Men's soccer Huskies eyeing fresh start on road

When it comes to Sunday's matchup for the Keyano Huskies men's soccer team, there's a level of irony when considering their opponent's name and their current predicament. 

Facing the Portage College Voyageurs, the Huskies will need to do some portaging of their own, working themselves past an obstacle that, if successful, will lead them to claiming a playoff spot in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference's (ACAC) North Division. 

"There's always teams that struggle to begin," said head coach Niels Slotboom. "It's like getting one point out of six games is really what it compares to, which obviously shows a whole different story. 

"I'm pretty comfortable going into this weekend knowing that after a good week of training these guys can turn it around and we start our new season." 

Saturday's action in the ACAC North Division further complicated things as the Voyageurs secured a 2-1 win against the Concordia Thunder, moving them ahead of Keyano and dropping Slotboom's squad into seventh place, though the Huskies do have a game in-hand.

As much as the pressure is turning up on the squad, players like Thomas Ang are remaining calm, cool, and collected on the outside. 

"We've done a lot of work both on and off the field to try and address some of the issues we've had," said Ang. "We've shown that we have a lot of technical and physical ability and it's just tiny details that need to be addressed that can change good performances into good results." 

It's not necessarily reinventing the wheel, as Slotboom knows his team is on the right track in some areas, he's just waiting for the complete game plan to be fully executed from a squad he sees the positive potential in. 

"Sticking to our own game plan and making sure that we execute what we work on, instead of some other things that we haven't worked on, is something that's going to be really key in this to make sure that we start turning the tide here," he said.

One of the areas needing more attention, their goal scoring, will require some new faces to step up in the absence of Caleb Kehler. 

"He got his suspension in the last game and he's not going to be there regardless," said Slotboom. "Someone is going to have to step up and it's going to be difficult because he's been one of our main creative players moving forward, someone that has been pretty effective each game." 

The men's soccer Huskies take to the pitch in Lac la Biche Sunday, October 3 against the Portage College Voyageurs. Kick-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.