The Waddy Cup Final, Poppy Cup, and Summer League are all just around the corner!
There are only two weeks remaining in the 2026 Spring League season, but lots to look forward to. The Waddy Cup Final has been set, with Jordan Clarke’s Black slated to face Ellie Irvine’s Purple for the third time this season. Black secured a victory in their first meeting – a 3-2 comeback win in penalty kicks in Week 12. Justin Paulson scored from a late freekick to tie the game up late, before 5 rounds of penalty kicks highlighted by emphatic Cassandra Crocker and Lavender White strikes secured the comeback. With an immediate rematch, Purple responded with a comeback victory of their own. Having missed the match prior, stalwart Jai Irvine evened things up, before Isaac Walser completed the turnaround.
This sets the stage for the Waddy Final, a game for all the bragging rights and the chunkiest trophy in sports, in memory of Cowichan’s own Don Waddy. The refereeing will be questionable, but the spirit will all be for fun and the love of the game. Best of luck to these two teams in what should be a fun affair!
As for league play, there are 3 teams still in the running of the crown of being a Spring League champion!
Royal Blue – The Dark Horse (30 pts)
Clifford MacFarlane and Declan Sanders have done well drafting a well-oiled machine starting from their 7th overall draft pick. Liam van Niekirk has led the line all-season long, while keeper tandem Owen Papineau and Hisham Mohamed has provided stability throughout. Cade Smith leads a strong group of ladies with an eye-watering 15 points in 13 games. Her 10 goals include two separate hat-tricks, while Kelsey Ambler and Heather Morson have steadily chipped in all-season long. A strong-tackling core of Justin Marinier, Shane McLeod, Dominic Gurzinski, and Tristan Ruszel toes a fine line with the referees, but with only one early season blue card, Clifford has been keeping things in check. Having fallen to Forest Green and White already this season, a result against Purple is important to keep title hopes alive, before finishing the season against Gold. Especially since they’re only 2 points off the top.
Forest Green – The Hopefuls (31 pts)
Only two teams in the top 7 of the draft didn’t select a goalkeeper; one of them was Forest Green. Captain Curtis Flynn has taken on the gloves all season long, a testament to the sacrifice that comes with his leadership style. His leadership has been rewarded by player availability, as Forest Green have the fewest absences of any other Spring League team. The Steelhead core continues, with midfielders Kevin Smith and Justin Parish leading the way. Forest Green is the only team with three separate players at 6 assists or more: Kevin S. (8), Justin P. (7), and Antony VC. (6). The Steelheads are rounded out by the industrious Tom Peterson and David Grey, while Spring League rookies Jeremy Nehme and Kevin Caddell have become valuable cogs to the Forest Green Machine. Paige Hart and Maya Johnston have been ever-present up front or on the flanks, while rookie Ariel Wilson has picked up 3 points in her last 4 games. After an undefeated start of 8 games, the last 5 weeks have been wobbly. Will Forest Green straighten out as they face fellow title challengers White and Purple in the following weeks?
Purple – The Favourites (32 pts)
The Purple team has played by committee all season long. Not only do they have four different players collecting at least a partial clean sheet, but they are the only team to have every single player register at least one point in a league game. Jonte Lohsen, Isaac Walser, and Quinn Gillott highlight the youngest of a young bunch, while Jai Irvine and John Lohsen bring the experience and composure at both ends of the field, featuring as the main strikers or goalkeepers depending on the day. Jeevan Dhami and Rowan Thompson form a robust core, while Nishaa Dhami (6) and Ellie Irvine (5) lead the female assist charts. As the only team competing for silverware on two fronts, Purple will have their hands full. Royal Blue this week, before Forest Green in the final week, can Purple complete the double?
Housekeeping
Playing for trophies is always fun, and winning is nice, but it’s important to do it the right way.
All things aside, I still feel it’s important to remind everyone this league is for fun. Playing for trophies is always fun, and winning is nice, but it’s important to do it the right way. Call fouls against yourselves if you commit them – even on accident. If that ball goes off you for a corner, and the referee awards a goal kick, please don’t hesitate to make the correction. I will always be the first to admit I made a mistake in a game, and I hope everyone respects that I ask them to do the same. Make it easy for the refs, don’t cheat to win! Additionally, the turf is starting to show its age. Please help us all avoid preventable wear by enjoying food and drinks other than water outside the field fences. I had to pick up some orange rinds last week that were covered in turf, and almost every week I take a few empty bottles off the field to the recycling. Please help me hold people accountable when possible!
Poppy Cup is set to kick-off on Friday, July 10 through to Saturday, July 11. Still looking to hear back from a few teams before releasing a schedule, but this will be the Spring League Wrap Up party. Prizes, awards, food, you name it, the fruits of another wonderful Spring League season will bear on Saturday, July 11th! Poppy Cup was included in the Spring League fee this year, so we expect everyone to come out for a day full of fun in the sun!
If you’re looking for a more competitive league experience during the VISL/LIWSA off season, please check out the TIDE Summer League, now available on the Tide Athletic website. It will be a 6-team, co-ed league from July 20 to August 6. Two days a week (Monday and Thursday), two games a night in an effort to build tactics and fitness before try-outs for clubs start in August. This will be the second year running and hoping to improve on last year!
Additionally, Maya Johnston has organized a non-TIDE-related women’s drop-in on Tuesday’s over at Rotary field near MacAdam Park from 5PM-7PM, please reach out to her for more details, ladies! (250-510-9978).
Other drop-ins are starting to pop up as well, if you have any questions related to that, please reach out to me at 250-701-2325 and I will attempt to point you in the right direction. It’s a great time for soccer!