Going into their series against the Langara Falcons, the Douglas College Royals men's soccer team knew they had to perform this weekend if they were hoping to break their recent form.
It was a slow start to the derby for both sides as defence was on immediate display. The Royals had a couple cracks at the net but nothing too threatening for Falcons keeper Kevin Monk. The Falcons didn't test Royals keeper Ryu Mizuno who was playing his first game of the season at all in the first 45 minutes.
His first test came shortly after the halftime marker. Langara's Logan Hooper registered the first shot of the game for the Falcons, and the registered the first goal of the game. However, the Royals struck back in the form of a Tomi Fagopngbe strike, and the game was leveled.
With the pace set, the Royals settled into an aggressive attacking form, testing keeper Kevin Monk often. In the 80th minute, the Royals found their go-ahead goal when Race Williams scored a beauty. Five minutes later, Tomi Fagopngbe struck home the insurance goal, his second of the game. All of the sudden the Royals were the ones in control. There was a little bit of a scare as Kyle Kemp put away a shot in extra time to bring the Falcons one goal closer to tying, but the Royals held on for the 3-2 win.
Feeling great after the win, the Royals came into game two energized and ready to seal their weekend. But the Falcons were looking to get back on a winning page. Unfortunately for them, the Royals just had better quality in front of the net. Stefan Kamner rifled home the first of the game in the 25th minute to break the score sheet. Three minutes later, Race Williams doubled the Royals lead with a fabulous looking goal.
The lead would hold the Royals until half time. In the 55th minute, a foul in the box sent the Royals to the spot. Tomi Fagopngbe stepped up to take the shot from the mark and absolutely blasted a sitter past the keeper to put the Royals up three. Five minutes later, Quinn Dawson found the score sheet for the Royals, bringing them up four.
Dawson's marker would prove to be the game winner, but the Falcons managed to grab one goal off a penalty kick taken by Kyle Kemp. The 4-1 win sent a message to the rest of the PACWEST. The Royals are back, and they're looking deadly.
You can catch them next Saturday (October 14) as they take on the Quest Kermodes at 3:30 pm on Cunnings Field. Come out and support your Royals!