Marine Harvest too much for undermanned Comox

Marine Harvest played a 10-man Comox side depleted by illness and suspension at Serauxmen Field in Nanaimo.

On their previous meeting, Marine Harvest were victorious (6-4), so it was unfortunate that Comox could not field a full squad and went down to 8-0 defeat.

Marine Harvest opened the scoring in the seventh minute, when a free kick taken by Zach Hamilton sailed nicely behind the defense into the 18-yard box, where a well-placed Eric Christesen toe-poked the ball crisply home.

At 22 minutes, Gabriel Lessard intercepted a pass, took the ball around a Comox defender and their keeper for an unobstructed shot on goal.

Shane Berry, playing up front, converted a through pass, cleverly controlling the ball to place a clear and confident shot into the back of the net.

Only four minutes later, Samuel Jepson scored a seemingly-impossible and beautifully-taken goal: he held off no fewer than three defenders by shielding the ball and ramming home a shot past the frustrated Comox keeper.

Marine Harvest keeper Chris Erickson had not been hard-pressed, but sometimes these are the toughest games to defend.

A Comox shot, low and to his right, caught Erickson at full stretch, to keep a clean sheet for his squad.

Ten minutes into the second half, Lessard dangled the ball cleverly, using his speed and skill to shoot at a tight angle, somehow finding the net.

Marine Harvest then picked up another three unanswered goals: Shane Dumanoir on an assist from Berry at 69 minutes, then Berry from Dumanoir three minutes later.

The final goal of the afternoon came from Dumanoir on an assist from Jepson.

Ben Perrault, new to the team, put in most of the game as sweeper, demonstrating his prowess upfront in the final few minutes, only narrowly missing the net.

The back line of Iain Wilson, Perrault, Christesen, Malcolm Maundrell, Justin Gjerde and Colton Reesor, effectively shut down the two fast Comox strikers, who rarely were able to get a shot away.

Marine Harvest’s midfield – Neil Pomeroy and Pearse Doolin – played an effective game, passing up key balls to the front line and controlling the centre of the pitch with confidence and aplomb.

Assistant Coach Craig Hamilton said, “It was a fun game to watch. The team were making decisions about where the ball was going as they received the pass and before striking the ball.

“The boys built on the positive things from the first half to complete a delightful second half.”

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