Northwind Dominate First International Cup Match

August 27, 2008 by Salvatore Capoferri | View Comments (13)

MELBOURNE, Australia. - The Northwind have begun their International Cup campaign in superb fashion with a massive 130 point victory over Finland.

After months of training and preparation for this event, Canada's national team dominated from start to finish against their inexperienced opponents, taking full advantage of some perfect conditions at Royal Park in inner Melbourne.

Guelph Gargoyles Chris Cunning was superb up forward with 6 goals, as was BC native Scott Fleming who kicked 4. All up there were 10 goal kickers for Canada, who were prepared to share the ball around to create scoring chances.

The High Park Demons' Dale Simnett was brilliant in the ruck, really setting the tone for the team from the first bounce with a dominant display around the ground.

His onballers, led by George Dimacakos who was playing his first game since breaking his ribs 7 weeks earlier, were everywhere and continually pumped the Northwind inside their attacking half of the ground where Cunning & Fleming were dominating their opponents.

Another who played a key role was small forward Murray Lovett who kicked the team's first goal and provided a much needed spark all day long.

Team vice-captain Aaron Falcione played a pivotal role at Centre Half Forward, providing a focal point every time the ball entered the Canadian 50 metre zone. His creativity and willingness to involve his teammates in each and every play allowed the Canadians to be dangerous from all positions.

Vancouver's James Maitland was also a dominate force up forward and on the wing, with his height and athleticism proving too good a match for the inexperienced Finnish players. James is going to prove a headache for all teams in the tournament with his size and mobility.

Captain Stefan Leyhane played like the respected leader he is, not giving Finland any chance to make a drive forward.

In front of a large crowd which had assembled to cheer on the Northwind team, the highlight of the game was the superb running goal from full back Matthew Lowden who charged through the centre of the ground and drilled a long goal from 50 metres out which inspired his teammates and drew a huge roar from everyone watching on.

Despite some inaccurate kicking the coaching staff were very happy with today's performance and are excited for what the team can produce in their next match v Sweden. The Swedes were defeated by Ireland today in their group match but are sure to provide some tough opposition come Friday.

The final score was:

Northwind 18.22.130 defeated Finland 0.0.0

Goal kickers for Canada: Chris Cunning 6, Scott Fleming 4, Murray Lovett 1, James Maitland 1, Aaron Falcione 1, George Dimacakos 1, Danny McIlravey 1, Matty Lowden 1, Rhys Harris 1, Clayton Holmes 1

Best players: All-round team performance by all 24 players.

Reported by Daniel Eddy