want to go home 0-2. Frank Luisser had another great performance as did Daniel Zimmerman and Jacob Sone for the Northwind, but in the end, countless dropped balls, bad kicks and poor strategical maneuvering from most of the crew ended up in a narrow 6 point defeat. The Northwind's story is accurately described as a game of poor execution. Revolution 34 to Northwind 28. The Canadians left the field disappointed. They will probably look back at their performance wishing they had done a little more. A 2-0 record would have sent a much more powerful message to the international footy community about how far their program has come in just one year. They held their heads high afterwards, though, knowing the weight was off their shoulders for now. They can continue to develop knowing they will be a force to be reckoned with in 2008.

This international could not go by without recognizing the contributions of the Northwind's greatest stars. Aaron Falcioni (Assistant Captain), Matt Lowden and Kevin Minaker have consistently been the team's greatest performers. They view the game with creativity and intensity rarely matched by players outside Australia. The team's captain, Stefan Leyhane, has been the backbone of the team showing unwavering commitment to the national program. 17-year-old Vancouver native Scott Fleming impressed the hometown crowd with a great performance which bodes well for the future. And, of course after the success of the team, every player should be congratulated. For this tournament, however, no one deserves more recognition than Bruce Parker. Not only did he have a solid weekend performance, he delighted the crowd with the 'Specky' of the tournament in game 2, a high flyer which saw him bravely landing upside-down. After dusting off his shoulders, he pushed the play forward for one of the team's best down field passages. More than that, Bruce Parker was the Northwind's most active contributor on the management staff and one of the most generous sponsors. The program owes a debt of gratitude for this man's incredible contribution.

What does this win mean to the Northwind? Of course, everyone loves a winner. Firstly, this roster of players and management will always be remembered as the first team to beat the U.S. The management have much loftier goals than that though. Already, Northwind sponsors like Ironbark have offered to contribute enormous dollars to help develop Canada's football program. New players were immediately acquired from out of the B.C. Footy program. The press have already written articles in the Vancouver Province, radio interviews have been aired on Team 1040 radio in Vancouver, international footy websites such as: afl.com.au and World Footy News have written articles recognizing the success of the Northwind's rise to prominence. All of this in the first week. Can the Northwind meet the challenges of 2008's International Cup? Time will tell.

Great job Northwind!