The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Jonathon Naylor Editor The odds seemed stacked against the Hapnot Kopper Kings and Kopper Kweens heading into the Zone 11 soccer final in Thompson last weekend. Their opponents, after all, were the male and female Trojan teams from Thompson's R.D. Parker Collegiate, an athletically gifted school four times the size of Hapnot. But it mattered not once the players hit the field. Combining skill, tenacity and some luck, the Kings and Kweens brought home the zone banners while positioning themselves to represent northern Manitoba at this weekend's Provincials. The Kings found themselves trailing almost as soon as the game had begun, giving up a goal off the leg of a defender in only the second minute of play. Hapnot battled back however, equalizing the score less than 10 minutes later and adding two more in the first half en route to a 4-2 win. The Kings went ahead late in the first half in the same way they tied the game up, striking home a loose ball from a scramble in front of the Trojans' net. They then doubled their advantage with the first half almost over when a long free kick bounced over the Trojans' goaltender, who, battling the sun, tried to punch the shot away but couldn't knock it clear of the net. R.D. Parker got within one in the first 10 minutes of the second half, on a shot off the Hapnot keeper's hand that found the top of the net. But any hopes of a last-minute comeback were dashed when the Kings got to a ball that landed in no-man's land in front of the Trojans goalie. Hapnot made the opportunity count. The Kweens also made the most of their opportunities _ and only shot on goal in the second half of the girls' soccer final _ to put home the winner. It proved to be the only goal of the game, coming about 10 minutes before the clock ran out. The Kweens walked away with the 1-0 win. 'They had one shot on net in the second half and they scored,' said Trojans head coach Stan Wong immediately after the game. 'One shot on net. What do you do?' The Trojans carried play for much of the game, dominating possession and maintaining control in the Kweens' end for long stretches, including most of the final five minutes of the opening half. But the Trojans were unable to convert any of their chances, which included a scramble for a loose ball in Hapnot's penalty area just before half-time. The ball eluded the Hapnot goaltender only to bounce off the post as the Trojans battled to get the equalizer. Still, many of R.D. Parker's offensive attempts were foiled by Hapnot's team defence, which bent but didn't break. At Tuesday's school board meeting, Flin Flon School Division Superintendent Blaine Veitch congratulated the Kings and Kweens on a job well done. _ With files from Ian Graham, Thompson Citizen
