Yellow Jackets top Woodbridge
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By DAN ANGELL
For the News & Messenger
Published: May 26, 2008
“As a team, we need to enjoy this win, but keep our minds going forward,” Payne said. “Our goals aren’t fin-ished.”
But the Yellow Jackets’ 2-1 victory over Woodbridge was a solid first step, a step taken because of versatility and set plays. Both OP goals, one that deflected off a Viking and another that Payne scored after a throw near Woodbridge’s goal line came as a result of execution.
“We practice the throw-in almost every practice,” Payne said. “I think our throw-in is just as effective as our corner, if not more effective.”
OP coach Larry Nemerow added that his team’s regular season loss to the Vikings might have also worked in the Jackets’ favor.
“They were winning so much in the beginning of the season, why change?” he said. “When they beat us, we had to change everything, so I’m sure we looked like a different team to them. That was a key thing.”
One of the changes Nemerow said the loss forced was an increase in versatility, which meant putting play-ers in multiple spots. In turn, that allowed him more flexibility as the season wore on. Woodbridge coach Don Allen said that allowed OP to take control.
“He (Nemerow) did a great job, he used his entire bench,” Allen said. “We didn’t keep up with it. They out-ran us in the middle 40. All year, I’ve been saying if we control the midfield, we control the game. We lost con-trol of the midfield.”
That allowed OP to play its possession game, which Payne said was important in minimizing the Vikings’ attack.
“With a team like Woodbridge and all that firepower, you want to get an early goal and make them chase,” he said. “Then we figured if we play our possession game, we could draw them out. We hoped to play that the whole second half.”
The Jackets advance to a semifinal against Albemarle from the Commonwealth District on Wednesday.
WOODBRIDGE 1, RIVERBEND 0: Woodbridge girls’ soccer coach Scott Kerns wasn’t thrilled with the pros-pect of facing the unknown Riverbend Bears, last year’s AA state champion.
“You don’t like playing people in a game like this when you know nothing about them,” he said. “I told the girls the only thing I know about them, they know how to win.”
Kristen Lybert made sure that the Bears would not repeat on the AAA level with the only goal of the match, good enough to put the Vikings through to a semifinal meeting against E.C. Glass.
“Our outside back got the ball and crossed it in,” Lybert said. “The goalie came out and I headed it into the opposite corner. We deserved a goal.”
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Posted by ( NationalRef ) on May 28, 2008 at 8:53 pm
He doesn’t know the game! Never has - never will. Take a look at his history with coaches and assistant coaches. No one stays associated with him. His ignorance is only surpassed by his arrogance.
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Posted by ( vikessoccer ) on May 27, 2008 at 10:55 am
Why would Allen change his mid-field lineup that has been so successful all year if it was so important to him and this is why he feels his team lost? Many of his decisions can be question and does he listen way to much to parents instead of being a coach? If he can’t be his own coach then why is he doing it?
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