The head coach of Hamber’s senior boys soccer team dug through the history books to find out the last time the Griffins went to the B.C. championships.
His guess: 37 years ago when Hamber won the 1976 city title.
“They don’t even have the record for this,” said Pino Scaglione.
Their road back to the B.C.’s was anything but smooth, said the coach, given the incredible parity in the city league this season. “Every day was a different story,” he said.
Hamber finished third in the city league with four wins and two losses, one point behind both Kitsilano (4-1) and Point Grey (4-1). The Hounds topped the table but didn’t advance to Lower Mainlands while Lord Byng (1-4) finished sixth and rose to win the city championship and become the only other Â鶹´«Ă˝Ół»team to reach provincials.
At Lower Mainlands, Hamber eliminated Kitsilano, Churchill and St. George’s in three straight do-or-die games.
“They were all must-win games,” said Scaglione, who’s known around the Oak Street school as Scagz.
Hamber lost its first game of the double-knock tournament to Lord Byng in overtime but avenged itself in provincials with a 1-0 win.
But at provincials, held Nov. 21 to 23 at Burnaby Lake Park, the Griffins drew the “group of death” and were placed with the defending 2012 champions from Charles Best, a team stacked with High Performance League athletes, and the eventual 2013 champions from Sutherland.
Hamber played Charles Best to a 1-1 draw. “That was a big shocker,” said Scaglione.
The success caused the Griffins to relax and in the second game against Sutherland, they allowed three goals in the first 15 minutes.
“We took them too lightly,” said the coach. “If we’d started the game a little bit better, it would have been a better game.”
Hamber was bolstered on the backline by captain Garrett Robinson and in the midfield by Emis Weinstein-Wright. Goaltender Edgar Duran, a grade 11 standout from Mexico, kept the Griffins competitive as did Grade 10 midfielder Rocky Ojaji.
Key goals came from Jake Chaisson and Duva Karunakaran, who had four at provincials.
Hamber finished third in its group and 10th overall in the 16-team tournament.
Lord Byng finished 12th after cracking the top 10 last year and the results also sent head coach Andy Johnston to the record books in search of his team’s history.
In his 22-year coaching career, Johnston has taken a team to provincials nine times in 18 seasons at AAA. They reached their high point in 1994 when they finished third and in an email he told the Courier, “Since then we have come fifth, sixth, seventh, eight twice (once last year), 12th (this year), 13th and 15th — never last!”
The Grey Ghosts lacked depth to contend at the more competitive level and although they controlled the tempo in their group stage games, they were unable to score. Fatigue set in and so did injuries.
Goaltender Mikey Lee was named a tournament all-star and the team was unexpectedly supported by Luc Hansen-Boucher who was hospitalized for a severe cut but returned to cheer on the sidelines. “It was an inspiring show of support and showed his leadership,” said Johnston. “I wasn't happy with the team's final standing but all of the guys gave everything they had and in the end, that's all a coach can ask for.”
