RDC blows out Rustlers
There’s always a danger playing an opponent you’re expected to beat.
Take them lightly and they may jump up and bite you.
That wasn’t the case for the RDC soccer teams against the Lakeland College Rustlers Sunday at RDC. A day after sweeping an Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference doubleheader against the Rustlers in Lloydminster both RDC teams proved to be on top of their game as the Queens recorded an 8-0 decision and the Kings walked away with a 4-0 win.
“I was a little worried the girls may come with the wrong attitude and not be ready to play, but that wasn’t the case,” said Queens head coach Dave Colley. “We did have a couple of peaks and valleys, but overall we did a good job of maintaining our level of play.”
Kings head coach Steve Fullarton agreed.
“You never know what to expect,” he said. “We may have been a bit fortunate in the first half as they (Rustlers) had some chances, but the second half we settled down and played with more composure. The second half was better than Saturday’s game (a 5-1 win) or the first half today.”
Although Fullarton felt they weren’t as sharp as they should have been in the opening 45 minutes, the Kings still grabbed a 3-0 lead at the break.
“The nice thing is we’re creating some chances and converting them,” added Fullarton, who was pleased with the 2-0 start, eventhough it was against the expansion Rustlers.
“I can’t remember starting a season where we won our first two games,” he said. “It feels good to come out with the six points. It would have made it tough if we gave away some points against a team we expect to play well against.”
Still the Rustlers impressed Fullarton.
“They have a strong side physically and were hard to contain. They’re just starting their program and they’ll keep improving.”
The Kings only have six returning starters of their own.
“I was impressed with our first-year players,” said Fullarton.
“As well on Saturday the guys who came in off the bench played a major role. That’s what you want to see.”
First-year striker Joe Ziebart of Red Deer led the Kings Sunday with a pair of goals while Tanner Newfield and Kale Donald added single markers. Brad Hughes recorded the shutout.
Stephanie Tremblay dominated the women’s match, scoring four times while Lauren Bowman, Sarah Fulmer, Kayla Keenan and Katie LaGrange added single markers. Rookie Lauren Good of Red Deer had the shutout.
Colley had nothing but praise for Tremblay, who moved up front after playing defence last year.
“Stephanie is not only leading us in scoring, but is proving to be a real leader up front,” he said. “And the cool thing is the rest of the girls are listening to her and they’re working together.”
The Queens exploded out of the gate, scoring two in the first six minutes and led 5-0 at the half.
“We played with a lot of composure and were able to adjust quickly to the adjustments they made from Saturday (a 5-0 win),” said Colley. “The thing is we do have a lot of experience and they have very little. This weekend is their first taste of ACAC competition, so it was a learning experience for them.
“And you have to give them credit. They kept coming and played hard to the end.”
The RDC squads will have a tougher test next weekend as they go on the road visiting SAIT Saturday and Mount Royal Sunday.
They return home Sept. 25 against Medicine Hat and Sept. 26 against Lethbridge.
drode@reddeeradvocate.com
